Do You Agree With The Teachers Striking In The Spring?

[anotheoldgit]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationnews/9781087/Teachers-preparing-for-fresh-strikes-in-spring-term.html

[sp1814]

No - they should strike during the summer...during the six week's holiday.

In seriousness - anything that disrupts childrens' education should be avoided...but looking from the teachers' point of view, how else can they make their voices heard.

And a third point of view (and one which I believe) is that in 2013...strikes simply don't work.

It's not 1974 any more.

[Zeuhl]

regardless of the rights or wrongs of their case, they are unlikely to have sympathy or support of parents - many of whom are facing employment problems too

and a strike is only going to distance parents even more

[cazzz1975]

I agree with zeuhl, Jobs and money are both very scarce, most people are struggling in some way financially at the moment. They will struggle to get any sympathy.

[anotheoldgit]

sp1814

/// how else can they make their voices heard. ///

They have a much easy life than say Nurses or the Armed Forces but although Nurses have the right to strike, they do not often do.

But the Armed Forces are never allowed to strike, even though during this recession they have seen their pensions altered, the London allowance scrapped for all ranks above Sergeant, and redundancies, yet are still expected to carry out their sometimes very dangerous work load without complaint.

[sp1814]

AOG

For the second time today, I'm in agreement with you.

Weird, isn't it?

[BlueToffee]

Yes, yes and thrice yes. I am married to an ex teacher, have 2 daughters who are teachers and a best friend too.

They are worth every penny they earn, and more. The work and pressures never stop, and when they have to control toe-rags with nothing more than a possible day's suspension, which the kids are proud of, and get s**t upon from a prat like Gove, never, never belittle the job teachers do.

Sorry, actually, no I'm not, to rant, but with such close ties with the profession, I have EVERY sympathy with the profession, and it's my soap box!

OK, that's it, rant over.

[BlueToffee]

ps Zeuhl.......the only reason they are unlikely to get support from the parents is that teachers are also unpaid child minders.

[sherrardk]

Blue toffee for best answer!

[jno]

that was going to be my comment too, BlueToffee: if parents get upset it may be because they are using teachers as unpaid childminders.

[excelsior-1]

i have said the following on a number of 'industrial action' threads, and i make no apology for repeating myself

when a strike occurs .. aside from annoying, inconveniencing and alienating the public, the company or institution involved always loses money, consequently, when all is settled there is even less in the pot with which to offer the strikers by way of a settlement.
therefore, in my humble opinion, strikes are ultimately self defeating

[Prudie]

"They have a much easy life than say Nurses or the Armed Forces but although Nurses have the right to strike, they do not often do.". It is just not true to say teachers have an easy life. Until you have stood in front of secondary school classes you will not know how stressful teaching is. I have the utmost respect for the Armed Forces too but when they are not on operations their life is not particularly unpleasant.

[bednobs]

i didn't realise teachers were unpaid!

[cazzz1975]

I wouldn't regard a school day as babysitting, a lot of parents have to work so dealing with a teachers strike is a costly nuisance.

[BlueToffee]

They're not paid as child minders bednobs, that usually comes after or before teaching.

[cazzz1975]

do you mean breakfast clubs and after school clubs blue toffee?

if a parent uses this service they are considered a bad parent?

[bednobs]

i thought you had to pay for breakfast clubs?

[BlueToffee]

Not suggesting that the school day is regarded as babysitting cazzz, Mrs BT supervised breakfast club from 07:30, and after school activities until mummy or daddy was home to look after the little darlings.

Oh, and the parents may have to pay for breakfast club, but the teachers didn't get any extra for supervising, at least Mrs BT didn't

[ichkeria]

...and more to the point they are 'unpaid' by the parents. Teachers in this country are not given the respect they deserve: either by a lot of their pupils, parents, successive governments or even society in general. We go all sentimental over nurses (and of course I am not saying nurses aren't fantastic because they are) but somehow teachers are not thought of as deserving much credit at all for what they do.
That said I'm not sure strike action will work, or even be advisable. Nonetheless if they do strike I'll support them

[BlueToffee]

And finally.......I suppose your view on this matter depends on which side of the political divide you stand on.

Pretty obvious I suppose which side I stand on!

Anyway, good to get things off your chest, particularly amongst friends.

[sherrardk]

I think that school-holiday envy is always at the root of anything to do with teachers - people seem to thinks they have a cushy number because of this.