Time for a New Union

rainbowtrout wrote: »

No I'm well aware that meetings are not well attended by and large. But that, at least in theory should give part timers room to manoeuvre. I've watched the smallest school in the county rally the troops and get their 10-12 staff members to all attend on one night and vote through their motion etc, and sat on my own, or with only one other person from my school and wondered why our staff won't do the same when we could have double those numbers there. With low attendances at meetings it would be quite possible for an organised group of part timers/NQTs to make up the majority on any given night.

Yes as I said earlier I agree with your point. But arguing amongst ourselves gets us no where.
Meetings are not well attended across the board my point was constantly putting across the point (which is correct) that not enough nqts go skews the overall impression. The fact is very few of any age go.

I still make the point that union activity needs to become a regular part of local school life, as I said not just getting the mag once a month. Regular meetings within schools will bring people into the fold and that is where it starts.

You have stated twice about the small school bringing loads of people. I would imagine this us not every meeting only when the need arises. In one way that isn't what it is really about. But it goes back to my point that obviously within that school there is a strong bond amongst the staff obviously have regular meetings and people feel part of it regardless of age rather than just saying to new staff go to this meeting in x place and it means nothing to them. I guarantee if thee was a guaranteed group of 10 going the nqt would go.

Not everyone will but that is a fact if life if we take any issue. Local clubs very small amount of people do a large amount of work similar idea.

We need to become one no matter how frustrating it may be letting those frustrations come out can be counter productive to the overall aim

bdoo wrote: »

In my experience mots teachers who started from 2000 or so on had it handy with regard to union issues as there was a well established cohort of people in schools who protected their interests.

Those people are now gone and it falls to the rest of us to.take the initiative to make the unions strong again.

I'm not slagging my own, im stating facts. All the wanted to know before from TUI news was when our next pay rise was.

Yes because as you said yourself they have not had many issues since 2000 or so, so they have had no real interaction or have not had any need to have any real integration outside of a pay or CID question.

Now things are different but only in recent times it is a whole change of view, minds, beliefs. That doesn't happen overnight. Give people a chance. Get grass roots I.e. within the school on board first them we will see a change

doc_17 wrote: »

Those affected by recent changes in pay should, instead of forming a new union, actually show up to their cuurent one's meetings.

I've been to a couple where the same 2 or 3 people take over the whole show and its like having teeth pulled!