to think that the NUT strike WILL cause quite a lot of disruption actually!

[owlbegoing]

The NUT leader said that next month's strike date had been chosen to "cause minimum disruption to examinations" - and that "we deeply regret the disruption it causes parents and pupils".
What about other end of term events like Summer fairs and year 6 performances? They don't matter do they because they don't count towards government statistics!!

But the parents will need paying back, and they would need paying back immediately.

Worrying about it because this is a time when schools are being very careful, through necessity.

If the school budget won't pay out - then should the parents just forget about the cash and write it off? That isn't something the teacher can decide in many schools - it would be down to SMT or even governors. What if they refuse to refund parents?

It's not harsh. The union is not your fire insurance.

Every person who crosses the line is undermining the strike. Every person who then takes the union-negotiated pay and conditions is saying "You exist for my personal benefit. I expect you to give me things but I don't expect to do anything in return. Why should I?"

As the child of (now retired) teachers and having worked in the public sector, I fully support every single strike by teachers and other public sector workers.

All we hear from this unelected government is how the private sector is perfect and how the public sector is a drain on public purses. Well, consider this. You are in an accident. Someone calls an ambulance (NHS) and fire brigade (public sector). The Police will also arrive to manage the situation while you are possibly cut from your car and taken to hospital (NHS), where more NHS staff may well save your life. At the end of this the bill, if you had to pay, would be in the tens of thousands. Luckily we still have a public sector that appreciates that their often shockingly low salaries are paid for through taxes. They are also tax payers.

Most people send their children to a state school.

Even if they don't, they still need their bins emptying and other things that are covered by local government.

Yes, we pay council tax, but do you honestly think that covers all the services?

Without the public sector we are, as a nation, screwed, fucked and totally stuffed.

The public sector is under managed. Thousands upon thousands have lost their jobs since 2010 and the ones that are left are under immense pressure, bitched about almost daily in the press Daily Hail and dismissed as "fat cats", "pen pushing bureaucrats" etc etc. All the while they have NOT received an increase in salary for years.

Unlike the private sector the public sector does not get bonuses, overtime or other perks because they are funded by the taxpayer. All legitimate travel expenses are scrutinised and the home-base mileage always removed.

The only advantage of the public sector has been the pensions. Not gold plated, but adequate not to have to rely on the state.

This has also been taken away from them.

So yes, I will support teachers going out on strike even if it inconveniences me for a day, because it will inconvenience my daughters far more in the future if no action is taken now.

Thank you and I'm sorry for hijacking this thread.

Well that's your opinion Enchanted - I am unsure myself (I'm not the teacher in the family.) Thanks for expressing your opinion in a civilised manner. Unlike one person on here! (who I have reported). DH is a very conscientious and dedicated teacher, hardly 'scum'.

But these strikes achieve nothing.

The last bunch of strikes didn't work, this strike won't work and future strikes won't work.

The have no impact.

We know about them a month in advance, they only last a day and half the teachers/schools stay open anyway. DS has never been affected.

If they want to be taken seriously they need to try harder. Keep the strike date secret, strike for a week, maybe two weeks.

These 'strike days' are no different to a TT Day for most of us. It's just another day the school is closed. No one cares. No one even notices.

So Nadia's husband may as well go on the trip.

It'll make no difference.

Sorry!!

It isn't just the NUT on strike. It is Unison, Unite and GMB too- most school support staff will be in these. That will be staff like: office staff, dinner/ kitchen staff, caretakers, cleaners, reception, teaching assistants, technicians, special needs support staff, learning mentors, ICT staff, heads of year. They are mainly our fire wardens too.
We only have 4 teachers in the NUT, but almost all of our support staff are in these unions so that will affects lunches, the site being opened, the building being kept safe eg broken windows dealt with, cleaning, people to do reception, fire wardens,electronic registration system, ICT network, school library, no support for students who have extensive special needs like needing toiletting and personal care, or are in wheelchairs and rely on help. That will be what closes the school.

But this government have brought this dispute to this point.

I was always under the impression that schools trips already organised for that day would go ahead and that was an acceptable reason for not taking part in a strike.
The other reason to not strike is if you are just about to go on maternity leave as it can affect your maternity pay.

Some common sense is always needed.

However, I do wish all the unions would come out on strike as I think it would be more effective.

I am a bit of a twit... I figured a strike to the nuts could be quite disruptive indeed.

But a teachers' strike might course trouble too

*cause

I don't believe strikes acheive anything, tbh. But saying that I do think Gove is a menace and what he is doing to the education system is shocking and he needs standing up to. Every time he opens his mouth and speaks of a new proposal I thank my lucky stars my DC will be finished with schooling next Summer, but I also do worry about the rest of the children who are left behind.

I do, also, look at the rest of the public service workers and worry about them too. They can not go on being cut as fast as they are. DH is military, he works harder now than anytime in the 20+ years I have known him. He, also, is a Communtiy First Responder, so he spends every other weekend evenings on call ready to go out to medical emergencies as a volunteer.

