Scottish teachers’ strike escalates

Text of a Socialist Party Scotland leaflet written by members of the EIS union

Tens of thousands of teachers in Scotland are taking national strike action on Tuesday 10 and Wednesday 11 January.

This action, to be followed by a further day of staggered strikes across Scotland’s 32 council areas in January/February, marks an important escalation in the fight for a decent pay rise.

The largest teachers’ union in Scotland, the EIS, organised an historic one day strike on 24 November 2022. It shut down schools and nurseries across Scotland and sent a message to the employers and Scottish government that we would not accept their insulting 5% offer.

This was quickly followed in December by action by members of two other teachers’ unions, the NASUWT and SSTA.

For this strike, EIS, NASUWT, SSTA and AHDS members are striking together in coordinated action that will again see a shutdown of schools across Scotland. Primary and early years teachers wills strike on Tuesday and secondary teachers on Wednesday.

Shirley-Anne Sommerville, the SNP education secretary, blurted out the real views of the Scottish government when she said: “This is now the fourth offer that has been made. In the same time EIS have not changed their request for a 10% pay increase – even for those on the highest incomes.”

But why should unions accept less than at least 10%? As EIS general secretary Andrea Bradley pointed out: “More than 9 months of negotiations have brought nothing but a series of offers that amounted to deep real-terms pay cuts when teachers’ wages have already lost 25% of their value since 2008.

“The additional funding needed for the teachers’ pay claim is £175 million…less than a tenth of last year’s £2BN Scottish Government underspend.”

As they have with NHS workers, the SNP sought to blame the unions for cuts in budgets. “The financial situation for the Scottish Government is challenging and additional money for teacher pay means reduced public services elsewhere.” 

In truth, the Scottish government have passed on every penny of Tory austerity to public services in Scotland. And it is that reality of continual acceptance of cuts that has brought the Scottish government into head-on collision with the trade union movement. 

Workload remains excessive, while more and more is demanded with fewer and fewer resources. In response we are offered a derisory pay increase which is nothing short of a substantial pay cut. This cannot be allowed to continue.

strikes escalating

Scottish teachers are striking amidst a growing strike wave by trade unions across the UK.

A force has re-entered the scene of history which could bring about the fundamental change needed. The working class!

In December 2022 alone 1.5 million strike days were taken across the UK. Those included CWU members in Royal Mail, NHS unions and the RMT transport union.

Now is the time to up the coordination of the action. Drawing more workers into struggle, all striking together, has the potential to win real pay rises for workers and increase the pressure on the employers and to drive out the Tories.

Coordinated action with other unions who have live strike ballots as a step towards a 24-hour general strike is an essential next step.

Discussions between unions on naming a day for such action, probably in early February, are currently taking place. If the TUC fails to act, the leaderships of all unions with live ballots need to work together to do what is necessary.

If the TUC in Britain was to respond to new anti-union legislation by calling for a 24-hour general strike – as the unions did in Ontario, Canada recently – the laws would be history and so could this weak Tory government.

Such a strike terrify the capitalist elite, it would also massively increase the confidence and cohesion of the working class.

Build a new workers’ party

There is not a single political party who is fighting shoulder-to-shoulder with workers.

Labour leader Keir Starmer has demanded his MPs stay away from picket lines.

The SNP have been dragged kicking and screaming by striking council workers, teachers, rail workers and NHS workers to increase derisory pay offers.

The SNP have continually carried out Tory cuts meaning the pressure on education in Scotland, as well as the NHS, has gone from bad to worse.

Workers need a party of their own that stands for pay, benefit and pension rises that match inflation, for public ownership of the economy and for a fight for socialist change in society.

By leading strikes and winning pay rises, trade unions are at the forefront of the fightback.

And if those same trade unions were to prepare to stand candidates in a general election, independently of Labour and the SNP, that would get a huge response.

But if the trade union leaders don’t take the initiative, the Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition offers a banner for trade unionists and others prepared to fight to use to put up a real alternative to yet more austerity.

socialism

Socialist Party Scotland stands for the socialist transformation of society. Nationalisation of the major banks and corporations that dominate the economy, around 150 in the case of Britain, under workers’ control and management would lay the basis for the development of a socialist plan of production.

Such a plan would create the basis to transform peoples’ existence. Hunger and poverty would quickly become a thing of the past.

The science and technique created by capitalism could be harnessed to meet the needs of all while protecting the planet.