By a Sandwell teacher Following the injunction and court ruling against the NATHE national strike, the NUT has called off action in the Sandwell borough.
Without even waiting to see if there would be a similar injunction against the NUT's Sandwell division, the proposed strike action against job losses of at least 50 teachers has been postponed.
However, while the TUC along with NUT and NATFHE leadership see ways of challenging the court decision, and a reballot of Sandwell is being contemplated, waves of teachers are receiving redundancy notices, with no legal means to defend themselves.
The court ruling springs from the latest anti-trade union laws of last year, which require unions to inform management of the details of members being balloted. Impossible barrier Providing accurate names and addresses of members to employers is not only a further barrier and time delay to further action, but probably impossible, under the discredited new national membership scheme.
On top of this, NUT rules stipulate that a two-thirds majority of the total membership must able to vote in order to receive strike pay. Also ballot HOME NEWS papers have to be sent to members' home addresses and be counted by the Electoral Reform Society.
It was the same Electoral Reform Society that refused to endorse the 70% majority for action, siting illegality.
While the bureaucratic nightmare has been going on teachers have been promised redundancy, huge increases in class sizes, and re-applying for their own jobs but with less pay and promotion.
Sandwell has the money to avoid the cuts. Teachers are willing to fight to get that money.
All that is lacking is the will to fight from the NUT leadership.
SOCIALIST OUTLOOK No. 58 12 March 1994, Page 6