to say this to all the teachers who are striking next week

[Memoo]

As a parent I am 100 % behind you.

I really appreciate that you put your life and soul into your job and im sorry more people don't get just how hard you work for the benefit of our children.

Don't let the bastards grind you down!

Butterflies - I don't know you personally and certainly couldn't or wouldn't want to speculate whether you're a liar!! But would someone really stay in a 'badly-paid' career for 40 years because of a pension that might only last a few years (nobody knows when their time is up), all the way through the important family years. I would rather try to earn more now for a better family life, as opposed to the time when it's just me and the hubby. And before anyone shouts at me, I do thank the people who devote their life to teaching children. I possibly wouldn't be the individual I am today without some of the fantastic teachers I've had.

Secure jobs for life? Wake up and smell the coffee as some posters seem to be telling us. Our school has just undergone the first round of redundancies and cuts in hours. There are more to come.

Last time I knew a teacher made redundant? About 5 in the 2 years since our school became an acadamy. Not to mention support staff.

The public sector, and teachers in particular need to get over this victim mentality and appreciate the fact that they're (for the most part) in secure jobs for life. When was the last time anyone knew a teacher get made redundant? Look into the private sector and you'll see families in constant fear of the next "restructure".
Quit whining ffs!!!!

Dotty I must disagree. A secure job for life? that goes against every update that comes out about the NHS at the moment

As much as people bleat on about the public sector needing to join the real world, it really is time they gained some understanding of our (fake?) world.

Oh right, didn't actually know nurses were striking too. I guess DD probably won't be having her jabs next week then!

Becca there are thousands of jobs I could thank people for doing(public and private).Can we move on a bit from the all teachers walk on water theme.It's getting tedious and to be frank this incorrect assumption doesn't make me feel there is any justification for ignoring pension inequality, the state of the economy and the dire situation the rest of the world is in.

My child doesn't get treated by the private sector when he's unwell.
My bins don't get collected by the private sector.
I didn't receive a private education, but a public one.
I've never dialled 999 and got a private security guard at my door.

Quite simply the foundations of our society would disintegrate without them, so why so bitter that they want to fight for their terms and conditions of employment Mrs H?

Teachers were made redundant from DS1's secondary school in July because intake numbers were down (and therefore their budget) & they needed to make cuts .

World educational rankings:

docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AonYZs4MzlZbdEMzTjN5cHY1MmlJOHI3cmZCamRQWEE&hl=en#gid=1

I was peering down the list as if I was looking for myself in the hockey teams. And this list does not reflect what has been spent on the system.

If I had performed at this level I would not be going on strike, and (relative to the rest of the population) asking for better conditions, I would be shrinking behind my desk and expecting to be handed my P45. This has to be one of the worst performing sectors of the economy. Why do they perform so badly? Why are they going on strike? Why are they not apologising to the lost generation, who have to face this crisis with a lack of education, it would seem to me, from this table?

How embarassing. Why is our educational system such a failure? Will the next generation of teachers be any improvement, if this lot resign, as they are threatening to?

Mrs H,
Again, when did we fall into the trap of them and us? And surely those who belong to a union, as I did when I worked in the private sector, can vote for a strike.
And as for the real world, what exactly do you think teachers are teaching your children to do? Live and work in the real world. Surely standing up for something you believe in is a lesson we would wish for our all children.
The real world, is that teachers are facing a large pay cut, that no one has the balls to call a pay cut. Teachers agreed to a pay freeze, reflecting the economic climate. These further amendments erode this.

Firstvix - to be honest I think more teachers should be made redundant! Let's shift some of the "dead wood" - and let's be honest, all schools have some, and make way for some enthused, positive and motivated teachers as opposed to those that are hanging on in there for their lovely pensions!
To be honest perhaps these changes will stop people going into a career on the assumption that a lovely pension will be the pay off for lower pay (not that private sector necessarily get paid any higher, I know I don't!) and then staying in it long after they should have done.

My point being it's hardly a job for life! Actually, nor was it for my dad who gave 30 years of his life to the profession and then was forced to take early retirement before his mortgage was even paid off. He had become "too expensive" and was replaced by a NQT.

