Cairo Association of Teachers - Newsletter

CAT Tracks for November 6, 2008 APRIL FOOL?

You've heard the old set-up joke..."Does England have a 4th of July?"

You know, back when people knew some history, their fertile little minds would struggle with that question... Well, since they LOST the war for American independence, they probably would not celebrate such a thing. So, the answer was often..."NO!"

GOTCHA...YES, England DOES have a 4th of July...falls right between the 3rd and the 5th!!!

Why, pray tell, am I dwelling on that stale topic?

Well, it just so happens that I am now wondering..."Does England have a 'Fool's Day'?"...and, if so, is it celebrated on November 5th instead of April 1st, like in the good ol' US of A?

I think you will catch my drift when you read the article below...

This article HAS to be a joke!

We proudly call ourselves CATs and we chuckled years ago when the BOE's negotiator handed us a proposal that referred to our members as BUMs - Bargaining Unit Members. I mean, we can take a joke!!!

However, the article below...from across the pond...

A teachers' union that picked a name with the acronym "NUT", when it could just as easily picked NTU???

THEN, just when I had internalized THAT and shrugged..."Okay, the Brits are known for their dry humor"...the names of the "players" took center stage:

• The Schools Secretary...Ed Balls

• NUT's Acting General Secretary...Christine Blower

A planned teachers' strike which threatened to cripple schools across England and Wales was averted last night.

By Graeme Paton, Education Editor

The National Union of Teachers - Britain's biggest classroom union - confirmed it would not be walking out following a ballot of members.

Teachers voted narrowly in favour of industrial action, but the union's ruling executive insisted it did not represent a full mandate for strike action.

Fewer than a third of NUT members voted and only 52 per cent of those backed the proposed walk-out.

The disclosure will be welcomed by parents following widespread chaos when teachers took last went on strike over pay six months ago.

Almost three million pupils were turned away from school or taught on reduced timetables when 5,000 out of 21,000 primary and secondary schools closed. A further 4,500 schools were partially shut. The British Chambers of Commerce warned the strike cost businesses up to £68 million in lost working hours because parents had to take time off work or pay for extra child care.

The NUT, which represents almost 200,000 teachers, around half of those in state schools, threatened a fresh wave of industrial action amid continuing anger over a pay deal.

The move followed the Government's refusal to increase its 2.45 per cent offer tabled at the end of last year. The NUT said it represented a real terms salary cut after falling well below the Retail Price Index used to measure increases in the cost of living, including mortgages, which has been running at five per cent.

Yesterday, Christine Blower, the acting general secretary, said: "I am pleased that many of our members have been involved in the pay campaign.

"Colleagues continue to feel that pay levels for teachers are too low, which means that the case for fair pay for teachers has not gone away.

"More than one hundred MPs have signed an Early Day Motion stressing the need for teachers to be paid fairly for the work they do. This is a clear indication that we are not alone in our fight to maintain teachers' living standards and ensure that education in this country does not suffer as a result of low recruitment, retention and morale. Our children need properly rewarded teachers.

"The campaign for fair pay for teachers will go on."

The NUT issued 194,505 ballot papers, but only 57,642 were returned. Some 51.7 per cent voted in favour and 48.3 per cent opposed action.

It will be seen as a victory for Ed Balls, the Schools Secretary, who has refused to budge on pay. Under the current deal, teachers receive a 2.45 per cent increase in 2008 - plus rises of 2.3 per cent for both 2009 and 2010.

Earlier this year, he said the offer was "fair and affordable and delivers the kind of public sector pay discipline that our economy needs".