Scotland’s. first nationwide colleges strike since the 1980s will start later with a one-day walkout by teachers.
Pupils at close to each major and secondary university and many council nurseries will be affected by the industrial motion over pay.
A revised pay offer on Tuesday was rejected as “insulting” by unions.
But Education Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville said their demands for a 10% pay rise were “unaffordable”.
A new pay offer from employer Cosla – which would have seen rises of up to 685%. for the lowest paid – was fair, Ms Somerville said
The. Scottish university strikes – by members of the Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS) and the Association of Head Teachers and Deputes Scotland (AHDS) – come amid industrial motion throughout the UK on Thursday.
Strikes will start at one hundred fifty universities as employees from the University and College Union (UCU) protest about pay,. working stipulations and pension cuts
Royal. Mail staff will additionally return. to picket strains for 10 more strike days at the postal service’s busiest time of the year, after talks ended without contract.
Meanwhile, teachers elsewhere in the UK are being. requested if they additionally desire to strike over pay
Picket. lines
During the final nationwide strike by teachers in Scotland in the mid-1980s, it was infrequent for colleges to close totally.
Students could nonetheless attend classes with teachers who were members of other unions
The. EIS now represents about 80% of the country’s teachers and its actions will close nearly all primary, secondary and extra support wants colleges. Only a handful of major colleges in Orkney and Shetland will remain open.
Many early years learning centres and nurseries are additionally affected.
Teachers will be on picket strains exterior colleges in the morning and at rallies in Aberdeen, Dundee, Glasgow and Inverness, and exterior the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh during the afternoon.
EIS has warned further. strikes in December could not be dominated out.
And it said major teachers planned to strike on 10 January and secondary teachers the following day, with additional industrial motion in February.
The Scottish Secondary Teachers Association and NASUWT plan to strike on 7 and eight December, leading to closures of some colleges and disrupted timetables in others.
Today is the day neither the Scottish government nor the EIS union hoped they would by no means see
This. is the first nationwide teachers’ strike in Scotland since the long, bitter dispute of the mid-1980s
The. EIS and the other unions hope more strikes can be avoided and that immediately will be a one off.
But discovering the money to give the unions a 10% pay rise would mean some very hard options for councils and the Scottish government
The. academic impression of a one-day strike will be very limited in itself.
But it comes as colleges continue to get well from the impression of the pandemic. The loss of any teaching time can by no means be a good thing
It. additionally means that consideration which ought to be on raising attainment or supporting pupils who lost out during the pandemic will instead be concentrated on balancing out the impression of disruption.
EIS normal secretary Andrea Bradley said they had been “forced into this strike” after months of talks with Cosla, the councils’ umbrella body, and the Scottish government
“They. have offered a series of sub-standard provides that fall far under the price of inflation and far brief of the justifiable expectations of Scotland’s hard-working teaching professionals,” she said.
Teachers had reacted with “great anger” to the latest offer from Cosla, Ms Bradley added.
“Their a lot self-lauded ‘generous and progressive’ offer is really worth, on average, an further 71p per week to Scotland’s teachers compared to the formerly rejected offer. For most teachers, there is no development at all, as 80% of teachers are nonetheless being offered 5%”
Parents’. representatives said strikes could current problems for families
Leanne. McGuire, from Glasgow City Parent’s Group, said university closures would be especially problematical for single working parents, these without a support community and children with extra support needs
“Those. pupils really thrive on routine and when that routine is damaged then it can cause them a lot of distress, which then in turn causes a lot of stress for parents,” she said.
Ms Somerville said she was “very disappointed” that strike motion would disrupt children and their households.
She advised BBC. Scotland’s The Nine that a 10% pay enhance was “unaffordable for the Scottish government”
“We. have a mounted budget that is already absolutely utilised for this year, so to do whatever that would enhance the resolution that we have on this would mean that money would have to come from elsewhere”
In. a separate dispute, staff at 17 Scottish universities are expected. to stroll out on Thursday and Friday and on 30 November.
About 8,000 employees in Scotland are expected to subscribe to a UK-wide strike over pay, working stipulations and pensions
The. University and College Union (UCU) said the impression would range between institutions, however they expected some tutorials and lectures to be cancelled
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