Teachers on strike over ‘cut in pay’

Apr 25 2008 by Jule Wilson, The Journal

THOUSANDS of North East pupils stayed at home yesterday as teachers took part in their biggest strike in recent history.

Members of the National Union of Teachers, the country’s largest teaching union, were joined in a rally against below-inflation pay rises at Newcastle’s Grey’s Monument, by hundreds of supporters, including many pupils.

Also represented at the rally were members of the Public and Commercial Services Union and the University and College Union, who were also on strike yesterday.

Among the teachers at the rally was Ruth Scanlon, a newly qualified teacher who has been working at a Newcastle primary school since September 2007, earning around £19,000 a year.

“I am here today because I find it unacceptable that teachers, and people working in many other professions, are effectively getting a pay cut every year. I can just about get a mortgage but only for the cheapest property possible. I think getting salary increases that are below inflation year on year is unacceptable in any job.”

Chris Wood has been a teacher for around 25 years, and is the current NUT representative for her school, Kenton School in Newcastle. She said: “The below-inflation increases are a particular problem for young teachers who are struggling to pay off loans and I see many of them, due to the working conditions, leaving the profession after just two or three years.”

Around 500 schools in the North East were either partially or wholly closed by yesterday’s strike, making the region one of the worst affected areas.

Speaking from one school in Kent that stayed open, Schools Secretary Ed Balls said he thought most teachers would be just as annoyed about the strike as he was.

“I think parents across the country will be annoyed and disappointed to see schools being closed, and I feel many teachers will feel the same way too. There isn’t a justification for the strike. We have accepted in full the recommended independent pay review. Over the last 10 years teachers’ pay has risen substantially.”

The Government says that a three-year pay deal for teachers of 2.45% from September and rises of 2.3% in subsequent years is “fair and reasonable” and will not be improved.

NUT members say teachers have received three years of below inflation pay increases and called the union’s first national strike for 21 years because they were worried the situation was becoming “acute”, especially for young teachers struggling to pay off student debt and buy their first home.

MESSAGES OF SUPPORT

ALSO on strike yesterday were coastguards, staff at the Land Registry, driving instructors and many other public servants.

Kevin McHugh, a PCS executive member who works for the Revenue and Customs at Longbenton, Newcastle, said: "This action is about and against unfair pay.

This is the largest display of industrial action for decades and we are not going to go away.

"We’ve got 100,000 members out on strike at the moment because we cannot sustain the below inflation pay offers that our members feel are unjust.

"We think rallies such as this have an important way in which we can continue to push forward our campaign. Gordon Brown is vulnerable and has made a major mistake. Now is the time to put the pressure on and make the Government see sense."

Messages of support were read out to the rally at the Monument from supporters, the TUC, Unison, the Communication Workers’ Union, the National Shop Stewards Network and the Fire Brigades Union in the North East.

The PCS will decide at its conference next month whether to hold a civil service-wide ballot for strikes over pay which could lead to national walkouts over the summer.