Letter to The Times. Unpublished
I was unsurprised but dissapointed this week to read that teachers have voted in favour of strike action over pensions. It has been well reported for many years that public sector pensions are unaffordable and it was only ever a matter of time before action had to be taken. It is embaressing in this time of austerity, when thousands of people are out of work completely, that the public sector claims some nobel exemption from cuts. It seems to me that the best thing a teacher can do to secure their pension is to be in the classroom, delivering world class education to the pupils whose taxes will ultimately pay that pension. Many argue that the crisis was the fault of reckless bankers and lax economic regulation and that the public sector workers shouldn’t suffer in the way that those more directly responsible should. However I would be confident to suggest that a great many public sector workers partook in and benefitted from the subprime lending that was a leading factor in the economic decline. As painful as it most certainly is, everyone, public and private sector alike, must take responsibility for our economic recovery. I, like many thousands of my collegues, will not strike on this issue and I would invite teachers and other public sector workers to reflect properly on the reasons why they are striking
