Lessons in power
By Maree O’Halloran
Thank you and congratulations to all members taking industrial action.
Premier Bob Carr's last minute intervention in the salaries case is a lesson in the ruthless application of power. He has demonstrated to parents, students and teachers that the values we teach in our schools are not for the likes of him.
Having been apprised of the likely outcome in our salaries case, it's clear that the Premier took immediate, crude and overt steps to avert salaries justice for teachers.
The last time teachers received an interim in the order of 5.5 per cent was 1970. In that case an interim of 6 per cent was granted followed by an additional 14 per cent (IRC).
When the Industrial Relations Commission brings down its decision, our assessment of the effect of the Premier's political interference will be against that benchmark.
Salaries campaigns are always essentially about relative power: the strength of the teaching profession versus the strength of the government of the day. Ideally there should be an orderly process for determining the value of our work and we would be paid accordingly. The reality is that governments do not want to and do not intend to pay teachers what they are worth.
The 1990s saw us in bitter salaries disputes with the government intent on award stripping as much as depressing our salaries. In the current campaign, Federation has tried every avenue to achieve a significant salary increase without the need for lengthy disputation. The foundations were laid thoroughly over a number of years. They included:
- negotiations for nearly 18 months (2002-2003)
- after school and vacation rallies
- paid advertising
- the Vinson Inquiry
- historic action across three states
- a compelling case in the Industrial Relations Commission.
We stand poised for a "once-in-a-decade" breakthrough in the salaries and status of the profession.
At this stage, while the Commission's decision is still pending, we cannot allow the Premier's intervention to stand unchallenged. We have to provide a countervailing force to the Premier's in order to allow the Commission to bring down its decision free from the Premier's pressure.
The Independent Education Union (IEU) has made the same strategic assessment as Federation. The Catholic teachers' case has been conducted simultaneously with ours and will rise and fall on the outcome of our case.
The IEU's decision to strike on May 28 is obviously helpful in our arguments with the public, media and government. However, in the wake of the IEU advertisement in the Sunday papers on May 23, the union clearly has other motivations. Among other things, the advertisements argued that non government schools were part of the "provision of public education". The IEU's strike is therefore about linking their schools to ours in the full-funding debate. Private schools all have enrolment policies that exclude. They do not provide public education and should not be accepted as such.
The Premier's public warning to the IRC, coupled with the Commission's decision to accept the Government's application to re-open, puts at risk the arbitration system for all workers.
The IRC is not a court of law. Rather it is a tribunal established by Parliament to fix fair and reasonable wage rates and settle industrial disputes. Nevertheless, in order for the arbitral system to work there must be both the reality and the perception that the Commission is independent from Government.
The State Government's unprecedented opening of our salaries case sends a signal to every employer in NSW that it is acceptable to re-visit wage cases months after they finish. It is for this reason that the Labor Council has strongly condemned the Government's actions.
At the time of the Government's intervention, the decision of the Commission was, in their own words, "imminent". Having stated that the Premier's comments were "offensive" and "wrong" and the Government's new evidence of limited value, it's now important that the Commission brings down its decision as soon as possible.
In order to secure the earliest possible decision, the Federation filed its final submissions on May 26 about the Government's new evidence. There is now no reason for the Commission to delay and we expect a decision "within a short period of time".
Time for Labor to act
Turning to the Federal election, the May 10 edition of Education called on Labor to cease giving comfort to private school lobbyists and to detail its plans for public schools. The Opposition Leader's Budget in reply speech contained one spark of hope which was that there would be additional funding for "government" schools. Unfortunately, for public education supporters, it was clear from Latham's speech that he sees little, if any, qualitative difference between public and private schools. Thus, the value of a universal and secular education system will need to be impressed on Labor MPs during the Lobby Day on June 21.
Annual Conference delegates this year will have an opportunity to make a direct assessment of the four major political parties. Federal Education Minister Dr Brendan Nelson and shadow education minister Jenny Macklin will address Conference. They will be followed by Democrats Leader Andrew Bartlett and Greens Senator Kerry Nettle.
The Coalition has just announced a pilot voucher system to provide parents in some states (not NSW) with $700 credit to purchase private tuition if their children fail to meet literacy standards.
The scheme has been condemned by state governments, teachers and parents. It will not work. It's inception marks the first step towards vouchers in this country and is another example of why the Howard Government's agenda must be defeated.
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May 2004 contents
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