London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Saturday, May 31, 2025

Scottish teachers call off strikes after pay offer

Scottish teachers call off strikes after pay offer

Scottish teachers are to suspend their strike action after receiving an improved pay offer.
Unions will now consult their members on the proposal, which would give them a 14.6% pay rise over 28 months.

Andrea Bradley, the general secretary of the EIS - the largest union - said they would recommend that members accept the offer.

Targeted strike action in specific Scottish parliament constituencies had been due to take place next week.

EIS general secretary Andrea Bradley told BBC Scotland that those targeted strikes would be cancelled.

But she said future regional strikes - 20-day wave of rolling strikes beginning on 13 March - would depend on the outcome of the week-long ballot.

The proposal involves a 7% rise backdated to last April, a further 5% this April and another 2% in January.

Ms Bradley said: "The salaries committee decided overwhelmingly to put the offer that came across late this afternoon to members with the recommendation to accept.

"The executive committee decided to suspend the strike campaign while members are being balloted."

The ballot was due to open on Friday evening and run until 10:00 on 10 March.

"It's absolutely right to point out that this offer doesn't represent the achievement of all of our aims, but we have been clear for some time that any negotiation was going to feature an element of compromise," Ms Bradley said.

"We do think that this offer marks an improvement."

Teachers had originally been demanding a 10% increase this year, with the dispute seeing almost all schools in Scotland being closed by a series of strikes in recent weeks.

The new offer follows intensive talks earlier in the week between the EIS, Education Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville and Deputy First Minister John Swinney.

Speaking to the BBC before the ballot was agreed, Ms Somerville said she hoped members would take the offer very seriously.

She said: "During all negotiations you need to find parts where we can compromise and the areas we've all compromised has came about now.

"No one wants to see disruption in their schools, we would have all liked to have seen this finishing earlier - but we hopefully are at the conclusion to this."

She later added: "This is the best and final offer possible and recognises the invaluable contribution teachers make to the lives of our children and young people."

Scottish Labour's education spokesperson Michael Marra said the progress was welcome but long overdue.

He added: "The SNP have wasted months playing petty games while schools were engulfed by strike chaos and teachers were forced to fight for a fair deal."

Earlier Stephen Kerr, of the Scottish Conservatives, criticised the role of the education secretary in the dispute.

"After months of inaction from Shirley-Anne Somerville, which has done untold damage to our kids' education, we can only hope this dispute is finally nearing an end."
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Satirical Sketch Sparks Political Spouse Feud in South Korea
Indonesia Quarry Collapse Leaves Multiple Dead and Missing
South Korean Election Video Pulled Amid Misogyny Outcry
Asian Economies Shift Away from US Dollar Amid Trade Tensions
Netflix Investigates Allegations of On-Set Mistreatment in K-Drama Production
US Defence Chief Reaffirms Strong Ties with Singapore Amid Regional Tensions
Vietnam Faces Strategic Dilemma Over China's Mekong River Projects
Malaysia's First AI Preacher Sparks Debate on Islamic Principles
White House Press Secretary Criticizes Harvard Funding, Advocates for Vocational Training
France to Implement Nationwide Smoking Ban in Outdoor Spaces Frequented by Children
Meta and Anduril Collaborate on AI-Driven Military Augmented Reality Systems
Russia's Fossil Fuel Revenues Approach €900 Billion Since Ukraine Invasion
U.S. Justice Department Reduces American Bar Association's Role in Judicial Nominations
U.S. Department of Energy Unveils 'Doudna' Supercomputer to Advance AI Research
U.S. SEC Dismisses Lawsuit Against Binance Amid Regulatory Shift
Alcohol Industry Faces Increased Scrutiny Amid Health Concerns
Italy Faces Population Decline Amid Youth Emigration
U.S. Goods Imports Plunge Nearly 20% Amid Tariff Disruptions
OpenAI Faces Competition from Cheaper AI Rivals
Foreign Tax Provision in U.S. Budget Bill Alarms Investors
Trump Accuses China of Violating Trade Agreement
Gerry Adams Wins Libel Case Against BBC
Russia Accuses Serbia of Supplying Arms to Ukraine
EU Central Bank Pushes to Replace US Dollar with Euro as World’s Main Currency
Chinese Woman Dies After Being Forced to Visit Bank Despite Critical Illness
President Trump Grants Full Pardons to Reality TV Stars Todd and Julie Chrisley
Texas Enacts App Store Accountability Act Mandating Age Verification
U.S. Health Secretary Ends Select COVID-19 Vaccine Recommendations
Vatican Calls for Sustainable Tourism in 2025 Message
Trump Warns Putin Is 'Playing with Fire' Amid Escalating Ukraine Conflict
India and Pakistan Engage Trump-Linked Lobbyists to Influence U.S. Policy
U.S. Halts New Student Visa Interviews Amid Enhanced Security Measures
Trump Administration Cancels $100 Million in Federal Contracts with Harvard
SpaceX Starship Test Flight Ends in Failure, Mars Mission Timeline Uncertain
King Charles Affirms Canadian Sovereignty Amid U.S. Statehood Pressure
Trump Threatens 25% Tariff on iPhones Amid Dispute with Apple CEO
Putin's Helicopter Reportedly Targeted by Ukrainian Drones
Liverpool Car Ramming Incident Leaves Multiple Injured
Australia Faces Immigration Debate Following Labor Party Victory
Iranian Revolutionary Guard Founder Warns Against Trusting Regime in Nuclear Talks
Macron Dismisses Viral Video of Wife's Gesture as Playful Banter
Cleveland Clinic Study Questions Effectiveness of Recent Flu Vaccine
Netanyahu Accuses Starmer of Siding with Hamas
Junior Doctors Threaten Strike Over 4% Pay Offer
Labour MPs Urge Chancellor to Tax Wealthy Over Cutting Welfare
Publication of UK Child Poverty Strategy Delayed Until Autumn
France Detains UK Fishing Vessel Amid Post-Brexit Tensions
Calls Grow to Resume Syrian Asylum Claims in UK
Nigel Farage Pledges to Reinstate Winter Fuel Payments
Boris and Carrie Johnson Welcome Daughter Poppy
×