Teachers to Strike over Pensions?????

[push-pull-mum]

The general argument from the 'no strikes please, we're Indie' camp seems to be - we're getting robbed and not standing up for ourselves so you should do the same! Why? Why should public sector workers pay for the greed and ineptitude of multi national bankers if digging their heels in and making life inconvenient for a while can get them a better deal? I really do hope that private school teachers will join the state school teachers if they come out on strike because the decision makers in this country tend to send their children to private or psuedo-private schools and so might sit up and take notice.

The point was made on the, thankfully now locked, strike thread elsewhere, do we want the schools full of 69 year old teachers who don't want to be there? The chances are most of them would be off on permanent sick leave by then anyway! My Mother in Law took early retirement from primary teaching when she could no long get up and down from the tiny little classroom chairs!

[Moonlight]

push-pull-mum, it is not a question of the 'indie camp' being 'robbed' and not standing up for themselves. I am entitled to be concerned that I may possibly be paying teachers to go on strike instead of educating my daughter. Yes, it was my choice to send her to a private school but that is because the state comp alternative was so dire. I am a public sector worker earning a relatively low wage for the job that I do and, yes, I would very much like a decent pension to retire on but at least I have a job. I hope that all teachers, whether state or indie, can find an alternative way forward rather than striking. My daughter is currently in the middle of some of her GCSE exams and I hope that they are not affected because of strike action.

[Rob Clark]

I don’t think the additional pension contributions should be compulsory – it would be fairer if teachers were given the choice between increasing their pension contributions or finding their pensions smaller than they had expected – this would then be in line with most other people who had their pension funds raided by the government and have had to either increase their contributions or settle for less on retirement.

It’s the idea that teachers should somehow be exempt from the harsh financial realities which are affecting everyone that is likely to lose them support, IMHO.

[R3ad1ngDad]

i am sure that , should the govt propose to increase teachers' salaries in line with their skills / qualifications, the pension reforms would not be such an insult.

I am sorry but the number of secondary school maths/ICT teachers whom I see trying to apply for IT jobs as they are convinced they are underpaid in the public sector yet asking for more than people already in the industry with greater experience means I do not believe that.

Currently IT graduates are getting about £20k for a starting role in the Thames Valley (ignore what the Uni careers centres say as they use figures from the big graduates recruiters who only take the cream of the crop), after 2 years they can expect to maybe be at about £24-25k yet I see teachers trying to get a job in IT once they are out of the period when they would have to pay back the bribe to go into maths/science teaching stating that they already have a salary above that level (they get ICT co-ordinator allowances etc etc) yet they have no mmore experience than a grad really as most schools ICT is very basic with anything major being dealt with by outside contractors.

[Fran17]

I wouldn't usually like the idea of strike action, but I think it is a great shame that there seems to be such a high expectation of our teachers when it comes to our childrens' education and yet the Government has so little respect for them.

We want the best possible education for our children and yet we are unwilling to support them in their wish to protect their pay and pensions.

Moonlight you are quite rightly concerned about the affect the strike may have on your DCs education, but I believe the date they have chosen is after all the exams have been completed. I hope your DC does well - it's a stressful time.

[Waiting_For_Godot]

The bankers have nothing to do with the pension time bomb, it would have happened at some point!

As for the inde brigade feeling robbed, I don't think that's the case. Many parents choose independent schools to free their children from the bureacracy of government medaling, the national curriculum, class sizes and striking. I think independent school teachers are probably more selfish than state school teachers but, that aside, just as pupils are penalised for going to independent schools (many music schemes and VAT schemes are not eligible to independently educated children) I feel that inde teachers should not have striking perks - not that striking is a perk! Inde teachers pensions should be provided by the school, not the government, and they should have their own independent union.

[no_ball]

At the very least it would be 'immoral' for any teacher at an indie school to go on strike. I fully expect the board of governors to have a 'quiet' world and remind indie teachers of their responsibilities. Parents of children who attend indie school pay twice for the education, granted, knowingly.

[ourmaminhavana]

The bankers have nothing to do with the pension time bomb, it would have happened at some point!

According to an independent audit funding teachers' pensions is not actually going to be a problem. It's an idealogical move.

I think independent school teachers are probably more selfish than state school teachers

Sorry, on what grounds do you feel this?

As for the morality of striking why shouldn't an independent school teacher be free to exercise their right? I pay through my taxes for various services, are the providers of these services also immoral to exercise their legal right to strike?

[no_ball]

I think you have missed the point completely. Parents who send their children give up a place in the state sector and send to Indie sector. The wages are higher for teachers in this sector and have longer holidays.

Again, completely immoral for indie teachers to strike.

[ourmaminhavana]

Actually the wages aren't always higher, but even if they were this doesn't take away an entitlement to strike.
They have longer holidays, however in my experience on the whole- but not always- they also have much longer days. My husband- who will be striking- works at least ten hours a day; plus Friday duty until 11pm and a minimum of six hours on Saturday. He has been running voluntary revision groups every lunch time for several weeks now, responds to emails from students at 11 at night and this week has 14 sets of detailed reports to write on top of everything else.

Moonlight if there was an alternative to striking I am sure that it would be used. My husband is perhaps the least militant person you are ever likely to meet.