Scottish teachers threaten industrial action over pay

Scottish teachers are threatening strike action over pay and levels of bureaucracy under the controversial new school curriculum. Heraldscotland reports that the move by members of the Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS) teaching union follows an impasse over pay with local authority employers and ongoing concerns over workload. The EIS has demanded a pay increase of five per cent to redress a decline in salary levels over the past few years, but the employers side offered 2.5 per cent over two years instead, which has now been rejected.

The issue has now taken up by the EIS Dundee local association which has presented a motion to the annual general meeting later this week calling for the union’s ruling council to campaign for a “restorative” pay deal. The motion, which will be debated at the meeting in Perth later this week, states: “If no satisfactory outcome is forthcoming, members are to be balloted for industrial action up to and including strike action.”

The union is also threatening industrial action over the amount of work required by teachers to fulfill the demands of the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA). The East Lothian local association called for the EIS ruling council to campaign for a reduction of workload and bureaucracy involved in “testing, retesting and marking” of internal SQA assessments. East Ayrshire local association motion added: “That this agm instruct the EIS to ballot for a boycott of all SQA related work unless SQA assessment can be managed within the 35 hour working week.” A joint motion from Highland local association and West Dunbartonshire local association added: “That this agm resolve to ballot secondary school members by December 2015 on industrial action, amounting to a boycott of cooperation with SQA until such time as the SQA reduces the enormous burden and reforms the nature of internal assessments for all courses.”

Larry Flanagan, the EIS general secretary, said: “Despite the fine words of politicians on the need to support schools and teachers the range of motions indicates that excessive workload remains a huge issue for teachers and, therefore, for our schools and our pupils. “The signal that teachers are sending out is that enough is enough and that these issues must be tackled to reduce the workload burden. “Teachers are always extremely reluctant to take industrial action, so it is significant that there are a number of motions calling for some form of industrial action over workload this year, including calls or a boycott of some of the internal assessments currently demanded by the Scottish Qualifications Authority.

“The message to the Scottish Government, to local authorities and national education bodies could not be clearer – take action now to lighten the load on our schools and our teachers.” Teachers and lecturers will debate a total of 70 motions at this year’s AGM on a wide range of issues relating including CfE and conditions of service and salaries. The EIS agm is often the forum for teachers to threaten industrial action, but strikes are usually avoided although the union has walked out with other public sector unions over changes to pensions.