began.
defend jobs and public services, Stockport Council, apart from us reputation tor anne pensioner. for non-payment of rates evicting homeless families temporary accommodation, notorious tor is economies. it spends less on primary education than any other authority in England and wales It meets only half the estimated neca on such essentials as nome helps, meals-on-wheels and Metropolitan Boroughs, Stockport is in DOLOm SIx or sochcne or nous ing, self-services, libraries museums. The end product is that total spending per head of population is so low that Stockport comes 34th out of the 36 Metropolitan Boroughs.
The crisis of capitalism and the attacks on public expenditure have propelled the public sector unions into a head-on clash with the counch. Ine latest batch or curs. to the tune of £2.5 million, has Deen me ast straw.
On the eve of the NUPE strike, Stockport's SIX DUDIC sector unions - NUPE, NALGO, NUT NAS/UWT, NATHE GMWL issued a statement making this clear: 'we .... longer prepared to act as apologists for the failure of the Council to maintain its service....
The same statement spelled out what the new cuts will mean: the sack for 400 manual workers (including a quarter of the binclosure of an unstated number of school kitchens, redundancy for 40 cleaners and rationalisation' of many jobs. All vacancies will be left unfilled. Mirlees-Blackstone, and Fairey are resident here and, with about 25,000 employed in engineering, the industry accounts for about 27 per cent of the working population.
Industrial workers here have long since established their militant credentials. now-closed Roberts-Arundel textile machinery factory was the scene of an epic battle for refuse collection to a standstill. This fighting spirit can be put down to a determination to for swipes with the axe handed it by the Labour Government.
It is this refusal to cover up for and implement the cuts which has and galvanised these unions into taking unprecedented - for Stockport is - joint action.
Since 1974, Stockport's Tories have hidden behind the diktats of the Labour Government. day Healey has said 'cut", the Council has added 'into shreds'. because education is the largest item on the Council budget, it is and the teachers who have been singled out for the chop. In 1974/5, 70.04 per cent of the budget went on education. But 1977/8, be reduced to 63.21 percent before taking inflation into account The Tories brag about 'policy', which has made Stockport's primary posion worsem ne country are which has produced the disastrous situation whereby 278 classes have upwards of 35 pupils and 10,000 children are in Since 1974, the NUT has sought an improvement. to no avail. and BALLOT Eventually, last September, was decided to ballot the 1300 NUt members on a policy. The response was wietney large NUT meetings were held, wim nanora speakers. ane a tol National Association Teachers-NUT liaison committee was SCL UD. rulEnCE including a national deputation, tailed to move the Council and. ir which the local Tory Council considers fair game November, it was announced that official union sanctions commence on 4 January. declaration sent the Tories into a furry of activity.
SUSPENSIONS
In the Stockport Express of 22 Where Decemoer, a lown hall spokes- man' was quoted as agreeing that tne legal department was looking And, at the possibility of sackings'. This had beer that: "The Union will not be deflected from this policy by threats of retaliatory action and will give full support, including financial support, if necessary, to any members against their may be taken.
school staffing retreat, but is obviously bearing YeausaLon in mine as aruure possibility.
The relusal to take oversiz classes and to cover for colleagues oversize classes. absent for more than a dav been maintained, backed up by a refusal to undertake dinner duties. Support has been reflected in a rapid increase in union recruitment.
At the last count, all 20 seconno-cover dary schools and 101 of the 126 schools are involved, severa 5,000 pupils a week being sent home. ofte of School- The response of the Council has Women been to launch a propaganda war using every lie at their aboroaches. CLOT Committee Chairman, John Mc. Carron, broadcast to the nation on BBC with the absurd claim that he did not wanted'. This after national deputations on 2 September, 3 November and 29 December! The Council's Review, delivered free to every ratepayer, has also been used as an instrument. In the September issue the Council Chief Executive fired une osening snors. cutting standards could lead to bigger classes in schools. could also lead to reductions in action, the January issue went ine whole hog, featuring a full page article headed Teachers' Strike" and containing such gems as research suggests that standards are often higher in the larger classes' eagerly await the 250 pupil class!
EUPHEMISM
Another lie has involved the "maintenance or the pupil-teacnei ratio, which the Tories have promisca, as I lt was somenow pro average of 23.9.
declining, ycals 3 February, pledge above was made, batch ol cuts was exposing une liers. would further reductions of LUIS and furnishing, for under-fives, TOm SUmmer fuel and food bills DarCHIS whom such action Teachers Centre was Technical Counci was orced. to £10,000 school cicansing schedules were adjusted' reatnaancies service to Drivate companies.
with over The action has begun to September - no cuts there.
councillor, disposal, and Education record as no matter what the cost know war une teachers secondary resources quarterly newspaper Civic POLITICAL warning that carlons. one the onset of teachers' CERG actions. stopped by taking Teachers now ployers, Nevertheless.
ment'.
Because the school population is COMMITTBE they won existing levels is, in fact. a euphe *Rank mism for a cutback of at least 119 jobs over the next two and a half that At the Education Committee of SuDoorers when Cynica proclaimed.
When the Labour minority propoWHIC sed keeping the teaching force at its present level, it was defeated -Nones as arrogant Inc mamn curs were as torows equipment school clerical staff, reductions of ancillary staff, haif-time education reductions swimming instructions, restriction of the number of LEA paid exam entries to seven subjects, and the holiday • WInter scheme which will cause enormous ana increase JOr WOrKIng By the time they got to further education and administration. the Tories really got down to it.
CIOSCO slashed by £147,000, evening class College Was fees were raised, holiday meals (for the poorest children were stopped administration salaries were cut by leading to redundancies. frequency also deciced to consider hiving off the cleansing But the small print also revealed that over f1 million was to be spent on providing places in Independent schools and that 118 pupils (an increase of six would be sent to non-denominational schools in who probably Tates subscribed to an earlier statement that 'there is no money for further expenditure on education', went saying, *we will defend independent school places This une tories are doing. The El million is more than the whole sum set aside for bom primary and twice the proposed t487,000 cut! and over danger.
The Stockport fight is political, against a Tory Council and Labour Government, with national impliStockport trades Council, in supporting theteachers, nad grasped this. The local AUE W District Committee too has passed a resolution supporting the teachers. Yet despite its official' blessing, the NUT leadership's anti-cuts policy has been totally inadequate, conimme tac campaien to solated will not be authority by authority.
rejected on the idiotic assumption that it would "increase unemploy- CenS of saving the In fact, the NUT Executive, a body dominated by headmasters, has been more active in attacking those who fight the cuts than those who implement them. The censure
----- pull-quotes -----
union recognition nine years ago and it was in Stockport that the 1972 engineering sit-ins Now this militancy has begun to spread to the town's previously passive public sector workers. On 24 February, 4,000 National Union of Public Employees members held a one-day strike against the cuts, bringing schools, highway maintenance and cleansing and
NUPE STOCKRRY