Hundreds of teachers made their way to Nelson Monument in Glasgow Green after standing in picket lines across the city during the first mass strike in 40 years.
The gathering was one of many taking place throughout Scotland, with teachers coming together in Aberdeen, Elgin, Inverness, Edinburgh and Dundee. In Glasgow the message was clear, those in education feel undervalued and deserve more pay.
Teachers were offered a five per cent rise earlier in the year and a final offer was tabled on Tuesday, however, it was too little too late according to some.
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Many who gathered today told Glasgow Live they didn't want to strike but felt as though it was the only way for their voices to be heard.
Primary 5 teacher Stuart Harris said: "It's obviously very disappointing the fact that we are even here at the moment but it is what is.
"The offers we have been given by the Scottish Government and COSLA are nowhere near high enough to keep up with the cost of living right now, which is obviously a problem a lot of people are facing.
"So really what we are asking for isn't a pay increase, it's to stay as close as we can to attain a standard of living."
According to some the poor pay package has been detrimental to the quality of education available to pupils at all levels in Scotland.
With shortages and lack of newcomers trying their hand at a job in teaching, the demand on those currently tasked with guiding the next generation poses a real problem.
Secondary school maths teacher Nathan Quirk said: "We're short staffed, there's not a lot of teachers coming into the profession, there's teachers leaving the profession.
"So our workload is just increasing and increasing. With this cost of living crisis that's happening at the moment our pay isn't keeping up.
"You feel it in your fuel, in your heating bills, in your mortgage, in your rent, it's hard. We are looking for a 10 per cent deal and they haven't really offered that."
The 31-year-old also believes that if COSLA and the Scottish Government do offer what the teachers are asking for, it will feel as though the workforce is finally being acknowledged for all the efforts they put in during the pandemic.
He added: "If they give us the pay rise it means they are showing us respect and honouring what we've been doing over the past couple of years.
"Our work has gotten harder, especially since Covid as well, it was hard before Covid but it's definitely getting harder."
The dispute isn't just about the pay but it is to make sure the education system has a solid backbone going forward.
Another teacher said: "I am here to protect the pay of me and my fellow colleagues.
"Our pay has declined by 25 per cent in the last 10 to 12 years and we deserve a pay rise to make our profession something that is attractive for new graduates to come into.
"Our NQTs don't get full-time jobs when they finish their NQT year. How are they going to be retained if their pay isn't making it attractive because we already know the workload is huge.
"We've got to make sure that education is staffed for future years."
The en-masse walkout means that many classrooms across the country have been left empty.
The Educational Institute of Scotland hope the disruption caused by the strike action will make their position stronger when it comes to negotiating for better pay.
Susan Quinn from the EIS said: "Teachers and lecturers all across the country are not being respected by their employers the offer of five per cent has been on the table for months now.
"This week they brought another offer which was not improved. It was improved for a tiny collection of our colleagues, for the vast majority it was the same or indeed worse.
"So our members are here to say we deserve better than that."
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