Response to Deliver Us Our Future

Gary Zadkovich's 1999 Eric Pearson Deliver Us Our Future report is an excellent starting document for a review of the position of the NSW Teachers Federation. This discussion would help with a senior officer election later this year, a world that is becoming more hostile and with the traditional party of the left, Labor, globally embarking on the same cuts and attacks as their supposed foes.

Pages 17 to 28 look at how member participation in Federation can be increased. Members were ignored in their April SKY 2000 call across 80% of meetings for further industrial action than the one day (and without rally) proposal put forward by executive. This desire was downplayed by senior officers scared of the threat of IRC fines. Gary's suggestion of Association meetings being held during normal school hours reflects the Maritime unions monthly mass meetings of all members. Voting for officers directly from association rather than at Council would increase grass roots democracy and hence feedback.

With others, Gary has spearheaded the establishment of Public Education lobbies. These institutions for promotion of public education are mirrored by individuals and groups Gary visited in the USA. One quote from Tom Mooney, president of the Cincinnati federation of teachers, states

"in my view, professionalism is the most powerful framework for winning teachers to the movement for meaningful education reform, which may be the key to saving public education".

However the limitation of this position was seen in the 2000 Mt Pritchard Public Education Lobby meeting as it became clear to teachers on the floor that the politicians were long an words to say how professional we are but short on action to stop the funding to the elite state subsidised schools.

The direction we need to respond to these times is seen elsewhere when Gary refers to the events in the streets of Seattle in 1999 when over 150,000 were involved in shutting down the World Trade Organist ion . It is this combative spirit , later seen in Melbourne, Prague and Davos, that we and other unions need to bring into our structures, personnel, strategies and tactics.

This will maintain our place at the forefront of social concerns, to strengthen the trade union movement generally and to beat back the increased testing agenda of those who wish to package education into a commercial product to be sold on a global market.