West Dunbartonshire teachers are set to strike again at the start of next year following Thursday’s industrial action.
The Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS) has announced that there will be 16 continuous days of strike action in January and February, spread throughout every council in the nation.
Teachers in West Dunbartonshire are currently planned to strike on Thursday, January 26, alongside Midlothian Council - exactly nine weeks on from last week’s strike.
EIS picket lines received very strong support from parents and the public on Thursday, with many people turning out to show their support for teachers, claimed the EIS.
Commenting, EIS General Secretary Andrea Bradley said: “Our members do not want to be on strike, but they have been angered by the repeated foot-dragging of COSLA and the Scottish Government over pay.
“The final straw for many teachers was the charade of the ‘revised’ offer that came from the employers earlier this week. This offer was simply a repackaging of the same five percent offer that our members overwhelmingly rejected in a ballot three months ago.
“We would urge the Scottish Government and COSLA to return to the negotiating table with a credible new offer, so that Scotland’s teachers can get back to doing what they want to do – working to deliver the best possible education for young people across Scotland.”
EIS are aiming for an improved pay offer of a 10 percent increase to match the rise in the cost of living, with the latest offer by COSLA of 6.85 percent described as insulting.
EIS representative for West Dunbartonshire, Jim Halfpenny said: “It would be a serious mistake on the part of COSLA and the Scottish Government if they fail to understand that teachers in Scotland will not shrink from defending themselves and Scottish education. Let them be clear, teachers are preparing for industrial action.”
Their proposal for a 10 per cent wage increase, according to Education Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville, is, however, “unaffordable.”
She added: “Strikes are in no-one’s interest, and we continue to engage with the unions to find a resolution.
“I recognise the strength of feeling within the unions, but they also need to recognise that the Scottish government budget is fixed and is already committed. Any new money for teacher pay would have to come from elsewhere in education.”
Alongside this, the Scottish Secondary Teachers’ Association (SSTA) and the NASUWT plan to strike on December 7 and 8.
Dumbarton MSP Jackie Baillie said: “The offer was with the Cabinet Secretary for weeks but was only signed off within hours of the first all-out walkout by teachers in 40 years.
“That is unforgivable and is now set to cause chaos for parents and disrupt education throughout the first two months of the year.
“That is on the Scottish Government who have badly mishandled the most critical round of public pay negotiations in decades.
“Money should have been in the budget for public sector pay deals at the start of the budget year. Instead we now have a crisis that is escalating fast.
“A deal has to be struck which will avoid these strikes taking place. The only way that this is going to be resolved is for the First Minister to come personally to the negotiating table to get a deal done.”
