Allowance.
proposal and a summer holiday sell-our by the Executive.
So successful were they in alerting teachers to the lekely nature of the Pay Board report that a lobby of the NUT Executive on Thursday 4 July was attended by over 300 teachers. The next day 600 striking leachers Jobbied the Burnham negotiating EXECUTIVE Proof of the correctness of the Action Committee's strategy has come with the Executive's decision to call strike action for the same day that the unofficial strikers had already decided upon. Far from being adventurist", as the Workers" Revolutionary Party termed them, or 'pointless" as the Communist Party and NUT Exccutive member Max Morris said, the strikes have been fully vindicated.
Ni-one should be disarmed by the sudden about turn of the Executive. They are past masters at the art of selling out. They sold out the London Allowance fight last year and are still trying to discipline three Wandsworth militants who opposed them at that time. We Executive's manoeuvre is simply an attempt to regain control of the situation.
For the moment, however, the boot is on the other foot. The task is to make sure it stays there. The best micans of preventing a sell-out and preparing for the autumn is to develop a strategy which can overcome the isolation or London trom the rest of the country.
This will involve taking up the national claim and maintaining the Action Committee as a central co-ordinating body, it is the Action Committee which has called and organised the strikes and has succeeded in breaking down the isolation of teachers which lad previously demoralised many schools.
The fight for the London Allowance is a fight to improve teachers low pay. This affects all teachers across the country. Strikers in London recognise this and have demanded the immediate opening of negotiations on the national claim for a E2000 a year starting salary. Teachers in the rest of the country should take up this demand right away.
The 85 pay rise teachers won at the beginning of the year meant a cut in living standards, because the cost of living had already risen by 12.5%. Teachers therefore need to Red Vicekly The unofficial strikes, orginised by the London Teachers Action Committee, began on 23 May and were followed by extended action at the beginning of June. Striking teachers visited schools warning of the danger of a two-tier protect all future gains against further intlation.
Central to a push for the national claim, theretore, is the relention of the threshold agreement. But instead of teachers waiting until there has been a 7% increase in the cost of living before they pot any additions, their wages should go up pound for pound with the cost of living.
CUTS
But pay is only one aspect of the crisis in education. Belore Christmas 1973 the Tory Government cut ET80 million off the education budget. This attack on the education system has been upheld by the Labour Government. London alone has had to hold up plans for 31 new TITU SECURIS.
What is needed is a national fight to defend the education system. This fight is as urgent as that to defend the National Henith Service, and, like that, needs and deserves the active support of all sections of the working class.
The Labour Government should restore the cuts and immediately endorse the confiscation of land and buildings to replace dilapidated schoois, and do away with overcrowded classrooms, had sinitation and poor facilities.
The education system, like its buildings, is falling apart. Instead of being rebuilt it is sumply being patched up.
London teachers have struck the first blow in the vital fight to revense this trend. Winning the struggle for a London Allowance of L350 for all London teachers would be a major step forward in this fight A fighting unity with local government workers and the nurses is an urgent objective. None of these sec Commitlee!
or delegates from schools. The numbers tirae. During the strikes, meetings have heen held of 300400, even 600 on the Burnhoin fibbyor 5 July. All decisions tatives and delegates to the committee The democratic nature of the action commitice is one of the cornerstones of is credibility among bachers.
tence?
strike action that day and that gave on that lobby and were very angry that The exocutive had not called ont some of thu Sid schools who had roted for extended strike action. Half term was about to follow and nany of us had a picture of an exccutive sell-out.
I think this sense of urgency made people keen that the militancy should against setting up the Action Committee and wanted ux to rely on resolution-pus sing in local Associations and so on. Fortunately they were defeated.
First and most important, it has broken the Isolation felt be the militant schools and provided a means of paoling our resources. This meant we were able to have a much bigger impact than each school acting individeally have been mawy schools takine maliant CHIN DUTIE DUE CIS CENTEN I naming dates and collecting and distabuting information as to who would strike, Poopic ac, when aeron scomple uncoordinated and disorganised thore is a big danger of demoralisation. The Action Committee played a decisive role in overcoming these problems.
begun with a call for extended action on 11 Jano. Of coume the forces involveil week, but people sun that we came out together and went hack together. They saw that a thoush we were smal wo moant what we said and we did what we It is a hody made up of representatives involved have varied from 40 to 60 at any taking real decisions.
are taken by an open vote of all seprosnWhen and how did it come into exis At the mass labby of the sonion's Action people the confidence that we could take action ourselves, About 400 people wen Uaf up to 60 sebouls.
From the beginning of the your there where, and when, No matter how militan We started with only four schools and that navine Warnt a lot of things and that we intended to apply these lessons. Most of all they saw that the action commicice rolling. was a democratic organisition capable af From then on we were able to burld up rapkily to mobilis several hundreds, Our call for strike action next Thursday was going to reach the willest layers yet. That is no doubt one of die koy roasons why the executive maile the call for a half-day official strike on the sume day. We count this as a big victory not many peopl even in militant anions can have got an unofficial strike made official evan before it has taken place, Of conno we welcomu what the executive has done -they well aring in far wider forces-but we also see the need to po beyont a simple half day strike We at calling for further action on Thursday and hope to have the support What are the lessons?
Basily i you want to win you lan lo organise yourself Use the officials, of course, bet don trily on anyone, There is no ruora for self appointed leaders in struggle and the docisive people une those who are ongaged in the fipht. In this respect all of the people who struck from 11-14 June were the Icaders bocause they did what they said they would. They have also starred a big ball Six hundred striking teachers lobbied the Burnham meeting on 5 July Committee What's next?
This Sight isn t over by a long shot. But Too other things are important. Hitst wo cuts sestored, Secued wa want the immallate opening of negorations on the rational claim. Pay loa probiem chat faces teachers nationally Thick we need a confercare at the beginning of September to thrash out the next steps and to broaden the scope of the Action Committee. The more people who understand why we fid what wo did, tic better our chance of bringing tomectacy into the NUT Finals, on the London cann itself, we have to overcome bar nos wensec we have had in the past. We laven't built sat tinks with ofber workers in strumle for an increased London allowance. On of the reasons this hast't been achievod is because their struggles haven't peached che same lepel of self-organisation waich our have -but we must utterapt to link ap wit all the other workers, in PartiCLIn in NALGO, Who an invalved in the London Allowance fight. We think the oxperience of the Teachers Action Commitlee holds lessons which go out. side just the NET, and a jolt fed will strongthen every body MENE TER
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