Should teachers go on strike?

[Pinnacle PAT]

Get a job knowing full well the pay, benefits, holidays etc then moan, bleat and strike because you don't like the pay, benefits and holidays etc. Can't think of anything that winds me up more.

[frededwards]

You don't have to work with teachers, you get to work with students.

 

No: Teachers teach children. They work alongside other teachers.

 

Stop being so petty. If you have nothing to add to the debate, stay silent.

[Resident]

They'd probably get more sympathy if they hadn't waited till the day they got back from their annual 6-week holiday to announce they were going on strike.

 

But no, teachers shouldn't go on strike. Every other public sector worker has had to endure not having a pay-rise and they get far less in terms of benefits than teachers do.

[mary70]

They have as much right to strike as anyone else, its just people like to teacher bash and go on about how easy the job is and how many holidays they have, if the jobs so good why isn't everyone who moans doing it ?

[Vague_Boy]

Y'know, I'm detecting a distinct lack of sympathy for the teachers and their "plight".

[frededwards]

........... if the jobs so good why isn't everyone who moans doing it ?

 

 

I have already adressed that issue, above.

[unbeliever]

I have an issue myself that because of the special status of trade unions within the law, they can't be fired.

I'm not saying that they should be fired in this case, but it seems to me that if you wilfully refuse to do your job, your employer should have that option.

 

Seems rather obvious to me. By all means join a union and get together with other members to protest your working conditions, but if you refuse to come to work or work to the best of your ability, you should do so in the knowledge that you're engaging in brinkmanship and your employer should have the option to just say "Bye then".

[Waldo]

To be fair, why not also put the politicians on performance related pay?

[L00b]

To be fair, why not also put the politicians on performance related pay?

How do you propose to measure the 'performance' of an MP or Councillor? Objectively, that is?

 

I mean, teachers could be assessed objectively (maybe they already are? I'm getting different stories from teacher friends ) on the basis of the progress their charges make over the course of a school year (e.g. relative to national scales, expected endpoint for class of age/actual endpoint for kids in their class, better = bigger pay rise, average = normal pay rise, worse = no pay rise).

 

Personally, I have little time for many of them, but like to think that I am always fair/open to be proven wrong (and routinely praise where praise is due). E.g. I have a lot of time for the headteacher of my daughter's school (the national education system needs tons more like her) as well as a couple of her past teachers; her new teacher for this year has yet to make her mark and 'prove worthy'

 

By contrast, an acquaintance of ours (I won't quite go to 'friend'), who teaches in the vocational secondary in Rotherham, to me epitomises all that is wrong with the culture of entitlement of many teachers no doubt. If I'm not mistaken, I seem to recall that she was on the brink of being sacked.

[woodmally]

Probably old news but teachers are planning to go on strike because they are no longer going to get an automatic pay rise.

 

Whilst I agree that they should get decent remuneration for what they do, I can see no reason why they should not paid according to their capabilities.

 

When I was in a permanent role, I had a salary review every year and both parties (myself and my boss) had to independantly prepare an appraisal on how I performed on a number of issues.

Any differences were discussed, in an amicable manner and, once we agreed on performance met, ratings were set for each aspect of that review.

From that overall rating, a salary increase was determined.

 

I can see no reason why salary increases cannot be related to performance performed.

 

If you do a good job, then you are rewarded.

If you do a bad job then why should you be paid?

 

I have performance related pay at work. It happens everywhere (and I'm in the public sector) so why shouldn't teachers. Any excuse for more industrial action and time off from work.