business-style' Polys are al their least militant nerable time. In most cases it will affect students in What is much more likely to be a successful tactic is a series of national one and two day strikes. turers dida't get a lot more: problems with it than its But there are mure past history, for it hits stu- dents at their most vul- their last year when they and when collective action about the coam sanctions of University Teachers) in In the event there was a rapid resolution between called for "the tightening action' in Higher Educa- which was the tactic used by the AUT (Association their fight for better pay. the AUT and the Univer exams started, and the lec of sanctions, ballots on exam sanctions and local tion. There is some dis- than the original offer. is least likely. "trike ballot is being held ther Education also linked for this group to take ac- NATFHE has so far only planed. At the same time talke with local authorities ung to improve an offer of 5.3% for lecturers in Fur- have also broken down, certainly he introduced so that "revenue generation' ning of September by the can take place - fleecing and no new talks are with the employers refus home institution, writing lecturers' union NATFHE, - an all-out attack on fouth lemm will almost rich American students by was rejected at the begin guest lectures outside the agreed with the "manager' whether it is research, books, will have to be to Rexible working. academic freedoms. This delightful tion of October 17. Unfortunately week year will extended lo 46, a 30 hour attendance 37 hours': and all work, the deal is really about in a massive worsening of con- ditions for lecturers (and aA a result for all who work in this sector): A 38 week will become at least ceptance of the new- Talk of competing in than university staff are just pie in the sky. What leges Employers Forum have offered lecturers a miserable pay increase of 5.75% from April "88 - "89, tied to the ac- of education into profit Institutes of Higher Education from places Polytechnic and Col- form Polytechnics and Determined lo trans- undergraduates" style contract. "A fourth term introduced so that revenue fleecing rich certainiy be generation' students by courses on will almost 'Culture American can take place - running Page 16
SUPPLEMENT It is around Local Management of most opportunity to campaign for popular models of the local control of schools and the development of al- The Tory claims that LMS opens up' schools to greater influence by the 'user' of the education service must Schools (LMS) that there will bo Liances with local community groups.
be exposed. Kenneth Baker's state- ment about there being winners and The losers will be schools with large- losers' under LMS is clearly correct
teachers vallu April. Action by teachers with other a campaign against the Tories in ly working class pupils, progressive Labour muthorities, and the school Teachers retumed to work this new academic year with vacancy levels at their highest ever, workloads on the up and up and having seen their NALGO colleagues win a "no strings agreement well above the miserly 5.9% imposed on teachers in school workers could he a catalyst for which the ERA is challenged The Martin Allen fight will he a long one. workforce, strings'
Wesley House, Dayschool: Education' October 7, 4, Wild Court, London WC2. 10am-4pm, Women for Socialism (speakers Caroline Benn and Martha Osamor) Cost E5/E3/E2 Page 17 Women and creating an education market-place in each other like private husinesses for Funding. Fach tive, the head, now armed with the ques, and a board of directors, the lective altemative will be impossible: LEAs will be powerless lo impose their policies on the schools, and the unions will be atomised by the laws on secondary industrial action into council level on these issues will now often have to be tought again in each government, with a different national policy framework and a substantial increase in educational expenditure, LMS could represent a real step for- democracy in education. Under the Tories, it repre- sents something very different. Their intention is that LMS will decimate the powers of Labour LEAn and the strength of the unions in education by which schools will compele against school is to be run by a chief execu- latest in business management tochni- The expression of a col 28,000 separate workplaces. - an issue for the labour movement Local Management of pupils and hence Schools (LMS) school meals workers etc. When money is tight the obvious way to balance the books is to reduce labour At stake then under LMS are two how it's taught. The other is the jobs al testing, of course, but that still leaves Jeeway for the govemors to decide if the school is going to be a Magship of Thatchenite education or lo allempl an far as possihle to adhere nots the power to decide how the school budget is spent. By far the largest item of exponditure is the salaries of teachers (about two thirds of the total budget) and non teaching stalf cleaners, secretaries, caretakers. vital issucs for the working class in education: one is what is taught and and conditions of school workers. Battles that have heen fought at local power in two important respects. Fustly, it gives them the power to decide what the schools's educational priorities and policies are to be. They lave to operate within the framework of the national curriculumn cd nation- to more radical and egalitarian prin- ciples, Sccondly, LMS gives gover- SOCIALIST OUTLOOK no 18. October 1989 portant gains of the left Labour ing next April control of 90% of the Local Education Authorities and placed in the hands of the governing primary schools. (Ir's a year later in LMS gives school governors Education is by far the largest counts for a half or more of local Local authorities have had the power to make use of that money to The ability to implement policies, purticularly on 'race" and gender, that priorities from those of the Tory goverment was one of the most im- That period is now over. Not simply hecause of the political defeat of "municipal socialism, but because the Tories have now completely changed the miles of the game. Start- education budget (increasing to 93% by 1996) is being taken away from bodies of all but some of the smallest sector of local govemment. It ac- implement distinctive local priorities. authorities of the last decade. council spending. Inner London).
lack the jobs and conditions of teachers and other school workers. That means running the school into are at the same time cutting their jobs cems. Instead of heing the reluctant nots should be aiming to build a coalition of support for their refusing analogies here with the position of Labour councillors. In partieular. Labour governors must refuse to ar- interests, but their ability lo do sn depends upon the stance they take over cuts in jobs and conditions and educational attacks. It is impossible to build an alliance with people if you or overriding their educational con- agents of Tory attacks, Labour gover- implement them. There and makes no