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• Education Cuts & the Crisis
5p IMG teachers
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EFFECTS OF A CRISIS Capitalism is in a deep crisis. This is why the policy of the last government has been a systenatic re-distrikution of wealth to support and protect the profits of the capitalists by depressing the relative standard of living of the working class. To do this several strategies were introduced; the idea of raising rents of local authority housing to the less well off from those paying high rents. and giving subsidies House building went down and within 3/4 years most council rents were expected to double. As a result the cost of all housing rose astronomically.
Curbs on wages in Phases 1, 2 & 3 were introduced which limited wage rises to a fraction of the rises in cost of living, and in order to Limit organised protest, the Industrial Relations Act was passed. In this way, by reducing the effectiveness of the Trade Union moverent it was hoped by the capitalists to put the brakes on any erosion of profits wages would fall relative to the cost of living and so the labour forces would be cheaper to maintain. The crisis which stimulated such obvious anti-working class measures is an ongoing international crisis which is hitting at the profits capitalists have been extracting and hope to cintinue to extract. In order to guarantee incrcasing profts in the face of an organised working class growing accustomed to some benefits of technological progress through their strucgle, it was necessary to defeat the real strength of the working class; i.e. its ability to organise for a united fight.
Only then can the capitalits introduce the massive cuts in the standard of living without fear of attack from the working class. The significant factor of the present situation is that while the thursts outlined above have been successfully undertaken, on several vital fronts the attacks of the Tory government were confounded.
The first of these was the successful campajgn of the miners in 1972 for a wage increase outside the Tory Pay Laws. After such a stinging defeat the Tories took up their latest weapon in the class war the Industrial Relations Act and put the 5 dockers into prison. The inmediate response of the working class was to take to the streets in their masses to release the Pentonville 5. The final blow came in 1974 with yet another successful miners strike which ousted the Tory representatives of the capitalist class. The Labour government has thus come to power in a period when the working class remains organised and is seeking to take back what the Tories grabbed, and more. However the need of capitalism is on the contrary to
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concede nothing in terms of the standard of living and general material welfare, but to defeat the working class so that it will be able to fight the future attacks which will be launched against it. The Labour government is thus in a dilerma. The working class within the Labour Party itself and outside is demanding concessions; the release of the Shrewsbury 3, reinstatement of the political rights of Clay Cross councillors, repeal of the Industrial Relations Act and refunding of fines to unions, repeal of the Housing Finance Act. But no concessions can be made within the capitalist system. Only a socialist slution can secure the needs of the working class and without a socialist strategy the Labour Party will be forced to introduce anti-working class legislation, or be thrown out by the manouvres of other capitalist parties. SOCIAL SERVICES The Tory strategy to undercut the cost of labour did not end at these The economic crisis which we have all seen manifested in direct means. a three-day week, in soaring inflation and the statutory wages policy has simultaneously had less obvious effects on standards of living, mainly in the area of social services, where thousands of millions have been Less obvious because expenditure has been cut, but the cut from budgets. services remain patched over, less effective but still in existence. What this means is that services now seen as an essential part of welfare State Britain are being run down so that taxes etc. which should hit the rich remain as low as possible. The services of the welfare State represent important gains made by the working class in the past as part of the struggle, against the capitalist class and though they are largely paid for by the working class through taxes and National Insurance, he must be prepared to fight for their improved effectiveness. On the question of social expenditure cuts, the labour government has again done nothing. Although under the Tories the Incal coancils controlled by the Labour Party denounced the cuts for their serious effects on the services provided for the working class, under Labour, the cuts remain in existence. Ine areas most acutely affected are the health and education services where facilities are often hopelessly out of date and staff shortage is critical in some areas. But all the services provided through the local authorities have also had to cut back; lighting, roads, services for the elderly and youth, sanitation, parks, libraries and leisure etc. and this in some cases means redundancies.
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However, cuts in social expenditure in all sectors should be fought against vehemently. No erosion of services for the working class must be allowed. Capitalists must pay the cost, by local or by national taxes and levies, of maintaining and improving facilities.
Assets, buildings, land, etc. must be utilised by the working class directly rather than waiting for handouts from a capitalist government. The Labour Party is now in power, and we should see this as an opportunity to stop the continuation of the Tory policies inmediately. Local Labour councils have felt the effect of the cuts badly, and some members of the Labour Party have played a part in defending the social gains of the education and welfare services; we should now call on the government and local Labour Parties to reverse all the decisions taken by the Tories. Ine cuts in education, health, and other services and local amenities must all be restored in full, at the expense of those who obtain their wealth from the labour of others. EDUCATION In the field of education both aspects of the Tory policy operated to erode the standard of education being provided for the working class. Salaries, cuts in social expenditure and staff: shortage are inextricably linked.