We shouldn't have volunteers in place of ambulance and fire service. It is madness. People need to stand up to this government. Next thing is going to be the NHS going.

Shockingly that's the sort of hard-line stance that will instantly alienate the very people you want to be on your side - the parents.

I'm far more likely to support teachers who show some common sense and thoughtfulness. I wouldn't want anyone who comes across as uncaring and selfish as you just have teaching my children so, quite frankly, I couldn't care less about their job and pension.

As a teacher, I did not have a pay rise for 3 years and this year it has been 1% and will be 1 % next year. I have to pay £ 120 a month more in pension contributions than I did 3 years ago.
I will get less pension and will have to work to 67 not 62 to get a full pension.
I work at least 60 hours a week.

My cousin who works in London in an insurance company earned the same as me 5 years ago - works a 35 hour flexi time week and never has to take work home. Goes abroad with job, has business lunches, boxes at Chelsea games, flys business class, has 8 weeks holiday a year. Now, he earns £12,000 and gets a bonus of at least £10,000 a year on top of that. He will get a full pension at 60 of 50% of his final salary.

That is what has happened to public vs private sector salaries in the last 5 years.

The government is determined to break up the public sector and flog it off to private companies. Standards will continue to fall as no one will want the jobs in health, education, the fire service, police etc. They will attract poorer quality applicants. But the government and businesses won't care because they will use private schools and hospitals and profit from the public sector- no doubt using the profits to pay for their own private healthcare or to send their children to private schools. It is immoral.

It's a common sense stance. And I don't teach any more, so your darlings are safe I still belong to a union which goes on strike, though.

There's no sensible way for the union to say "Oh gosh, you haven't got childcare for Tristan and Jemima so we won't call you out - oh, I see, you have a hairdresser's appointment and there's no-one to look after little Jenna and Libby so....". A strike is a strike, and it's done for a reason. It's not done for fun.

Should read 'now he earns £12,00 more than me' ie his salary has increased by £ 12,000 while mine has effectively decreased.

The decision to strike is never taken lightly. None of use want to lose a day's day.

PCS members will also be striking that day so civil servants...including HM Passport Office employees!

No, Shockingly, it's only a common sense stance if the people you hurt by striking are the people who can do something about your grievances directly. And we're not talking about childcare and hair appointments, are we? We're talking about a school trip for which parents will probably have paid/contributed and which is unlikely to be able to be refunded or rescheduled. Who wants to belong to a union whose members are happy to see other members left liable for legal action?

Not in the UK so won't be affected, but have these strikes made an impact? No. They turn people against teachers which means that the government has an even more convenient scapegoat for any failures thanks to their fuckwittery and there is no pressure for anyone to improve conditions, pay and so on. Imo, the strikes are counterproductive as you lose support from the public and therefore the government are less likely to listen as if you turn the majority of voters against you, why should they, in their opinion?

No, LuluJakey - that's what's happened to you and your cousin. It's just an anecdote and doesn't reflect real life for the majority of people in this country. I'm private sector. I've had no pay rise for 3 years, 0.5% this year, who knows next year but it's always about 6 months late by the time it's been negotiated anyway. Retirement at 67 now, large increase in pension contributions for lower benefits. My husband's private sector pension is in a far worse state than mine.

PCS will be on strike as well, as pp mentioned.

What legal action? The whole point of a strike is to cause disruption, which is why strikes are always the last resort. We try not to do it. It's about as much fun for me to spend time on a picket line getting dogs' abuse from people who cross the line as you'd imagine, which is not at all.

I do it because I actually care that we get better pay, pensions, terms and conditions. I will do it because I'm on £18k pa and I am told that I am selfish for asking for that because the public sector are leeches which suck from the brave, honourable, fantastic private sector.

I do it because we are simultaneously told "You're scum" and "Make this work". The Government hates us until we're needed. Then they tolerate us until the next round of "cutbacks" when they will gleefully push over cardboard cut-outs of public sector workers for a photo op.

I do it because I can see the horror of what people are asking for. "No more NHS! No more bureaucracy!" G4S doing triage and costs for being examined in the hospital of £150+.

Look at what you're asking for. Look at what you'll get.

I do it because we are simultaneously told "You're scum".

Er, you just called another poster's husband scum.

Pot? Kettle?

Not disagreeing, just pointing that out.

The strikes cause disruption for parents. Many are resentful. But, in my opinion, there isn't enough information about why they are striking and why it will long term benefit their kids, so the public see it as you teachers have a fairly good wage, fairly good security and you aren't being made redundant in the same way many other professions are. They also see it as- 'I have to put up with it (and according to averages, most of them will be putting up with it on a lower wage) so why shouldn't they?' Of course, there's Gove and his fiddling/messing everything up and more to the point, it shouldn't be about bringing everyone down to one shit level, but that's what most people I know in the UK think, however much I disagree with it.

Legal action to recover costs paid for a trip that was then cancelled. That would be a breach of contract.

What's the last day of exams? Anyone? And what's the date of the strike day?

It's hypothetical. It's unlikely to happen but it could. It's why unions recognise that it isn't always practical for every member to strike, even if some of their members don't.