By Sam Wainwright
SYDNEY — More than 4000 teachers braved pouring rain to rally outside Sydney's Town Hall on February 9. The action was part of a statewide one-day strike called by the NSW Teachers Federation to pressure the Labor and Coalition parties to make definite commitments on education funding during the campaign for the March 27 state election.
More than 63% of the state's 57,000 public school teachers walked off the job. Both the Labor government and Coalition opposition have refused to go beyond vague rhetoric regarding education. Both have failed to respond to a set of priority demands put forward by the federation.
The federation is calling for an end to state funding of private schools, increased salaries for teachers, extra resources for schools that serve disadvantaged communities, proper support for students with special needs, increased funding for capital works and an end to the casualisation of the TAFE work force (of which around 70% is now casual).
At the Town Hall meeting, a motion to adopt the slogan "Tax Packer to pay for public education" was put to highlight that, while both major parties refuse to commit themselves to adequately fund public education, Labor and Liberal governments at the state and federal level are "reforming" the tax system in favour of the super-rich. A motion calling for another two-day strike was lost, but gained considerable support.
Labor education minister John Aquilina condemned the strike. In contrast, the Democratic Socialists and the NSW Greens issued statements endorsing the strike action and supporting the teachers' demands.
Murdoch's Daily Telegraph ran a banner headline, "The Cap Fits" accompanied by a crude picture of Teachers Federation president Sue Simpson wearing a dunce's cap. More "respectable" journalists and commentators suggested that, while the teachers had legitimate concerns, they were hurting their cause by taking strike action.
Dick Nichols, the Democratic Socialists' candidate for the NSW Legislative Council, told Green Left Weekly: "We don't have to accept the idea that decent funding for public services is not affordable. The only way that gains in education funding have been achieved is through strike action and community campaigns."