However much anyone may not like it there will always be some elements of some jobs that the public sector must provide.

These are the elements that the private sector will not/dont wish to/cant not provide. These are the non profit/non sexy bits of care that need to be provided that perhaps until you need them, you wont appreciate will you actually have need of them. We should be encouraging people into careers or jobs that support vulnerable families that need these services and offering them incentives to join.

MrsH - read the original post; it's about teachers. If you want to go on about pension inequality, my mum was one of thousands who were sold into paying a married woman's stamp (reduced rate national insurance). She has worked all her life and has ended up with a pittance of a pension (my auntie hasn't worked a day and has a full pension). My dad's pension dies with him. I dread to think of the situation Mum will be left in.

I will be striking next week and frankly I am bored and pissed off with the incessant whingeing and bitterness of private sector workers. Get unionised and fight back against a culture that says it is okay to treat employees like sub-human robots who should be grateful to have a job. Don't expect us to lie down and take it up the a**.

Furthermore if I hear one more time how 'well-paid' public sector workers are I may have to resort to violence. Everyone forgets that during the boom when everyone else was doing nicely thank you we were on the same pay as always. I watched friends across all sectors making huge amounts of money, including those with very few qualifications. Now they are on the other side off the see-saw and understandably upset - but we never got the highs and bonuses that they got!

People forget that most teachers are 2:1 graduates (at least in my perfectly ordinary state school) with a post-graduate qualification. We are professionals who get neither the respect nor pay of other professions. We are not going to put up and shut up because a bunch of old Etonians tell us to be grateful for the scraps from their table.

Let's think lord lovely, could having 7 education ministers in the last 6 years have something to do with it? Could the constant changes and buzzwords that get thrown at the profession have anything to do with it?

Why is our educational system such a failure?

Maybe ask the idiots experts who come up with all the wonderful educational initiatives that, lordlovely.

Or, and here's a radical thought, pay teachers more to attract a better quality of candidate for the jobs. In Scandinavian countries, where the standards are very high according to the PISA studies, teachers are paid the same amount as doctors. Both earn high salaries. They are required to be educated to a Masters level too, I believe. In this country, a teacher's starting wage is lower than a bus driver's and as long as you have a degree, (doesn't matter where from, really, and the classification doesn't matter, either), you can gain QTS. I'm not even sure if you need the degree now (I don't teach in England/Wales, so don't know).

Surely by raising the pension age generally there will be a hell of a lot more "dead wood" hanging around in teaching - either that or it will cost more to keep a teacher who graduated at 22 up to date at the age of 68 then letting them retire gracefully at 60 ever would.

And for the idiots who keep saying we have jobs for life - poppyc*ck!!! We've had hours cut last year and a round of redundancies to come this year.

Not saying teachers should be held onto regardless, was just answering the question of 'when was the last teacher you heard being made redundant'. The school I've been in has gone through several rounds of redunancy then recruitment as pupil numbers fluctuate.

It's not the secure forever and ever job that the question implies.

And I agree that we should get out when we need to. Part of the argument against keeping us there til 68!

Could it be lordlovely that the govt haven't got a fucking clue when it comes to education, who was the last education secretary that had ever even worked in a school?

UK schools slip down world rankingsOECD study shows that despite comparatively high levels of per-pupil spending, the UK is behind Poland and Norway

www.guardian.co.uk/education/2010/dec/07/uk-schools-slip-world-rankings

Not much to write home about; nothing to strike about. Perhaps UK teachers could learn something from Finland about basic economics and mathematics.

backwardLFDTpossom - I think you are trying to be supportive but I have never met an 'unqualified' teacher and even in the absolute nightmare school I worked in for 2 years all the staff were graduates.

Please stop thinking that private sector workers are all like bankers/fat cats! During the boom years painters/receptionists/cleaners etc were like teachers on the same money, no bonuses, etc and now face the daily threat of redundancy, wages and hours cuts etc and most don't have employer contrributed pensions