Charles Clarke did not give all teachers a 2.5% rise from April 2004. He decided to hit those teachers with a management allowance by freezing the value of their allowances so they will only have a rise on their basic spine point.
This is an unprecedented move and is only the first stage in an attack on these teachers and management allowances in general.
A review is being undertaken of the structure of allowances, considering -
All NUT members in Primary Schools should have received a ballot form about the SATs boycott at Key Stages 1 and 2. It is vital that the union gets a large majority for action to reflect the massive majority of members against the SATs revealed by the recent survey.
Members in Bradford have run two successful stalls in the city centre, and one in Keighley - collecting signatures for a petition, distributing leaflets outlining our arguments against SATs, and giving away Stop the SATs balloons. Another stall is planned in Ilkley on Saturday December 6th and all help will be gratefully received. Please ring the office if you can make it.
You may have seen this story in a recent Times Ed. It is a landmark case because there was no big bullying incident but continual undermining of the teacher which left her, after four years of this, too ill to teach and having to retire early.
The judge described the Head’s behaviour towards the claimant as unfair, rude, aggressive and intimidatory. His judgement sends a clear message to LEAs and school managements that bullying staff lays them open to legal action and will not be tolerated.
You may feel you are subject to an unreasonable workload or have been unfairly criticised after a lesson observation. This in itself is not bullying, but if you are obstructed or belittled when you try to deal with it, that does constitute bullying.
Bullying in schools is always unacceptable and can be successfully challenged.
If you think you are being bullied :-
Now that the North wind doth blow there will no doubt be temperature problems in some.schools.
The Education School Premises Regulations, 1996, lay down minimum temperatures for schools. These are:
18 degrees centigrade in rooms with a normal level of physical activity, ie classrooms;
15 degrees with a higher level of activity, eg. a gym;
21 degrees in rooms with a low level of activity, eg. a medical room.
(There are no legal maximum temperatures for schools, but Workplace Regulations do state that the environment must be reasonably comfortable).
Thermometers must also be available at a convenient distance from any part of the workplace.
These minimum temperatures need to be maintained for as long as teachers and pupils are expected to be on the premises. When they cannot be maintained consideration must be given to closing all or part of a school.
Sometimes school managements have decided to bring in temporary heaters while the heating system is being repaired. These are often LPG (Liquified Petroleum Gas) heaters which can cause problems relating to fumes, fire risk, storage, and the distance from people at which they need to be sited.
These heaters are acceptable only for a very short period and in small numbers. Under no circumstances should teachers agree to be responsible for setting them up, turning them on and off, or anything else to do with their maintenance.
Less problematic, although still far from ideal, are temporary electric heaters.
If your school is experiencing heating problems, or if the use of temporary heaters is being suggested, ring the Union office for advice.
The NUT’s Annual Conference next year is again to be held in Harrogate over the Easter weekend. (April 9th to 13th). The Union is seeking volunteers to assist with reception duties, helping with guests of Conference (politicians etc) and to act as scrutineers when card votes are taken.
Expenses for travel and lunches are paid.
If you think you might be interested in being involved on all five days or just for some of the time, please contact the Union office
We have written to all our members who we think are working on supply explaining the new arrangements for those registered with the LEA.
Until recently, Education Bradford has managed the placement of supply teachers on behalf of the Council. This managing role has now been transferred to a company called Reeds. Supply teachers will still be employed and paid by the Council but will need to register with Reeds.
This information only applies to teachers on the Council’s books, not to those on the books of private agencies.
If you have not received a letter from us, which contains more detail than we have room for here, please contact the Union office.
The letter is also on our website at
www.bradfordnut.org
From April 6th 2003, parents of children under 6 or of disabled children under 18 have the right to request to work flexibly.
Flexible working allows you to achieve a better balance between your work life and your home life, allowing you to continue your commitment to teaching while giving you sufficient time outside work to devote to your family, studies or other interests.
The employer has a statutory duty to consider all applications seriously.
Although there is no automatic right to work flexibly, the new policy does provide a framework for solving problems faced by parents by requiring the employer to consider the case. In order to be eligible, an employee must:
Teachers are still entitled to make informal requests or to rely on local job share schemes or part time arrangements to change their working pattern. While it may be advisable to try these informal routes first, the new right does provide a useful further step which can be taken if needed. We suggest you contact the Union office if you need details about how to apply.