Teachers accept new pay offer

Teachers across the Forth Valley have accepted a new pay deal.

90% of members who responded to an EIS ballot voted in favour of the offer.

It will give staff a 7% pay rise, backdated to last April, with a further 5% increase next month.

It means planned strike action, due to begin later this month, has been called off.

82% of members turned out for the vote.

Members of the SSTA union voted in favour of the deal yesterday.

EIS General Secretary Andrea Bradley said, “EIS members have voted overwhelmingly in favour of the current pay offer, with 90% of those voting opting to accept in an online ballot. Turnout in the ballot was also high, confirming that Scotland’s teachers believe that it is now time to accept the offer and bring an end to the programme of industrial action in our schools.”

Ms Bradley added, “The acceptance of this offer will mean that, for most teachers, their pay will increase by 12.3% by next month in comparison to current pay levels. This includes a backdated 7% increase from April 2022, and a 5% increase from this April. Teachers will also receive a further 2% increase in pay from January next year, with the next pay settlement then scheduled to be negotiated and payable from August 2024 onwards. The total current package will amount to a 14.6% increase in pay for most teachers by January 2024.”

Ms Bradley continued, “EIS members have taken a pragmatic decision in voting to accept the current pay offer. While it does not meet our aspirations in respect of a restorative pay settlement for Scotland’s teachers, it is the best deal that can realistically be achieved in the current political and financial climate without further prolonged industrial action. It compares favourably with recent pay settlements across the public sector, and does provide pay certainty for Scotland’s teachers for the next 16 months until the next pay settlement is scheduled to be delivered in August 2024.”

Ms Bradley concluded, “It is deeply regrettable that it took a sustained industrial dispute, and the first programme of national strike action on pay by teachers in forty years, for the Scottish Government and COSLA to finally come up with an acceptable pay offer for Scotland’s hard-working teaching professionals. Scotland’s pupils, parents and teachers deserve better, and the Scottish Government and Scotland’s local authorities must commit to ensuring that education is properly funded, and that teachers are fairly paid, in all future years in order that Scottish Education can provide as it should for our young people and for the good of our whole society.”