in Little Ilford School.
against Secretary Fred Jarvis.
too that the threat to education is not the new organisation simply a matter of the cuts. A concerted right-wing offensive against the educational gains of the working class, like the comprehensives, is being others. This challenge also has to be met.
one day. concern itself with setting up a new orSIGN THE LETTER, comply with union teachers are instructions or be suspended indefinitely from the union! That's the demand which any unofficial action. the National Union of Teachers executive committee have put to their own members Teachers at the school, in Newham, East London, voted by a per percent majority to take no cover action because *In view of the large number of unemployed teachers, it is not reasonable to expect a supply teacher to cover for absences of three or more days in advance.' But their action met with fierce opposition from the headmaster and NUT This led to a one-hour stoppage in the school. Suspensions from the union have since been imposed until such time as the waged Rhodes Boyson, the Black Paperites and lished.
All of this, of course, cannot be done in The conference will rightiy ganisation and defining the broad areas of the Labour Government.
prepared to sign letters pledging that they will not participate in The action of the Little Ilford Teachers is not an isolated one. About 50 schools in the Inner London Education Authority are refusing to cover for teachers absent for more than three days.
But because this action has not been coordinated in an effective way, these schools have not been in the forefront of the cuts fight. This situation prepares the way for the NUT bureaucrats to jump together with local education authorities on teachers like those in Little Ilford.
But the vigorous defence campaign being waged by the Little Ilford teachers can begin to change this. The schools who have a policy on no-cover should publicly agreement around wnien mintants cal begin to work together. In particular the conference will be setting up a Coordinating Committee and discussing what kind of publication should be estabRed Weekly welcomes the Open ConTerence as an important conmiougon te uniting torces in action against ine altacks on the working class from the TUC and DOINT as the way to promote to mant serve the as a body, has put up no tight against ine socia embarrassment to many CP TO Docial declare it and in conjunction with th defence campaign fight for its extension.
During the course of this struggle it will be necessary to organise beyond the confines of a single school and go forward from a no-cover campaign — which is one way of fighting the cuts in the schools -to build a movement to challenge the NUT bureaucracy and fight the rightwing orrensive in ecucaton.
But defence of Little Ilford is the starting point. Support the lobby of the NUT Executive at 8.30 am, Saturday 27 November, Hamilton House, Mabledon Place, London WCI; and send mone and messages of support to NUT Representative, Little Ilford School, Browning Road, E12.