Teaching assistants urge public to support their dispute with Derby council

Derby teaching assistants – striking today (Thursday) for the eighth time since the city council cut their pay in June – are taking their campaign into the community to get the public to lobby councillors on their behalf. The classroom assistants have been in dispute with their employer since last September when the council announced plans to put them onto term-time contracts. The move means some employees will lose as much as £6,000 a year. The mostly female workforce will be out leafleting today (Thursday) on the streets of Boulton ward in Alvaston where council leader Ranjit Banwait has his seat. UNISON general secretary Dave Prentis will be joining them after first visiting a picket line at Lakeside community school. Over 100 teaching assistants will be asking local residents and businesses to send letters to the council leader urging him to back down over the decision. It means school support staff now get paid for fewer weeks a year, and those working full-time have to work longer hours for less pay. This is the third time the Derby teaching assistants have met Dave Prentis in recent weeks. The first was in September when they took their case to Westminster to lobby MPs, then last week they visited Liverpool to lobby the Labour party conference. UNISON general secretary Dave Prentis said: “Teaching assistants do a sterling job, and are much valued by parents and teachers. It’s a pity Derby Council doesn’t feel the same way about them. “School support staff ...
Source: UNISON Health and safety news - Category: Occupational Health Authors: Tags: News Press release dave prentis teaching assistants Source Type: news