8th April 2014 9:00
By Blue Tutors
Last week teachers all across the country went on strike in protest over pay and working conditions. The strike which has been organised by the national union of teachers meant that many schools will close for some or all classes. NUT members joined picket lines all over the country, and the NUT itself also organised rallies. The strike affected many families in terms of childcare arrangements, and the Emergency Childcare website reported a 50% rise in the number of requests for help.
The NUT has said that the strike is a last resort taken because of lack of movement on the part of the government. The NUT has said that the education secretary’s policies are bad for children’s education, and leaving teachers exhausted and demoralised. They noted that teachers are leaving the profession in droves, leaving a shortage of good teachers still willing to work in the education sector. The enormous workloads for teachers continues to be a contentious factor, with teachers becoming exhausted while their pay conditions worsen.
The strike action has been condemned by the department for education, which has expressed concerns over the disruption the action will cause to students and their parents. They have said that the action will not be understood by parents, and that the teachers are damaging the profession by taking strike action. In a letter to the NUT the education secretary urged the union not to take strike action, but failed to move on any of the demands made by the union.