Headteachers in Wales will be balloted on possible strike action over pay and funding in a historic and unprecedented move. It is the first time that members of the National Association of Headteachers decided to hold a ballot over pay in the union's 125-year history.
It follows ballots already announced by teaching unions over the recommended 5% pay award for the profession in Wales. Headteachers are also being balloted on action over school funding with some telling their union they don't know how they can continue to run their schools with pressure coming from all sides including increased energy costs and unfunded wage bills.
The NEU Cymru also today announced dates for a strike ballot over pay, following ballots announced by the Nasuwt Cymru and UCAC teaching unions - any action would not be taken until next term. The Education Minister has warned there is not enough money to pay more than 5% and you can read more about that here
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Speaking at the Trade Union Congress (TUC) Conference in Brighton today (Tues 18th Oct), Paul Whiteman, general secretary of school leaders’ union NAHT, announced that, following a national consultation with the union’s members, school leaders across Wales and England, will proceed with a formal ballot on industrial action. He said the historic decision showed the depth of feeling warning: "School leaders across the country are telling me that they cannot continue to run their schools in the current circumstances."
NAHT Cymru represents school leaders in the majority of primary schools in Wales. 84% of its membership responded to a survey between Wednesday 21st and Friday 14th October. Of those 91% wanted to be balloted on taking action short of strike, if "a suitable agreement on pay and funding" is not reached and 64% of respondents indicated they wanted to be balloted on taking strike action.
Mr Whiteman said cuts to council budgets, spiralling energy bills, inflationary costs, and lack of funding for teachers’ pay this year means thousands of schools across Wales and England are predicting going into deficit: "Consequently, school leaders are being forced to make cuts that ultimately cannot help but negatively impact on the education and wellbeing of children."
He told the conference: “Over the course of the last few months, I have travelled the country hearing from our members directly. I have never heard more anger and despair.
“School leaders across the country are telling me that they cannot continue to run their schools in the current circumstances. The neglect of pay in education and the funding to support it is now eroding the quality of education that our members can provide.
“Schools are caught in a vicious spiral. Insufficient pay has contributed to a recruitment and retention crisis. And the failure to fund even the insufficient award this year means that heart-breaking cuts to services will have to be made. Less people and fewer services will lead to an erosion of educational quality.
“Based on current projections, even with this year’s pay award by the Welsh government, school leaders’ salaries will have lost approximately 22% of their value since 2010. They are feeling demoralised and undervalued. Worse than that, they are finding themselves unable to provide the level of education and support for pupils that they know is needed, due to the massive cost pressures that keep piling on to school budgets and the government’s continued under-funding of education."
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Mr Whiteman said headteachers were dedicated and their first concern was for the education and wellbeing of staff and children in their schools, but they felt the current pressure on funding and pay could not go on.
"They are telling me very clearly that they feel unable to continue to operate under these circumstances. It is almost unprecedented for the relentlessly reasonable professionals I know our members to be, but we have no choice but to move to a formal industrial action ballot to establish what next steps they would like to take.
“No school leader would ever take any industrial action lightly, but they are telling me they feel compelled to fight for the futures of the children and young people in their care. It is no exaggeration to say that the future of education is on the line."
Mr Whiteman has today written to local education authority employers in Wales to inform them they are now officially in dispute, and said he has "explained" the situation to Education Minister Jeremy Miles. He urged them to listen and act on school leaders' concerns.
“School leaders will do everything in their power to avoid disruption to pupils. But they are clear that to do nothing will only ensure that nothing changes. My appeal to employers and the Welsh Government is to engage with us and find a solution that serves the needs of the profession and in turn the ambition of young people.”
Laura Doel, director of NAHT Cymru, said: “The continuous education reform agenda, issues with recruitment and retention, and the repeated underfunding of schools has left our education system at breakpoint. Our leaders are being asked to do more with less, schools are losing staff, and those left are struggling to keep up with the demands of the job.
“We need to invest in education where it offers the most value for our learners, and that’s in the workforce. It is only with highly skilled, quality teachers and teaching assistants in our classrooms, and strong leaders in our schools, that we can deliver for our children.”
Today (Tuesday 18th October) also sees action short of strike commence for school leaders in Northern Ireland, after 93% of NAHT(NI) members voted in favour in a formal consultative ballot. Action by heads shows the huge strength of feeling after years of funding and pay erosion, said unions.
Today the National Education Union Cymru also wrote to councils and Welsh Government with its intention to ballot teaching and support staff members starting on October 28 and ending on January 13 2023. Dates for potential strike action are yet to be decided, but likely to be from week commencing 30 January 2023, the union said. Members will be asked whether they support strike action and/or action short of strike.
David Evans, Wales Secretary of the National Education Union Cymru, said: "The latest financial statement from the fourth Chancellor in as many months, will do nothing to quell the anger of teachers and support staff as they face yet another real-terms pay cut – and has caused the Welsh Government to call this period a “new era of austerity” .
"Teachers have lost 20% in real terms since 2010, and for support staff in the same period the loss stands at 27%. This is simply unsustainable.. The strength of feeling should not be underestimated. Pay, along with workload, lays at the root of a recruitment and retention crisis with 29% of teachers in Wales leaving within the first five years of teaching. And we are now seeing support staff accessing foodbanks in schools too. This should be of deep concern to the Welsh Government – they need to act now."
The Welsh Government responds
Asked about strike ballots Education Minister Jeremy Miles repeated his warnings to teaching unions last week that there was not enough money to fund above inflation pay rises. He blamed Whitehall for making a mess of the economy.
Mr Miles wrote to teaching unions last week saying their 12% pay demand was reasonable, but the cash wasn't there. Taking a Welsh Government press conference this morning he said the Welsh Government had to work with the funds given from Whitehall and urged the new Chancellor to fund public services fairly.
"It is really important he makes that funding available across the UK so we can make sure we have our fair share in Wales to support public services.
He added: "Whilst the UK Government continues to pursue reckless economic polices that risk jobs and livelihoods the Welsh Government continues to do everything we can within our control to support families through this cost of living crisis."
A Welsh Government spokesman said there was nothing to add to statements already made by Mr Miles in his public letter to teaching unions last week.
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