'The disruption is much bigger than this’
Teachers with the National Education Union (NEU) enter their fifth day of strikes this year in their ongoing dispute for fair pay and working conditions.
This follows the decision by all four teachers’ unions to coordinate future industrial action in order to increase pressure on the government, in an ‘unprecedented show of solidarity’.
All unions voted to reject the latest government pay offer of a 4.5 % pay rise this year and a one-off payment of £1,000.
This figure still represents a real-terms salary cut, with pay for teachers on most pay grades expected to fall by 5% in real-terms in 2022-23 according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies.
The offer was rejected by 98% of NEU members, which the union said reflected a ‘fury’ and ‘determination’ by teachers that things can’t go on as they are.
Since 2010, teachers have seen their real pay go down by 23%, along with devastating cuts to school budgets, stress and unbearable workloads with a retention and recruitment crisis.
Unions have also pointed out that the government pay rise is not fully funded meaning schools would have to make further cuts to afford it.
Up to 400,000 teachers in England could be involved in the walkouts if all unions strike together, said Kevin Courtney, joint general secretary of the NEU.
Teacher unions ASCL, NASUWT and NAHT will ballot their members on industrial action this summer.
‘The disruption is much bigger than this’
The media has continued to focus on the disruption caused by strike action, as LBC presenter Nick Ferrari accused NEU this morning of destroying the ‘hopes and dreams’ of pupils.
To which Kevin Courtney said disruption to education is happened every week due to the dire state of teacher recruitment.
“We apologise for the disruption that is caused but the disruption is much bigger than this and it’s happening every week,” said Courtney.
“The aim of our industrial action is not disruption. But it is to make a point that by sacrificing our salaries on these days, by getting parents and politicians attention, that’s why we’re doing it.”
He suggested Ferrari get education secretary Gillian Keegan on the show and ask how she justifies the disruption every week to people in education, due to not recruiting enough teachers into the profession.
The government missed its target for recruitment of new secondary school teachers by 41% this year and by 7% for primary school teachers.
Whilst government statistics show one third of teachers who qualified in the last decade have quit.
For 73% of those who said they intending to leave the profession in the next two years, their main reason was workload, according to results from an NEU survey last month.
Schools have taking new measures in attempts to tackle the recruitment crisis, with two schools to trial a four-day teaching week scheme in hopes this can keep teachers in the job.
A recent government survey establishing the average working week for teachers as 48.7 hours.
Hannah Davenport is trade union reporter at Left Foot Forward
Left Foot Forward’s trade union reporting is supported by the Barry Amiel and Norman Melburn Trust
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