Report from the INTO picket line outside Dept of Education - 24th Nov. '09

dublin | worker & community struggles and protests | news report Tuesday November 24, 2009 17:57 by Gregor Kerr - member Irish National Teachers Organisation and Workers Solidarity Movement - personal capacity

From before 8a.m. this morning, members of the Irish National Teachers Organisation were on the picket line outside the Department of Education and Science in Dublin’s Marlborough Street, alongside Special Needs Assistant colleagues, members of IMPACT, and workers based in the DES building itself, members of SIPTU, CPSU and PSEU.

From before 8a.m. this morning, members of the Irish National Teachers Organisation were on the picket line outside the Department of Education and Science in Dublin’s Marlborough Street, alongside Special Needs Assistant colleagues, members of IMPACT, and workers based in the DES building itself, members of SIPTU, CPSU and PSEU.

By 8:15a.m. the number of picketers had risen to about 100, by 8:30 to nearly 200. The numbers on the picket line averaged 200 until 10a.m. At that time union members began to gather in Gardiner St. for a rally and march. By the time the march from Gardiner St. arrived around the block outside the DES building in Marlborough, it was well over 2,000 strong.

For the rest of the day, the picket on the DES averaged 500 to 1,000 - an impressive and determined show of strength. Union members from Dublin City North, Dublin North West and Dublin North East branches were rostered to spend 2-hour periods on the picket but many members spent much longer periods there, a testament to the feelings of solidarity and comradeship which people felt by taking part. We were also joined by many colleagues from union branches from the southside of the city. In total up to 5,000 teachers and SNAs took part in the picket at some stage during the day.

Teachers on the picket line were determined that today would just be the start. Nobody was under the illusion that the government was going to back down after one day of action but all were convinced that we were no longer going to allow ourselves to be scapegoated. Today’s strike and picket was seen as the first step in making a stance, and members left the picket this afternoon determined to begin to organise for next Thursday’s second day of action.

The feelings of solidarity and comradeship which union members took away from today’s picket will be the building blocks on which the next phase of action will be built. Members of INTO, and indeed all unions, need to remember this sense of solidarity and need to keep the pressure on union leaders to follow through on the promised continuation of the battle begun today.