Teachers threaten to strike over a ‘rise in abuse’ from pupils
TEACHERS are to vote on strike action at a school amid claims of physical, racial and homophobic abuse from pupils.
Staff at Northfield Academy, Aberdeen, have raised concerns about their safety after being subjected to the abuse by ‘a very small percentage of pupils’.
Yesterday the Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS) teaching union said the abuse had amounted to racial and homophobic abuse, as well as gender-based violence.
They also said that some physical assaults had been reported to police.
The EIS – Scotland’s largest teaching union – has met with the school, as well as management at Aberdeen City Council. However, the union said no adequate response to the issue was given.
A previous consultative ballot of members resulted in 81 per cent of teachers supporting some form of industrial action and 70 per cent supporting strike action.
EIS Aberdeen Local Association (ALA) co-secretary Heather Collie said: ‘Teachers are well accustomed to dealing with pupil indiscipline, and experience a wide range of challenging behaviours throughout their working lives.
‘This is never a pleasant part of the job, but it is a reality for which teachers are highly trained. What will always be unacceptable, however, is where challenging behaviour escalates to become violence or the threat of violence against a member of teaching staff.
‘It is, unfortunately, the case that violence against teachers, both physical and verbal, perpetrated by a very small percentage of pupils, has become far too frequent at Northfield Academy.
‘It is for that reason that Abershows deen EIS requested, and the EIS Emergency Committee authorised, a statutory industrial action ballot for our members at the school.’
ALA co-secretary Ron Constable also criticised the school’s management.
He said: ‘The EIS has attempted to engage with school management at Northfield Academy, and with the local authority, to ensure that our members’ concerns in relation to their safety are properly addressed.
‘The response has been, to put it mildly, disappointing and this has compelled us to ballot our members for industrial action.
‘Aberdeen EIS has already highlighted a range of actions that must be taken to provide a safe working environment for teachers in the school, as well as a range of measures to ensure any teachers who are subjected to physical or verbal violence are supported properly by their employer.’
He added: ‘A safe place to work is surely not too much to ask for teachers, who simply want to get on with their jobs.’
Aberdeen City Council were approached for comment.
‘Violence is far too frequent’