NI unions fight school cuts
WORKERS, JULY 2006 ISSUE
Yet again unions in Northern Ireland have acted to fight cuts in education provision. In the latest action, hundreds of workers joined a mass lobby of the South Eastern Education and Library Board at the start of June as it was meeting to discuss proposed cuts to many services for pupils with special needs.
The lobby was organised by NIPSA, the Northern Ireland Public Service Alliance, Unison and the NAS/UWT. Board members were shocked at the number of workers who turned out. The chant of "No ifs, no buts, no cuts" made it hard for them to hear themselves speak, and when many of the protesters decided to go into the meeting they first threatened to call the police – and then abandoned the meeting.
Northern Ireland union members fight education cuts. Photo: Workers
The board says the cuts are necessary to balance its books – or government commissioners will be sent in. But the board has been shown to be financially incompetent and workers in the education sector are determined that children shouldn't have to suffer to put the books straight!
An article in the local paper, the Newtownards Chronicle, gives a clue as to where it should be looking for savings: £700,000 had been spent in three months last year on consultancy fees and 4 posts have been advertised on high salaries for its PPP (public private partnership) schemes. One of the proposed cuts is the closure of a summer scheme for children with severe learning difficulties in order to save a mere £30,000.
NIPSA representative Brian Booth said, "This is shocking. There is no money for children and services, yet the Department of Education can throw almost £200,000 per year at these posts to try to shore up a service that is totally discredited."
NIPSA has also pointed out that handing control over to private companies could leave staff open to poorer job conditions than they have under public control. Kitchen staff and cleaners could face their jobs being contracted out to private companies, and the destruction of the high-quality service they offer.