EXECUTIVE NEWS
Date: January 2011
PENSIONS CAMPAIGN UPDATE
The General Secretary reported that there
was to be a meeting at the TUC for the
teacher unions considering industrial action
on Friday, 28 January. The Executive noted
that the meeting had been convened by
Brendan Barber following pressure from the
General Secretary and they welcomed this
development. The Executive also noted the
preliminary results of a survey of members
which indicated members’ serious concerns
over the Government’s attack on the
teachers’ pension scheme.
The Executive also gave preliminary
consideration to some ballot timetables in
accordance with the campaign framework
agreed at the November meeting. The joint
leaflet on defending public sector pensions
published jointly with other TSWP unions
was circulated and welcomed. Given the
Government’s aggressive stance on the
issue of pensions, including a report in the
TES about the proposed increase in teacher
contributions to the scheme (amounting to 50
per cent), it was agreed that a collective
approach with other teacher unions would be
most effective way forward.
The Executive agreed to hold a Special
Meeting on 10 February to consider the
outcomes of the meeting on 28 February and
give further consideration for a timetable for
action.
ACADEMIES AND FREE SCHOOLS
The General Secretary reported on the very
successful ‘free school survey’ (the results of
which are available on hearth and the
website in the priority campaign section)
which had been carried out by ‘yougov’ for
the Union. The results were very supportive
of the Union’s key policy for good, local
schools
with
full
and
transparent
accountability for all pupils and with a strong
voice for the profession. Parents of children
in both the state and private sectors were
polled with the latter, unsurprisingly, more
supportive of the free school initiative.
No. 167
NUT:
SUPPORTING
TEACHERS
IN
ACADEMIES
The Executive noted examples of good, local
activity where NUT Groups within schools
that had adopted academy status were
supported by local officers negotiating union
recognition rights and the establishment of
joint consultative committees to maintain
national pay and conditions or their
equivalent. The Executive noted that, whilst
the Union continued to campaign against
academy transfers, the support, guidance
and advice for members in academies
remained as important as that provided for
members in other schools and services.
EDUCATION
MAINTENANCE
ALLOWANCE (EMA)
The General Secretary reported on a wellattended Rally at Parliament organised by
UCU and NUS the previous day to coincide
with the debate on the proposed abolition of
the EMA, a small and important payment to
lower income families to assist their children
in staying in full-time education beyond the
age of 16. The Senior Vice President had
made a well received speech at the Rally.
SIXTH FORM COLLEGE PAY OFFER
Further to the reports in the December
edition of Executive News, the Executive
welcomed the rejection by ATL and
NASUWT members of the employer’s
derisory pay offer of 0.75% for sixth form
college teachers.
This result had been
relayed to the management side which had
subsequently written to the joint unions
offering a date to meet.
STRB ORAL EVIDENCE
The Union presented its oral evidence on 18
January to the School Teachers’ Review
Body (the body that replaced free collective
bargaining arrangements under the previous
Conservative administration in the 1980s).
The Union was represented by the DGS, the
Senior Vice President (Nina Franklin), the
Chair and Vice Chair of SSECR (Helen
Andrews and Tony Tonks), , the Head of
Department SSEE (Andrew Morris) and the
Principal Officer, Salaries (David Powell).
The Union delegation was ably assisted by
technical briefings drafted by staff.
ASSESSMENT AND TESTING
The Executive welcomed the well-attended
Parliamentary
launch
of
the
joint
NUT/ATL/NAHT document on assessment
and accountability held on Portcullis House
on 11 January. The General Secretary and
the Principal Officer, Primary (Karen
Robinson) had given oral evidence to Lord
Bew’s review of Key Stage II testing and
accountability on 13 January. A written
response to the Review, drawn up by the
Education and Equalities Department was
endorsed by the Executive. It was agreed
that primary members and representatives
should be encouraged to submit their own
responses to the Review and the Executive
asked that a summary of the Union’s
response be available on the website and
hearth for this purpose.
The Executive also agreed a response to the
Government’s
consultation
on
the
introduction of Phonics Screening Check for
year one pupils, which had been informed by
widespread consultation with members in the
primary sector.
AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS
The first of two seminars had been held with
colleagues from the AFT, hosted by the
Union at Stoke Rochford Hall on 14 to 16th
January.
The Seminar provided the
opportunity to share experiences with
American colleagues of the Charter School
Program, with its disturbing parallels with the
‘free school’ initiative. Chilling examples
were given by AFT of the prescriptive
teaching methods favoured by the Charter
Schools, particularly by the Knowledge is
Power Program (KIPP) schools in which
pupils were forced to wear different school
shirts as disciplinary sanction to set them
apart from other pupils.
Other control
systems included pupils facing forwards and
watching the teacher at all times, with an
emphasis on learning facts by rote with little
or no critical skills being taught or
encouraged. Michael Gove was on record
as saying that this approach was giving
teachers back ‘control’ whilst in fact it had
more in common with Dickens’ Gradgrind.
SPEAKERS AT CONFERENCE
It was agreed that the Union would invite
Mary Bousted of ATL and Len McCluskey,
the newly elected GS of Unite, to speak at
Annual Conference.
TUC EQUALITY CONFERENCES
The Executive elected Max Hyde as their
nominee to the TUC Disabled Workers’
Conference alongside Dave Brinson who
would attend by office, as Chair of the
Union’s Disability Working Party.
The
Executive also agreed to nominate Mandy
Hudson (of the DWP) to sit on the TUC
Disabled Workers Committee.
The Executive also selected Max Hyde to
attend the TUC LGBT Conference, again
with Dave Brinson, who would attend as
Chairperson of the LGBT Working Party.
Dave Brinson was also put forward for a
place on the TUC LGBT Committee.
The Executive also agreed text for
amendments to the TUC Women’s
conference motions on the subject of
‘championing education’ and a motion to the
TUC Disabled Workers’ Conference on
‘Disability History Month’.
INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS
The Executive agreed to send a message of
solidarity to EI affiliate education unions in
Tunisia.
The General Secretary reported that she had
attended a Parliamentary event to highlight
the plight of Palestinian children in detention.