Last day of local teacher strikes - but more to come if no deal

It's the end of 16 days of walk outs

Author: Rob WallerPublished 6th Feb 2023
Last updated 6th Feb 2023

Schools in Inverclyde are closed today as teachers strike for the final time as part of their recent campaign of walkouts, but more action is on the horizon with no new pay offer from Holyrood.

Members of the Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS) union will also take to the picket lines in Shetland at the end of a 16-day campaign of rolling local walkouts in the pay row with the Scottish Government.

Teaching unions have demanded a 10% pay rise for their members, but the Scottish Government has ruled this out as unaffordable and have offered a 5% salary increase.

More strikes planned

The 16-day wave of walkouts, which have affected schoolchildren the length of Scotland, has not seen Education Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville and local authorities buckle, and the unions have warned industrial action would continue.

READ MORE: New wave of strikes planned

Without a deal, strikes could continue into the exam period in the spring. This would mark the third exam period out of the last four years to be hit with disruption after the impact of Covid-19 in 2020 and 2021.

The EIS has already announced two days of national strikes, on February 28 and March 1, followed by another wave of rolling strikes between March 13 and April 21.

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