The Live Wire



Press Release

NUT pensions ballot

17 May 2011

The NUT is to ballot members for national strike action in defence of teachers' pensions. The ballot will commence today Tuesday 17 May and will close at midday on Tuesday 14 June 2011.

NUT Annual Conference voted overwhelmingly in favour of balloting members for discontinuous strike action in opposition to unfair and unnecessary changes to teachers' pensions.

The Union is balloting all members of the NUT in England and Wales who are eligible for membership of the Teachers' Pension Scheme (TPS) including teachers in schools, sixth from colleges and academies and many teachers employed in local authorities' central education services.

Christine Blower General Secretary of the National Union of Teachers, the largest teachers' union, said;

“We welcome the fact that we are balloting alongside the ATL and also welcome the decisions taken by the NAHT and ASCL to defend teachers' pensions. UCU has already taken action in respect of TPS members. We are happy to campaign alongside them.

“The anger amongst teachers' is growing. It is quite clear that the Government wants teachers to pay more, work longer and get less for their pensions and the Government has already cut the annual pensions increase with no negotiation.

“It is vital that we build the broadest campaign to send a clear message to Government that this is not acceptable.

“Teachers' pensions are affordable and essential. Our own surveys show that the proposed increases to the TPS will mean that many young teachers could opt out of the scheme all together. This will have disastrous consequences for the profession and recruitment.

“It cannot be right that the Government is seeking to price members out of an entitlement to which they already contribute a good part of their salary. The National Audit Office has confirmed the TPS is sustainable following the changes made in 2007. These include increased contributions and a later retirement age. Costs of the scheme are falling as planned.

“The NUT along with the other teaching unions remains fully committed to reaching an acceptable outcome by negotiation with Government but believes the Government is not taking negotiations seriously. We cannot stand by and see our pensions eroded. Our ballot is intended to help in those negotiations and help us secure a fair deal for teachers.”

Article Comments

The erosion of teachers pensions is but one of a number of cost-cutting exercises using the current economic down-turn as cover for ideological Tory ambitions.

The Tories do not discuss their philosophy these days as they know they would be rejected by the electorate. So they use the sound-bite and slogan form of electioneering. The Archbishop is right to highlight this in his recent speech as he speaks from a position of moral authority- something the Tories have no answer to. He has also done the people of this country a great sevice in providing a voice warning of long-term changes the majority of the people did not subscribe to.

The N.U.T. are right to support his comments and to seek to defend what is left of the status of the teaching profession of this country.
Mr. Goves notion that anyone can teach is putting a growing number of unqualified persons in significant positions in schools.

Commonly we see Special Educational Needs Managers in schools replacing Special Needs Co-ordinators- a position previously held by qualified teachers. The result is a very superficial treatment of S.E.N. students. This can only be damaging to the needs of the students themselves and to the opportunities of teachers and of the status of teaching generally. Of course, once Gove has fully established his army of unqualified personnel he can argue that they do not justify significant renumeration or pension-rights.

Thus, a major step forward in the dismantling of the profession and degeneration of teaching as a profession will have been achieved. No doubt Mr. Gove will receive a pat on the back for his financial prudency. Perhaps he may even be awared a Knighthood!

George Law
12th Jun 2011 at 12:57 pm



Press releases, papers and documents published on this page are the intellectual property of an organisation unrelated to Central Lobby. We promote their parliamentary and political campaigning activities as they are subscribers to the Central Lobby service.

As such, Central Lobby does not edit, endorse, or attempt to balance the opinions expressed on this page. The content of press releases and other such types of content are the responsibility of the originating organisation.

National Union of Teachers

National Union of Teachers

More from Dods

© Dods Parliamentary Communications Ltd