Does anyone NOT support teachers’ strikes?

[Notbeinggoadybut]

I’ve got mixed views. Support that they, as all public sector workers, need a pay rise. And schools need more funding (but the NEU hasn’t badged this as a public reason which is a mistake IMP).

But 12% is a lot when you’re on a £40k salary. The TA’s deserve 12%, the nurses and ambulance drivers with dire conditions and worse salaries deserve 12%. But not from a starting salary of £40k.

Also public services can be dire. I work in one, it can be bordering on a joke and in so many ways such a waste of money. I will be striking on the 1st of February. But I don’t think it’s right - I voted against the strike. I want a pay rise, but don’t feel like it’s right to ask for 10% and strike if I don’t get it.

The funding point - I think schools do need more funding. But that’s not what this is publicly about, is it. How will funding be increased by teachers receiving a 12% rise?

I do have DC in school. My DC’s class is the only class in school closed for the duration of the strikes.

If the starting salary was £40k you might have a point.
But is isn't.

I support the teachers striking, not over pay but over working conditions and funding which is the real reasons all the teachers i know have chosen to strike.

Totally agree - the usual about all us public sector workers with huge pensions earning £40k a year - I didn't even start paying into my pension until I was 40 due to student loads, then being on ML and then being a single parent on TC - I get TC now because I am on a lot less than £40k

I don't. Not saying their job is great but I don't think they are badly paid by any means.,

The teachers pay scale is here: neu.org.uk/pay-scales

Starting salary is £28k

in theory, a teacher moving up the pay scale by one point a year could be on £38k in their 6th year of teaching. In practice, automatic pay progression was removed almost a decade ago and schools advertise a post at any point on the scale that they can justify. Schools cannot afford sufficient teachers who are skilled and experienced and many who fit that criteria are leaving.

I'm no longer in the NEU so not striking, however the strike has been sold to teachers as striking for a fully funded pay rise - the 5% most got from September had to come from school budgets with no further funding from Government. How they are publicising it is we want more pay which is why we are vilified.

Not sure where you get the £40k from, if I worked full time I would be on just over that after a decade and a half with no extra responsibilities.

Comparing to other public services is always tricky, as the jobs are equally important but so very different. I have many friends in lots of public services and there are pros and cons to all.

In my mind nurses and paramedics get support as in general the number of people directly impacted is low, teachers will never get support as it will directly impact a huge number of parents.

@mistermagpie yes 100%.

I think everyone needs a pay rise due to the inflation and general living costs.

Teachers striking are meaning alot of others have to miss work, I will have to miss work the 4 days they are striking because of child care. I work in the care sector.

It's putting more pressure on other industries.

You said exactly that!

The government aren’t funding the pay rise, it’s come from existing school budgets and therefore impacting on how much schools have to spend on everything else.

When I started as an NQT I earned less than £25k. Please at least do some basic research before you start a thread like this. It isn’t hard.

Agree with this- public sector pensions are incredibly expensive.

Please remember that there are very few legal reasons to strike. Pay is one of them. However, I know plenty of teachers who just want proper funding for education and especially special needs provision in mainstream as well as special schools. That’s it. But they have to strike based on pay. The fight is about a lot more than that. Ex-teacher who is paid more now in a completely different job and with a MUCH better work life balance. I support the strike. I support my children’s teachers.

I think it's tough for us all. Compromise is needed on both sides. Some of us have got 0%!

Starting salary begins at £28k not £40k Maximum starting salary for inner London IS £44K but most teachers don't work in inner London!

What counts as inner London? Isn't the pay higher than 28k for outer London & the fringe (whatever that is)?

Feels like every week there's a strike of some sort. Be it nurses, royal mail or Tom dick or Harry. Feels like personally my life is being too often disrupted because of it which makes me overall less sympathetic to it all.

I’m striking as my measly 5% pay rise (actually a pay cut due to pay freeze and inflation) hasn’t been funded by the government. My school has to take it out of their current (too small) budget.

No I don't support them

But I don't support any strikes

Teaching is struggling to attract and keep staff- you have teachers covering subjects that they haven’t studied since gcse ffs- I fully support. If you can’t see the benefit of the education of children being the best it can be, attracting the best etc then I despair! I personally consider it the most important of all the strikes

@Notbeinggoadybut
Direct quote: "But not from a starting salary of £40k"

Teachers aren't allowed to strike about anything other than pay and conditions. Which you probably know but why let facts get in the way of such a goady thread.

I have mixed feelings to be honest. I think the pension scheme for teachers is very good, I support nurses & paramedics more tbh. However I recognise how everyone's salary has seen barely any growth for 10-20 yrs so teachers are right to be annoyed.

Surely if other workers need pay rises, they should be striking too?
Rather than saying 'I'm not going to ask for a pay rise so teachers shouldn't either'.

Whether or not you get a pay rise isn't related to the importance of the job, it's related to how well organised the workers are.
Train drivers aren't more important that care workers - they are better at organising themselves to bargain collectively for better pay and conditions.

Do teachers not automatically move up the pay scale like in other public services? If not apologies, that was what I thought and meant by £40k.

Nowhere did I say STARTING salary of £40k.

I’m public sector. My salary is £40k. It didn’t start at that, but that’s what it is now.

So you think teacher salaries should just fall in real terms, making teachers poorer? But TA salaries should rise? For how long would you do this - until the two salary grades are equal?

Yes teachers deserve a proper pay rise, they've had very poor pay increases for over ten years.

YABU and a little bit goady. £40k is not exactly mega bucks. That is the rate for an experienced teacher - exactly the group who keep leaving because pay & conditions are pretty shit!