Bloody teacher strike!

[NoSchoolYesSchool]

Got a message last week saying class was closed because of strike. Not thrilled, but I support the teachers so took a day off work, booked to take kids to a soft play, let them stay up later last night because there’s no school. Just got a message from the teachers saying that the full school will be open today and looking forward to seeing the children! Are they taking the absolute piss? The strike I can support, but this is just fucking around the parents who’ve had to make an effort to sort childcare for the day? It won’t affect their cause at all, but completely screws me over! I’ve messaged and said kids won’t be in today because 30 minutes isn’t enough warning and I have things planned. Am I being unreasonable? Should I be sending them in? Just to avoid drip feeding, one child is neurodiverse and won’t manage a change like this after I’ve spent days gearing him up to being off

Whatever is said re strikes the ‘school is not childcare’ line is defunct and pointless

School is childcare. Are you supposed to not work just in case a school doesn’t fulfil its obligations? So parents should only work when child is about 15? Lol, okay.

Oh come off it. Millions of parents work while their kids are at school. Are you suggesting every family should have a full time SAHP or pay a nanny to sit at home just in case because ‘schools aren’t childcare’?! In the real world, parents plan around their kids being in school during term time. Given that context, saying ‘School isn’t childcare’ is an incredibly irritating and unhelpful.

OP I fully see your point. Teachers have a lot of support from parents but in some places they seem to be working as hard as they can to change that!

I fully sympathise with what teachers are facing and dealing with - they are in an impossible job - but I don’t honestly believe the strikes are the right way to respond or that they will be effective. They will just alienate parents and create more division. Things like last minute changes after going to so much effort to take time off will anger parents and make them less likely to support the action.

So why are low income parents expected to get back to work when their child reaches school age? Are all working parents supposed to employ a full time nanny 'just in case'? Why 'holiday clubs'? Where are all the backup childcare settings we are supposed to be dropping kids at?

just got a message from the teachers saying that the full school will be open today and looking forward to seeing the children!

You didn't get a message from the teachers, you got one from the school. The organisation of the strike response is on the head and governors- nothing to do with the teachers.

Yes 30 min notice is bonkers. There is just no reason for it. Just ignore it and go about your day as planned.

Lol. Try telling your benefits assessor that you can’t work despite having kids in full time school because ‘school isn’t childcare’. And report back to @kwiskal with how that goes 🤣

You aren't unreasonable to be annoyed. It's an inconvenience (which is the whole purpose of the strike). I also don't think YABU to keep your kids off due to late notice. I would say it's mainly an organisational issue rather than a stirke one.

Also, of course schools are childcare. The economy would literally not function - and certainly women wouldn't be able to work - if we couldn't put our kids somewhere for the day. As we aren't allowed to send the to the work houses, and they are expected to be supervised, these days.

I support the strike, but disagree with
How one of my kids schools has organised itself
Around the uncertainty.
I decided I didn't want to play 8am
Text roulette. So I've decided to
Keep mine off. Quite a few others have too.

If I'd taken annual leave I'd go ahead with my plans. Absence will be high today.

YANBU! They shouldn't have announced a closure if they weren't sure they'd close. I don't really see what impact these strikes will have anyway. The majority of the schools in this city are all open as normal, and a couple have only partially closed. That's it.

I'd say that's pretty incompetent management. The school should have made a decision last week,last most schools did, and if they weren't sure whether the school could open, should have said it would be closed. It's really not OK to be texting messages on the day changing the arrangements. Thoughtless and disorganised.
I'd ignore the message and do what suits you.

This is the purpose of strikes of course. To ram a message home to those ultimately in charge..it does cause all sorts of shrapnel (including possible impact on education) which isn't the purpose, but sadly happens as part of the action.

It's where we are with this government and they are wholly to blame.

In Scotland it’s just teachers are striking so the school is automatically closed. I think English schools are annoying more people due to the number of different unions and trying to say they’ll provide childcare but they don’t know if they have the numbers or not. It would be easier just to shut!

Good I’m glad you’re annoyed - whole point of the strike is to inconvenience. Now get even more angry about the government that have driven teachers and many other public sector works to resort to strike action.

I have a primary and secondary close to me and have seen both kids from them schools walking pass this morning. The secondary school is on the councils website saying full strike but not the primary. Think the schools aren't confirming with councils whats open and not my sons school is striking but not on the list. Looks like some kids will be arriving to be told to go home. I agree with them striking but shouldn't be doing this with parents and children.

Sal

You should be annoyed with the Headteacher who did not communicate clearly. If they weren't absolutely sure how many staff they would have on-site they should have sent a letter saying they wouldn't know until the morning and for parents to have arrangements in place in case of necessity. That's what my DC's school and others I know have done.

At the primary I teach in we did inform the Head of numbers that would be striking but there is no obligation to do so.

My son with autism would have a huge meltdown with such a last minute change so YANBU to keep them home. I imagine lots of families have planned nice things, round here loads of attractions are offering free kids tickets for today. I doubt you’ll be the only family absent.

I was listening to this being discussed on the radio and from what they were saying the unions were actively discouraging the striking teachers to tell their head teachers if they would be off or not. So headteachers had no idea in some cases who would be at school and who would be striking. Hence this last minute communication.

What a palava. I'm in Scotland and we've had a few already. Our local authority gave several weeks notice that all the schools in the area would be shut, plenty of time to organise things. Headteacher emailed a reminder a couple of days before. I have more strike dates with a '?' on my calendar for the end of this month which I've picked up from the news, I'm guessing they will go ahead.

For goodness sake -

Schools are not childcare!

For all those writing “I put my work around school”, well yeah - we all do.

I do.

BUT -

They are there for us 95% of the advertised time.

If for some reason (strike, building floods, mass illness) they close..

then I don’t get resentful AT ALL.

Because they’re not designed as childcare. Their existence provides it as an inherent benefit, but they are not designed to cover people’s working hours.

They are designed to provide education that happens to occur during 60-70% of someone’s average office working day.

so if the school stops providing for a one off day?

fine. That’s the risks we take

So it's basically "I support the strikers (as long as their actions do not inconvenience me". That's not really support, is it?

Why direct your ire at the teachers anyway? If the employers hadn't been chipping away at their terms and conditions continuously over many years, there would be no need for industrial action. If the employers would at least sit down and have meaningful negotiations, there would be no industrial action. You're effectively getting mad at a dog for peeing on your roses and totally missing the selfish, incompetent twat holding the lead.

That’s the whole point. Otherwise headteachers could draft in supply teachers, and the whole impact of the strike is lessened.

I work in financial services and I am not a teacher, but my god I want them to get the wages and the infrastructure they deserve.

Get the kids in school today asap. It's not optional. 😂😂😂

Childcare doesn’t mean something is guaranteed in any case.

A nursery can close due to various reasons so not being 100% doesn’t change the fact it’s childcare

The reason key workers were given school places in pandemic was for childcare.

I have no opinion either way. I’m just explaining to the OP that it’s not her schools fault for the last minute communication. I was designed that way by the unions.

Most schools seem to have managed. it sounds like bad communication, if they didnt' know they should have said that. That's what our school said initially, that they didnt' know, that teachers weren't obliged to say, and while they would try their best to keep as much open as possible we should make contingency plans.

As it happened, our teachers went against the instruction of the union and said if they were striking or not last week, so half the school was closed, half was open. They are trying their best to act accroding to their union, while also being considerate of the parents.