Teachers in Manchester say they have been left with 'no option' but to strike as their row over pay escalates.
We reported yesterday how members of the National Education Union have voted in favour of industrial action, with seven days of walkouts planned for February and March.
It has stressed that any individual school will only be affected by four of the days, with the first one scheduled for Wednesday, February 1.
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Here, one Greater Manchester teacher explains why she is supporting the strike action.
The teacher, who is a parent herself, works at a high school in Trafford, but does not want to be identified.
She told the MEN: "It’s time for teachers to say 'enough is enough'. It’s not just about money - it’s the workload, the increasing pressure and constant changes.
"Teaching is a vocation - and I do love it but when you’re working 60 hours a week; having to constantly change lessons to suit a new class, school focus or Ofsted’s report findings, it would be nice to feel appreciated for the important role we do.
"I totally understand the frustration and concern [from parents], however your argument is not with the teachers.
"We are doing this because we want to ensure our students - your children - get quality teaching from educators who truly care about your child and have the time and energy to help them progress.
"The argument is with the government who have left us - and many others - with no option but to seek industrial dispute."
Hundreds of readers reacted to news of the strikes when we shared a post on the M.E.N's Facebook page yesterday.
Many shared their frustration over children missing more days in the classroom when their education was disrupted so much throughout the pandemic.
Paul Stevens said: "Great time of the year to do it for kids preparing now for SATS and GCSEs in the next few months."
And Pamela Yates replied: "Exactly, my son has already lots of gaps in his education and now extra time not in school just before his SATs... ridiculous."
Gemma Burkinshaw added: "That’s helpful for kids especially after the recent years. They have a duty of care to the children whose education has already been damaged due to the pandemic.
"I’m all for fair pay, but equally these kids are our future and so far they have been messed about far more than they should have ever had to endure."
But others, including Sarah Addicott, said there is no ideal time to take action.
"There'll never be a good time, just like there's never a good time with police or ambulance services or doctors and nurses," she said. "If you don't stand up for yourself you get walked all over and it's not as if people will stand up for you, so you need to put yourself first."
The Department for Education (DfE) has offered a 5% pay rise to most teachers for the current school year, but the NEU is demanding a fully-funded above inflation pay rise.
In England, 90% of NEU teacher members who voted in the ballot backed the strikes, with a turnout of 53%.
Across Manchester local authority the turnout is understood to have been even higher, around 67%, from 191 individual workplaces.
Peter Middleman, the National Education Union's north west regional secretary, says there is huge support for the action.
“This is an emphatic result and an accurate indication of the strength of feeling within the teaching profession," he said.
"Members across Greater Manchester voted in numbers well above the average for England and we therefore look forward to strong support here on the strike days we’ve announced.
"The government ought to take this democratic result seriously and recognise the mistakes in their approach to teacher reward which has brought the profession to this point.
"With workloads going endlessly up, our members have indicated that they will no longer tolerate their living standards going in the opposite direction.
"Headteachers and school governors understand like we do, that with school funding in dire straits, only the Treasury and Department for Education can now resolve this dispute by placing a new value on our schools, and the people who learn and work within them."
The result from the NEU, which is the largest education union in the UK, comes after a ballot of members of the NASUWT teachers’ union last week failed to reach the 50% turnout threshold.
NASUWT says its 'fight for decent pay' will continue.
General Secretary Dr Patrick Roach said: “When we asked teachers what they were willing to do to get the government to act to address members’ concerns about cuts to teachers’ pay, 90% of members who voted said they are ready to take strike action and action short of strike.
“The NASUWT has written to Ministers in England and in Wales to confirm that we remain in dispute over teachers’ pay.
“The UK has some of the most draconian laws on workers’ rights anywhere, including the imposition of arbitrary industrial action ballot threshold requirements and prohibition on unions balloting members online.
“The NASUWT will be campaigning vigorously to ensure the repeal of all anti-trade union laws. But, no anti-trade union laws are going to stop us from doing whatever it takes to secure a better deal for our members, including by announcing plans shortly for further balloting of members.”
The National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT) is also due to announce its ballot result for strikes on Monday.
The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: "We would continue to call on teachers not to strike given we know what substantial damage was caused to children’s education during the pandemic and it’s certainly not something we want to see repeated. We would hope they would continue to discuss with us their concerns rather than withdraw education from children."
Are you a teacher planning to strike? Are you a parent who agrees or disagrees with the industrial action? Let us know in the comments here.
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