Date announced for Fife school strikes

Union UNISON has served notice of further strike action in the dispute over local government pay to Fife Council.

Staff working in schools, and early years establishments linked to schools, will walk out on Wednesday 8th November. 

Schools in South Lanarkshire, Dumfries and Galloway, and Edinburgh will also be affected on the same day.

It comes after UNISON members voted overwhelmingly to reject Cosla’s latest pay offer.

The action will be part of the second round of strikes. Workers worked out for three days at the end of September, closing three-quarters of Scotland's schools. 

UNISON Scotland’s head of local government Johanna Baxter said: “Despite our repeated calls for Cosla and the Scottish government to get back round the table for meaningful discussions we have had no invitations to even exploratory talks. 

“The union is committed to reaching a resolution to this dispute as soon as possible.  And there is still time for Cosla and the Scottish Government to get back round the negotiating table to explore every avenue to reaching a negotiated settlement and avoid further disruption for parents and students.”

Fife Council's head of education and children's services Shelagh McLean confirmed the council is aware of ​​Unison's plans for further industrial action.

She added: "​​We will be assessing the potential impact this action could have in Fife ​and will work ​to minimise the effect of this locally.

"We cannot rule out closures of school buildings to pupils during any industrial action and we will be in touch with parents and carers as soon as possible with more information."

The strength of feeling amongst UNISON’s 91,000 local government members, who voted overwhelmingly to reject Cosla’s latest pay offer, is clear.  They are determined to continue to fight to get an improved pay offer.” 

UNISON Scotland chair of the local government committee Mark Ferguson said: “No one takes the decision to strike lightly.  

“I’m a parent myself, so I understand the disruption strikes cause. But if wages don’t rise, school staff will leave for other jobs beyond education that pay significantly more. That would be a disaster and would help no one.     “The current offer amounts to a real-terms pay cut and adds further stress to a dedicated workforce already suffering from the cost-of-living crisis. 

“Cosla and the Scottish government need to give school staff a decent wage rise, fund any increase properly and commit to implementing a minimum underpinning rate of pay of £15 per hour for all local government workers.”

More details on what schools will be affected is still to be announced.

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