Teachers eye strikes as they snub 9% rise
TEACHERS have rejected a nine per cent pay rise from the Government – deepening fears they could go on strike this autumn.
Militant teaching unions said Nadhim Zahawi’s proposals do not “come close” to what is needed.
The Education Secretary is offering new teachers a rise of nine per cent over their first five years in a plan to boost starting salaries to £30,000.
He is also proposing a rise of five per cent for the UK’s remaining 380,000 teachers, rather than the three per cent originally suggested.
Under the Department for Education’s submission to the School Teachers’ Review Body, more experienced teachers would get rises of between two and three per cent, but the NEU and NASUWT unions argue that this figure is not good enough.
The NEU previously sent a letter to Mr Zahawi calling for “inflation-plus” wage rises, writing: “Failing sufficient action by you, in the autumn term, we will consult our members on their willingness to take industrial action.
“And we will be strongly encouraging them to vote ‘yes’.”
The NASUWT said it will hold a national strike ballot if the Government fails to “deliver pay restoration for teachers”.
Mary Bousted, joint general secretary of the NEU, said: “Nine per cent for beginner teachers does not really shift the dial on the plan to reach a £30,000 starter salary within two years.
“In that time, however, teachers will have experienced the intense and excessive workload which leads to almost a third quitting within five years of qualifying.”
Seasoned teachers have faced “poor pay deal after poor pay deal for many years”, she said – stressing that five per cent “is well below the current RPI inflation of 11.7 per cent”.
Patrick Roach, general secretary of NASUWT, said the Government had failed to “engage in dialogue directly with the profession”, adding: “The deepening cost-of-living crisis together with 12 years of real-terms cuts to teachers’ pay require a genuine commitment to pay restoration.
“A typical classroom teacher is today £40,000 worse off than they would have been had their pay kept pace with inflation in the last decade.”
The Schools Week website has warned that there are not enough supply agency teachers to cover lessons and duties if teachers go on strike.