Mike Ironside

Classroom Struggle? Market Oriented Education Reforms and their Impact on the Teacher Labour Process

The reforms introduced through the Education Reform Act 1988 have brought about a radical redistribution of authority in the school system. The reform process includes the introduction of competitive markets, the erosion of the democratic structures that previously underpinned the state school sector, and the centralization of power over both funding and educational issues. This article examines the impact of these changes on the teacher labour process, drawing from recent research in schools in England and from earlier research on schools in the USA. Teacher labour is being transformed in several ways; reduced autonomy, deskilling, work intensification, and increased labour flexibility are identified. Some consideration is given to teacher responses, noting the importance of trade union responses for this traditionally highly organised group of employees.

Training and collective bargaining in European public services: a study of training‐related issues in French, Finnish and UK health services

It is frequently asserted that there is a link between the nature of training provision within an organization and its success or failure. Within this approach is an assumption that training is simply a neutral tool to be applied to the benefit of all. This article challenges this approach, arguing that training is an issue that may be the subject of disagreement and conflict. Using evidence gained from managers and trade union representatives in health care services in France, Finland and the UK, it is argued that all aspects of training provision are best handled through traditional collective bargaining procedures. This suggests that there is a need to provide training for managers and union representatives to enable them to understand both training issues and collective bargaining procedures.

Facing up to Thatcherism : the history of NALGO, 1979-1993

1. NALGO: What Kind of Trade Union? 2. NALGO 1905 to 1978 3. The Advent of Thatcherism 4. The Squeeze Tightens 5. Thatcherites Versus the Trade Union Movement 6. Privatization and the Retreat from National Bargaining 7. Storms: Financial, Climatic, and Industrial 8. Shake it All About: Into the 1990s 9. NALGOs Last Year 10. In UNISON

Training and Collective Bargaining in European Public Services: A Study of Training-Related Issues in French, Finnish and UK Health Services.

It is frequently asserted that there is a link between the nature of training provision within an organization and its success or failure. Within this approach is an assumption that training is simply a neutral tool to be applied to the benefit of all. This article challenges this approach, arguing that training is an issue that may be the subject of disagreement and conflict. Using evidence gained from managers and trade union representatives in health care services in France, Finland and the UK, it is argued that all aspects of training provision are best handled through traditional collective bargaining procedures. This suggests that there is a need to provide training for managers and union representatives to enable them to understand both training issues and collective bargaining procedures.