It is the cumulative effect of the former two which has resulted in the acute lack of teachers available in some state schools. Add to this the reduced numbers of teachers being trained and it is clear that sizeable inroads are being made into the cost of education for the working class. In marked contrast, while conditions in state shoools are being allowed to deteriorate, public schools remain in a privileged position with tax concessions, small classes, highly paid teachers, etc. Under the Tory government, many of the gains made by working class pressure for comprehensive schooling, for new biildings, up to date equipment, variety of courses etc. were directly attacked. During Phases 1, 2 & 3 cuts in social expenditure amounting to thousands of millions of pounds were introduced. These cuts affected the whole spectrum of state and Iocal government social services, but hardest hit were health and education.
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SOCIAL EXPENDITURE In the schools it was the plans for new buildings to replace the Victorian inheritance of board schools which was first curtailed, so conditions worsened as the school population increased. Temporary huts remained, classes grew in size and cramped space meant a cramped curriculum. In parents was whether to use up olay space with temporary classrooms until the never-never time when a new building would be provided or to keep he To takin Ratiton Authority alone, a phay space and have bigger classes. already suffering drastically from teacher shortage, 31 replacement primary schools have had to be dropped from the 1974/5 building programme. This kind of policy does not only affect conditions, it affects the different kinds of education services being provided, especially those is simply no room in which to teach. After this, the amunt of money available for equipment, furniture and books became a victim of the cuts, so that any real progress in the variety of courses being provided, the depth to which study can go are all reduced. In a situation where this is happening the children are very much aware of the inarequacy of their education. The advances being amde in industry, technology, etc. are simply not affecting the teaching within the schools. both teachers and pupils sets in. Frustration fOI All this has occurred at the same time as the raising of the school leaving age to 16, a welcome measure in itself but sadly, introduced in 1973 as a way of disguising the growing number of unemployed, and without the necessary resources, in terms of staffing and equipment, which could make this an educationally progressive measure. Many schools have introduced comprehensivisation, a gain which could mean a lot to the education of working class children but unless this is supported with the financial means to give a comprehensive range of subjects, In out of methods of teaching, etc., then the change is merely in name. date buildings, and with out of date kooks and equipment, problems obviously arise within the schools. But it is clear that these problems are being created not by the growth of violence in kids but by the systematic financial starvation of the education systemz
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PAY LAWS The authorities are fully aware of what is happening, yet they continue to put on a trave public face. At all costs there must appear to be an education system whether or not 'educatting' occurs.
In preparation for the drastic crisis which is inevitable in London, in September 1973, Dr E Briault, the chief of ILEh, has written to heads to reduce the expectations of teachers and students. give them advice on how to No 'optimistic assumptions' must be allowed in drawing up the curriculur oI the schools. It must be made clear that free time (i.e. marking and preparation time) is not in teachers contracts. Thus no embarrassing part time schooling is to be allowed.
What needs to be pointed out to those who think like this is that keeping children in school is not enough. Teachers, parents, pupils and the labour movement as a whole can be mobilised to fight for more than class-minding, for a full rewarding education to be provided for all.
The other major area of attack has been on tead ers wages. Systematically the pay structure has fragmented staff into a 50 point hierarchy; this system allows for a cheaper wage bill since promotion is seen as a way of increasing wages rather than unity to secure substantial rises for all teachers and an eventual abolition of the salary scales. Now the NUT Executive have capitulated once more on the question of salaries, under the assumption that we should get what we can now leven if it amounts to a wage cut) rather than fight and maybe get nothing. What the Union leaders fail to recognise is the depth of the crisis in education and how teachers can and must be nobilised to combat the collapse of the education of working class children.
Similarly the unsuccessful campaign of the London allowance failed to take into account the urgent need to bring all teachers nationally into the struggle on salaries.
STAFF SHORTAGE The role of the NUT Executive has been a typically bureaucratic one. Militant words, calling for links with other workers to fight for our wage claims, attacks are made on those local associations putting this into while practice.
Denouncing Phase 3, but stopping any action on the London Allowance, as soon introduced. as the Pay Law was Arguing for a 25% pay claim as absolutely necessary while accepting a paltry 7%.
