Teachers in Dumfries and Galloway walked out of classrooms on strike this week for the first time in nearly 40 years.
Schools across the region closed yesterday as the members of the Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS) union took the “difficult” decision to take industrial action.
The union called Tuesday’s revised pay offer from COSLA, which would have seen pay rises of five per cent for almost three quarters of staff, “insulting”.
Andrew O’ Halloran, the local association secretary for the EIS in Dumfries and Galloway, said: “It’s sad it’s come to this.
“The latest offer is just a rehash of the old offer with some attractive features for a small number of teachers. Essentially for most teachers it’s the same offer we had before.
“That’s not negotiation. For that to come in a few days before the strike – that’s not serious. They could’ve got back to us earlier and it’s with the Scottish Government and COSLA to resolve this dispute quickly.
“There hasn’t been a closure to schools for strike action since the 1980’s and that was a long and protracted campaign which was difficult and today is difficult too.”
Union bosses are seeking a 10 per cent pay rise to deal with the cost of living after more than a decade of real term pay cuts.
Mr O’Halloran understood parental frustration at the disruption but told the Standard teachers had received backing on picket lines.
He said: “In April inflation was running at seven per cent and it’s now running at above 11 or 12 per cent depending on which measure of inflation you look at.
“The public support the teachers because they know what we do and how much we work. You don’t have doctors and nurses and police officers or engineers without teachers.
“This isn’t a day off. There are teachers standing in the rain across Dumfries and Galloway not being paid. We’re not being paid because we’re on strike and we’re on strike because we’re investing in the futures of ourselves and education.
“The more attractive a profession it is the better quality of people we’ll have teaching and that will have a more positive impact on young people and children.”
Ahead of talks with COSLA today, the EIS has announced further industrial action set for primary schools on January 10 and secondary schools on January 11.
Mr O’ Halloran added: “Hopefully after seeing the strength of today’s strike they will reconsider their position.
“We didn’t cause this crisis but we’re certainly paying for it.”
Education Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville said Scottish Government budgets were under “extreme pressure” and a 10 per cent pay rise was “unaffordable”.
She added: “Strikes are in no-one’s interest and we continue to engage with the unions to find a resolution.
Mid Galloway and Wigtown West councillor Katie Hagmann, who is also COSLA’s resources spokesperson, said: “I would call on our trade union colleagues to recognise these are extremely challenging financial times we are operating in and we all need to make decisions with a full understanding of the consequences.
“Our offer ensures we don’t place additional pressure on any other parts of our hardworking workforce and the essential services they deliver, and importantly it protects the best interests of children and young people.”
