Further strike action is set to take place impacting schools across Scotland.
The Educational Institute of Scotland union (EIS) has confirmed a range of dates that will see teachers in primary and secondary schools across the country walk out following a pay dispute.
The union’s general secretary Andrea Bradley said teachers deserve and expect an appropriate increase in their pay and not a “deep real-terms pay cut”.
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This comes after teachers rejected a deal which would offer most staff in classrooms a five percent pay rise, although the lowest-earning teachers would get a 6.85 percent increase.
However, the Scottish Government said that a 10 percent increase for all teachers is not affordable within its fixed budget.
As it stands, this means that primary schools teachers and early years in Scotland are being called to strike on Tuesday January 10 and secondary teachers will strike on Wednesday 11. This will be nationwide and then rolling strikes are planned across the country throughout January and February with teachers in two local authorities on strike on each of these sixteen days.
Here are the further dates teachers in Edinburgh, East Lothian and West Lothian are expected to strike unless a deal is made.
- East Lothian January 16
- Edinburgh - January 25
- West Lothian January 31
At the end of December, Ms Bradley said: “As 2022 comes to a close, Scotland’s teachers are still waiting for a pay settlement that should have been paid to them in April.
“What Scotland’s teachers have been offered by the Scottish Government and Cosla amounts to a record real-terms pay cut of up to 11 percent in a single year. This is in the context of the value of teachers’ pay dropping by a massive 20 percent since 2008.
“It is little wonder that teachers voted so overwhelmingly for strike action and remain determined to stand firm against the unprecedented pay cuts that have been offered.”
She added: “The Scottish Government and Cosla must do better. They owe it to Scotland’s teachers – the majority of them women – and Scotland’s pupils to end this dispute by committing to pay Scotland’s teachers a fair pay increase. This is about pay justice and gender pay justice.”
Ms Bradley said: “Teachers worked tirelessly as key workers throughout the pandemic, often putting their own health at risk to ensure the best possible education for Scotland’s young people amidst very difficult circumstances.
“Now, in the early stages of education recovery, teachers want to be in the classroom supporting pupils. But, as the cost-of-living soars, teachers deserve and expect an appropriate increase in their pay – not a deep real-terms pay cut, as they have consistently been offered.
“Education must be a top priority for government and for local authorities, and that means investing in education, including investing in teachers, to ensure the best possible educational experience for all of Scotland’s young people.”
Scotland’s Education Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville said: “We are committed to a fair, sustainable settlement for Scotland’s teachers and will continue to engage constructively with teaching unions and Cosla.
“It is very disappointing that the unions rejected the latest offer – the fourth that was put to unions – which mirrors the deal accepted by other local government workers.
“The request for a 10 percent increase for all teachers – even the highest paid – is not affordable within the Scottish government’s fixed budget.”
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