Teachers are launching a new wave of rolling strikes across Scotland as a union leader warned there was no end in sight to the current pay dispute.
The action will affect two local authorities daily for the next 16 days, starting on Monday with Glasgow and East Lothian.
The Educational Institute of Scotland announced last week that 22 additional days of strikes would follow.
Ministers and councils said a demanded 10% pay rise was prohibitive.
The current 5% offer includes increases of up to 6.85% for the lowest paid employees.
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Education Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville said on Friday she remains committed to a “fair and sustainable wage deal”.
Any new offer would need to be agreed by all 32 council leaders, but they are not due to meet until late next week.
Last week, strikes closed nearly every primary school in Scotland on Tuesday and every secondary school on Wednesday.
Upcoming preliminary examinations also had to be postponed for some students.
The strikes also resulted in all four unions representing teachers and principals walking out together for the first time.
Members of EIS, Scotland’s largest teachers’ union, NASUWT, the Scottish Secondary Teachers’ Association (SSTA) and the Association of Headteachers and Deputes (AHDS) were involved.
Ahead of the latest phase of strikes, EIS Secretary General Andrea Bradley said there was a willingness to break the deadlock.
But she told BBC Scotland’s The Sunday Show: “In terms of an end in sight, I think we’re still a long way from there because there aren’t any numbers on the table that we can meaningfully work with to see an end to see way through this dispute.
“There’s a bit more work to be done on behalf of Cosla and the Scottish Government to get us there.”
Ms Bradley told the program the offer made in November was “virtually the same” as the previous one in August.
She added: “It has been labeled ‘fair and affordable’ by the Scottish Government in relation to what is fair and affordable to them, but we have been absolutely clear throughout this process so far that this 5% offer is neither fair yet is affordable for our members.”
Asked if she thought more effort was being made to end the nurses’ dispute, the EIS general secretary said: “We’re not really in the business of comparing ourselves to other groups of workers.
“We wish all workers’ groups committed to fair play well and stand in solidarity with them.
“We would say that with the resources that the Scottish Government has at its disposal, it should be able to cater to the needs of both groups of workers.”
EIS members have already been on strike across the country for three days – one in November and two in January.
On Friday, the union announced a 22-day program of additional strike action.
It includes two days of nationwide strikes in all schools on February 28 and March 1, followed by a 20-day rolling strike program between March 13 and April 21.
During the second period of the continuous strike, each community area will be affected by three consecutive days of action, with a day of strikes in all schools being accompanied by one-day strikes in primary and secondary schools.
Sixteen consecutive strike days are planned by EIS and AHDS.
But could the action be canceled before the program is complete?
This depends on whether a new formal salary offer is made to teachers’ unions and, crucially, whether this offer represents a significant improvement over the existing one.
A new offering is expected soon, but there’s no official timeline.
Any new offer would have to be agreed at a meeting of all 32 council leaders before it could be made official.
Their next meeting is not due until late next week, although a special meeting could be arranged earlier.
On Friday, the education secretary said recent meetings had focused on “examining compromise options” rather than coming up with a new offer.
Ms Somerville added: “While talks continue, the Scottish Government continues to urge teachers’ unions to reconsider their plans for industrial action.
“Strikes at our schools are in no one’s interest – including students, parents and carers who have already faced significant disruption over the past three years.
“We remain committed to fair and sustainable payment.”
Local self-government group Cosla said all parties were keen to seek a solution but reiterated that the 10% pay rise demanded by unions remained “unaffordable”.
Councilwoman spokeswoman Katie Hagmann said: “All parties are committed to seeking a solution that not only protects teachers and the broader local government staff, but also the educational experience of our children and young people.”
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