Abstract:
The Trades Hall council gave Victorian teachers unparalleled support in their recent industrial dispute with the ministry of Education. The teacher unions, the Federated Teachers' Union of Victoria and the Victorian Secondary Teachers' Association, have welcomed the support from other unions involved in the education system such as the Public Service Association and the Miscellaneous Workers' Union. This paper argues that such support from other workers is a direct reflection of the changing class location of the teaching occupation. It documents how teachers' attitudes towards other workers altered as their perception of their own class position shifted.