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Teachers shoulä immediately be pressing; the Labour government for an interim salaries award and preparing to take all the necessary sters including strike action to secure this. The ficht to maintain an adequate education system cannot be divorced from the need for increased wages for teachers. Underpaid teachers only heln the caritalits to divide the working class. Teachers against pu-ils, etc. Teachers must make meaningfull alliances with TU's and workine class organisations to fight for wage increases and education, at the same time supporting the struggles of the other workers. No national mobilisation of teachers has occurrer on any of the crucial issues facing education and we are in a situation bday where unless drastic action is undertaken on the question of both salaries and education cuts, the teacher shortage will row so rapidly that meaningful education vill have ceased. In Sheffield, for instance, where the council was faced with having to implement drastic cuts, one of the solutions surrested was massive teacher redundancies. This was only averted at the orst of steen rises in the local rates. Certainly in most areas, ancillary and technical stoff allocations are being cut, which of ourse means effectively more strain on the teaching staff. The action put forward by the NUT executive on the question of staff shortage in Iondon is a policy of non-coverage for absences of more than This has been welcomed by most schools, precisely because three days. teachers are aware that unless a decisive show of strenth is mader staff shortage will become a nor and eventually the problem will no Longer exist. However, on closer examinațion, rutting the Executive's For every reacher who is policy into practice reveals many trans. absent, one class is to be sent home and the teachers who would normally teach that class then cover for the absent teacher. Thus the timetable of the whole school becomes disrunted and teachers are faced with a lucicrus situation where they create more difficulties for themselves and the children by taking militant action than by simply leaving the absent teacher's classes unattended. Of couse the whole roint of takin action is to cause a situation which forces the authorities to take notice, but what most teachers are asking is just how effective the NUT's policy is. It is not an instruction so isolater schools may be waging a very militant camaign while, dom the road the shortage is being covered. There are shoools in some areas where no covering at All is going on.
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But the NUT Excutive's militancy is mere rhetoric. On the question of class size, in aneriod when this is a major issue, they are pronosing to rostrne the date for action to achieve classes of 35 in primary schools and 30 in The main problem is how to obtain a massive secondary schools until 1983. and united campaign on the whole question of the disintegenting education service.
THE WAY FORWARD Firstly, teachers themselves must mobilise and beoome active on the questions of salaries, shortage and cuts in educational expenditure. Only by takine un these issues seriously and being preparer to take action can we have any effect at all. Making do for the sake of the children will in the long ter have the effect of condoning the erosion of the education system.
on a demonstration to the Department of Education & Science on the question of London Allowance. Staff at Holloway Schonl in North London, by mobilising parents, pupils and the labour ouncil on a demonstration, succeeded in solving their teacher shortage roblem. The fer: instances of militancy "11l rerain isclater unless ve educate end Teachers nationally should organise all teachers around! these lines. refuse to cover for any absences and call for supply teachers to ke employer?
Free time is needed for preparation and rarking and for such emergencies.
Militancy may arise round specific issues but is already far too little. this should always be brcadened out tr take in the fight on the whole situation in education. Conferences of shorols in struggle would be a most effective way of sharing and using the valuable experiences which have been gained recently. Action coul be co-ordinated and increasi from these and become more effective. But on such important issues we must enlain to the chilaren, parents and Trade Unionists why we are undertaking such action and point out that the State must provide more money and more teachers for the erucation system. The essential starting point from which we can successfully wage a struggle on the cuts in expenditure is to make effective links with other Irade unionists, parents, children and working class organsations. We can then irmediately take un the effects of the cuts occurring in each area. Pegular bulletins and leaflets can be produced with information on class sizes, accommodation eto so that those people most affected, the working class, can be organised to fight any cuts, both independently in their organisations and by uniting together. The fact that working class children are constanti! being levislater against, that the aim is for a chearer labour force must ke iilustrated constantly in union branches, Irades Councils, Labour Farties EtC.
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The task of uniting all the different sectors of the working class is central to the successful struggle, Conferences caller by Ira des Councils etc. on these questions could ensure that the most effective activity was undertaken. The response of the Clay Cross councillors to the Housing Finance ict was to refuse to implerent it to break the law. This is the tyre of action we could initiate in such conferences. The education employers such as IER who are surrosedly sympatnetio to an increased London Allowance should pay their teachers an interim award. where children are being taught in bar concitions suitable empty property should be cocupied and used as shocols. Similarly nurseries could te set up to encourage teachers to return to work and to prozide an essential sergice inr working mothers. Wage restxaint and cuts in social expenditure are part of the same attack on the working class. Teachers should organise links with other sections to support the struciles of the class against any such of the working, class attacks. It is not encuch to wait won the Labour government. They must be shown that only a sccialist solution will prevent the capitalists iron crabbing back the gains of the working class.
This is the second parghlet by the Teachers Cormission of the International Marxist Group. Your comments and/or criticisms would be welcome and should ke friwarded to: Teachers Cormission c/o 97 Caledonian Road, London PI. Enr further information about the ING and its activities, see the Red? Weekly seller or write to the above address.