Well said Mr P - response to teacher strike

[MrsMurphyIWish]

No AIBU, just wanted to share.

Solidarity doe those of us striking and to those who are questioning why, please take a listen …

www.facebook.com/reel/708926614094881?fs=e&s=9RfQYY

Broken link

Will try again!

The link works for me? I agree with every word.

I don’t need to read it to agree with the strike. Good luck to you and you have my thanks

I’ve pasted my link and it’s working, and the video is still available on his page so unsure what’s happened.

Will have a play around to see if can share it via another platform.

vm.tiktok.com/ZMYJ9QTK4/

Thanks, yes agree.

Same with our public institutions

Don't vote tory

NHS worker here and I agree with every word. He's exactly right that the 'vocation' narrative is gaslighting. Ditto the 'superheroes' bullshit for NHS staff. It's very convenient - superheroes never get tired, or burned out, or pissed off at being taken for granted, they don't have bills to pay, or any ambition other than saving people.

Funny how MPs never talk about their 'vocation' to represent their constituents and try to make their lives better. They would rather they had a 'job', with proper pay and conditions, a team to support them, some power etc. The rest of us have to be happy with pats on the head and claps on the doorstep 😡

He is dead right.

Kids are sent to school every weekday for hours on end in the charge of these wonderful people. They are in loco parentis. If a parent would not put up with the conditions then neither should teachers.

About time the teaching profession got the respect is deserves.

👏

Rich tories wouldn't dream of sending their own children to state schools...they know what works for a good school. That's why they send theirs to private schools with good funding, smaller class sizes and which are well resourced. Parents should get on the side of teachers and realise how badly funded schools are and how much worse things are going to get if something doesn't change. Stop blaming teachers and consider how little this government is doing for their kids.

I think that's the heart of it isn't it. From the threads we see on mumsnet people are blaming the teachers. And the schools. Over and over again. There's been some clever pr/misinformation over the years hasn't there?

The problem lies with government.

@Lottapianos Excellent post 👏

Here’s hoping working conditions will improve for us all and future public workers (I loathe to write “servants”
a a that’s also feeds the narrative we should be happy with our lot).

I was a school governor for 5+ years and have seen firsthand how hard teachers work. Neither schools nor teachers are to blame for the current mess. In fact, it's only the incredible work by teachers that have kept things glued together. It's a complete Tory shitshow.

I have to be honest though, and I know this is a very unpopular opinion, but I'm not a fan of strikes in general. I understand why nurses, teachers etc are doing it, and I understand their frustration at the absolute shit they're having to deal with - but I don't think strikes are ever a good idea.

@StalkedByASpider I am loathes to strike too - it’ll be the second time in 23 years that I have. What would be an alternative? Some may say “work to rule” but for teachers we still have to complete all tasks necessary to do the job which just means it’s only clubs and extra sessions that disappear. Can nurses up and leave at the end of a shift if there’s no one to take over? It’s a sorry state of affairs and hopefully one that’s resolved quickly.

I always have and always will believe that teachers should be paid very well for what they do. It is an incredibly important job. At the moment schools are not attracting the brightest and best graduates because of pay and conditions. Change that, have the best teachers we can afford and we will reap the rewards in the future.

Spot on MrP

I agree with him; not a vocation and not superheroes.

I didn’t understand what he meant by stopping FSM… all state school children upto the age of 7 get FSM, don’t they?

'Lottapianos Excellent post 👏'

Thanks MrsMurphy. I had to stop myself writing 'public servant' as well, doesn't sit right at all

The government can obviously just fuck all the way off, but I do also think that people who clapped on their doorsteps for the NHS and are now moaning about strikes need to have a serious word with themselves

It took Marcus Rashford to shame the Tories into supplying FSM during lockdown.

I mean during term time; for the past god knows how many years, children get FSM to age 7?

That tiktok said cancelled FSM.. I didn’t know this was the case?

This. I’m so perplexed by people’s attitude to teachers. How do people not understand that a first rate, properly funded education system will eventually benefit everyone? Why would anyone not want that?

It's a tricky one, isn't it?! I wish I had an easy answer.

If working to rule would achieve something, then that would be an excellent first step. But in reality not everyone would do that, and would probably just result in performance management issues being recorded! Plus as you say, it probably would just mean the nicer stuff for the kids being dropped.

I think it depends on personal circumstances but in the private sector, if you don't like pay and conditions, you resign.

I know that's not always possible, especially if you're tied to a pension that you don't want to leave. But for some, it could be an option. Maybe moving to the private sector is a better option? If people were leaving in their droves, and unions were campaigning/communicating why, it would send out a very big message and it would force change.

I don't normally comment on this because it's easy to be misinterpreted as being unsympathetic and unsupportive, which I'm really, really not. I completely understand the frustration.

I think it's just the principle of striking - "I'm going to stop doing my job until I get the pay and conditions I want". It's a form of blackmail essentially, isn't it? I'm not saying that to be an arse, I promise! I don't know. I'm autistic and tend to see things in black and white, and I guess I just struggle with the idea of holding people to ransom until you get what you want (even if what you're asking for is entirely reasonable). It feels wrong?

I mean, if the government actually invested in our public services properly, it wouldn't even need this discussion. I think it's a very long way back from the mess it's in now. And I don't think striking will change anything.

I worked in sickness benefit claims for about 15 years. And the vast majority of our claimants were teachers. Who were all off sick long-term with.....stress/anxiety/mental health issues. And I left that profession 10 years ago. Teachers have had a shit deal for a very, very long time. Radical change in our system, funding and schooling is long overdue for the sake of our teachers and children alike.

I assumed it was in reference to lockdown, not permanently.

Ok, thank you.