The NASUWT teaching union chose to re-ballot for strike action. This comes after a massive wave of support, with 86% of members in the first vote strongly favouring industrial action. The new ballot will occur from February 2 to March 4. Teachers are quite rightly angry with the Scottish government for not delivering on its commitments with regards to workload and class contact time.
Andrea Bradley, the general secretary of NASUWT, emphasized that the government’s promises made five years ago have not been fulfilled. We further pledge to lower the maximum class contact time from 22.5 hours to 21 hours per week. On top of that, we’ll bring in 3,500 new teachers to relieve schools of workload burdens.
Five years ago, we promised to address the burden of teacher workload and bring an extra 3,500 teachers into our schools. We promised to cut teachers’ maximum class contact time down to only 21 hours a week,” continued Bradley. She revealed that the federal government’s refusal to act has forced the union’s hand by taking even tougher measures.
Last week, the NASUWT union’s members voted to strike. Sadly, due to lack of voter turnout, low yes votes were not able to get above that legal barrier of 50%. This is the current legislation, as introduced by the last Conservative government, which requires this 40% threshold on strike ballots in so-called important public services. Recent reports have suggested that the UK government is preparing to drop these higher thresholds. This major relaxation would open the door to future industrial actions.
Earlier this month, Education Secretary Jenny Gilruth provided a breakdown of ways that would result in a decrease in class contact time. Bradley is convinced that putting the ballot back on the table would be a powerful statement. Most importantly, it demonstrates that teachers have the will to continue the fight for all those unfulfilled promises.
Gilruth sounded optimistic that the discussions would continue though, win or lose for the ballot measures. He called the need to reach an agreement the key to unlocking teacher time, ensuring that they have time to work on lessening their workload and improving educational opportunities for our nation’s children.
The NASUWT union has proven to be steadfast in fighting for its members and helping them win better working conditions. The decision to conduct a new strike ballot reflects ongoing frustrations within the teaching profession regarding workload management and government accountability.
