Teachers start three days of targeted strikes

In the dispute over teachers’ salaries, there are targeted strikes.

The Educational Institute for Scotland (EIS) is staging a three-day walk in the constituencies of politicians close to the dispute.

Schools are affected in areas represented by First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, her deputy John Swinney, Education Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville and Green Party MSP Ross Greer.

Ms Somerville said she was focused on resolving the dispute.

She has also written an open letter to students outlining the support options available to them during the industrial dispute.

The union rejected a new salary offer last week.

Teachers want a 10% pay rise, which ministers say is prohibitive.

The latest offer included a 6% pay rise this year and a further 5.5% in the new fiscal year.

The Scottish Government had raised £156million to fund the two-year deal.

While EIS rejected the offer, unions NASUWT and SSTA said they would consider it.

The EIS said the 6% increase for 2022-23 was insufficient as inflation currently stands at 10.5%.

On February 22-24, the EIS announced that its members would go on strike in the following constituencies:

A further three days of action from 7 March will target the constituencies of the four MSPs and the district of Dumfries and Galloway Councilor Katie Hagmann.

She is resource spokesperson for the council umbrella organization Cosla, but as a council member her parish is Mid Galloway and Wigtown West.

These affected schools will have to go on strike for a total of 10 days over the next two months if the dispute is not resolved.

Schools in the rest of the country face four days of action.

On February 28th and March 1st there will be two days of nationwide strikes.

For another 20 days, between March 13 and April 21, regional rolling strikes will take place in all municipal areas, hitting each school twice.

EIS members have already participated in three days of strikes – a national strike, a day of ongoing regional action and a second two-day national strike consisting of a primary day and a secondary day.

Some schools are also affected by a separate day of action by the SSTA and the NASUWT.

Ahead of the action, Ms Somerville said: “I want to reassure students, parents and carers that my focus remains on resolving this wage dispute, finding a fair and sustainable solution for teachers and ending disruption in our schools.

“Of particular concern is the risk of further disruption leading up to the trial diet.

“I have written to local authorities asking them to consider how secondary schools can remain open to students preparing for exams and this is being reviewed by school by school councils.”

She added that wage negotiations were ongoing and reiterated her call for unions to suspend industrial action during the talks.

The recent teachers’ strikes mark a clear shift in tactics.

So far all schools across Scotland have been equally affected by EIS industrial action. The strikes were either nationwide or affected each school once in an ongoing program.

If the dispute is not resolved, schoolchildren across Scotland are expected to have four days off from school between next week and mid-April.

But students in the five target areas will face another six days of strikes.

The move echoes a tactic used in the mid-1980s during the long-running teacher dispute.

Then schools in the constituencies of some ministers in the Conservative government were targeted for additional strike action.

But this time there is a key practical difference.

In the 1980s, target schools were often, though not always, in relatively affluent areas with few children who could be considered disadvantaged.

But some of the schools affected this time serve areas that are not prosperous.

It should be emphasized that it is not the union’s intention to target individual children or families – it is to put pressure on politicians. Throughout the row, the teachers have stressed that they want to be at work — not on the picket line. In fact, teachers in schools serving disadvantaged areas are often aware of how their work can improve a young person’s life chances and are passionate about their work.

But inevitably, the new tactic is something of a gamble.

Is there a risk that targeting could prove counterproductive and alienate some parents? Or will it increase the pressure on senior politicians to improve the salary offer and lead to a solution?