BY JOHN TOGNOLINI
SYDNEY — At 140 stop-work meetings across NSW on December 2, members of the NSW Teachers Federation voted by a margin of 98% for stepped-up industrial action in support of their salaries campaign, including a 48-hour strike on February 11-12 and bans on annual school reports and all associated work.
The meetings also voted for bans at TAFE colleges, including on the validation of workplace evidence provided by employers for apprentices and trainees, and any other work associated with apprenticeships and traineeships, which is not fully resourced; any TAFE course/module development for which there is not specific release or additional resources; any work devolved from the education department's head office to TAFE institutes as a result of Labor Premier Bob Carr's planned department restructure and any new classroom management systems in TAFE.
In a leaflet recommending these measures, the Teachers Federation stated: "Public education and communities are threatened by the Carr government policy of depressing the real wages of teachers. Teachers across Australia are similarly engaged in campaigns including industrial action, highlighting the crisis facing public education and the profession in their states.
"The value of teachers' work and the imminent critical teacher shortage are factors which demand a reasonable and sensible response from the Carr government. Catholic education employers have agreed with the Independent Education Union in the Industrial Relations Commission about the value of teachers' work and the significant changes in teachers' work over the last decade.
"The Carr government, by contrast, has sought by every means to lower the potential salaries award by the IRC. It has taken this course of action despite a healthy surplus in 2002-03 of $619 million and pre-election promises not to denigrate the profession and to have a new award in place by January 2004 when the current award expires.
"The government has already savagely attacked public education with budget cuts in real terms, with the 'Lifelong Learning' restructure of the Department of Education and Training, and with massive increase in student fees in TAFE...
"Despite our best efforts, the Carr government continues to:
"1) Threaten the funding of public education including TAFE, if the IRC awards more than 3% per annum.
"2) Denigrate and undermine the work of the profession in the IRC."
[John Tognolini is a high school teacher, a member of the NSW Teachers Federation state council and a member of the Socialist Alliance.]
From 91×ÔÅÄÂÛ̳ Weekly, December 10, 2003.
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