Angry teachers consider nation-wide action

Teachers from all states and territories will consider taking nation-
wide co-ordinated industrial action in September because of ongoing attacks 
on their wages and conditions. NSW Teachers' Federation (NSWTF) President, 
Maree O'Halloran, said last week that state Labor governments were working 
together against teachers. Such a national action by teachers would be a 
first in Australia.

State and Territory Government treasurers met in June and agreed on a 
campaign to hold down public sector wages.

"The treasurers of the state Labor governments have met to collude to drive 
down the wages of teachers, to ensure the nation's teachers are offered 
inflation or less [wages] over the next few years", Ms O'Halloran told a 
1000-strong rally of teachers in Sydney last week.

"That warrants a national response, national industrial action, and we plan 
to co-ordinate that action".

Cuts in real terms to education funding have given governments the pretext 
to only offer wage increases at the level of inflation or less.

NSW is a classic example. The Carr Government has offered teachers a six 
per cent increase over two years — three per cent a year — but has just 
granted MPs a four per cent increase; a rise of more than $4000 a year. A 
five per cent increase has been slated for the rest of the public sector.

The NSWTF is seeking a 25 per cent increase over two years, and while the 
Government claims that its pay offer is based on "incapacity to pay", the 
Federation says that it "merely represents what the Government is prepared 
to pay."

The three per cent won't even keep pace with inflation. The teachers' pay 
claim includes the recommendation of the Vinson report into the state's 
education system of an immediate five per cent "catch up", 10 per cent from 
January 1, 2004, five per cent from July 1, 2004, and five per cent from 
January 1, 2005.

Cream for private schools

The contempt the Carr Government has for the state's teachers and the 
public education system is reflected in the State Budget delivered in June. 
It provides a greater percentage increase to private schools — 4.46 per 
cent — and cuts of government funding to TAFE colleges.

While Treasurer Michael Egan was congratulating himself on a "seven per 
cent increase on last year" to the education budget, the overall percentage 
increase for education and training was in fact 1.3 per cent. The paltry 
increases to public schools and TAFE colleges are unlikely to keep pace 
with inflation.

Funding for education and training has been in decline for five years. The 
Teachers' Federation says that given the Howard Government's provision of 
record amounts of money to the private education system, the Carr 
Government is not addressing the current inequities, but exacerbating them.

Furthermore, the Federation points out that if the Government's claim that 
it is "incapable" of paying for needed improvements in public education, 
including salary increases, is true, then it would be a major abrogation of 
its responsibility.

Jobs to go

Likewise the Government's proposed restructure of the Department of 
Education and Training will result in a loss of a 1000 positions, which 
equates to $60-70 million.

In its journal Education, the Federation notes: "This restructure, 
and therefore the job cuts, are driven by the need for the Department to 
find `savings' to fund unfunded ALP election promises. This represents an 
act of deceit by the Government."

Education Minister Andrew Refshauge talked up the restructure as though it 
would be beneficial to the system, saying that "this is about getting 
people out of the bureaucracy and teachers back into the classroom . 
returning up to 300 teachers to the state's classrooms."

But no additional staffing is going into any classrooms as a result of the 
restructure — those 300 teachers will just fill existing vacancies.

If there is no progress on negotiations there will be a state-wide stop 
work of NSW teachers on July 29.

A spokesperson from the NSWTF told The Guardian that although no 
specific date was yet fixed for a co-ordinated nation-wide action, when 
"the cat got out of the bag" about the treasurers' planned cuts it put the 
whole question in a national context.

"We thought we'd have some discussions with the other states with the 
prospect of some joint action", he said.