Tuesday 27 March 2018

The Teachers’ Side negotiators of the Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers (SNCT) have today (Tuesday) rejected a pay offer of 2% / 3% from local authorities to Scotland’s teachers. The offer was presented by the Employers’ Side of the SNCT at a meeting of the SNCT Extended Joint Chairs group. The Teachers’ Side had submitted a pay claim of 10% for teachers at all grades. Commenting, a spokesperson for the Teachers’ Side of the SNCT said, “The Teachers’ Side negotiators have rejected this offer of 2% / 3% for Scotland’s teachers, as it falls far short of the 10% pay claim that was submitted via the SNCT this year. The Teachers’ Side also rejected any notion of a differentiated deal that would award lower pay increases to teachers at some grades compared to colleagues at other grades. The offer that has been proposed by employers fails to deliver on the need to value education and value teachers by delivering appropriate salaries for Scotland’s teaching professionals.”

The spokesperson continued, “There is a growing crisis in teacher recruitment and retention across Scotland, and declining rates of pay is one of the key factors contributing to this problem. Scotland wants and expects the best teaching professionals but, increasingly, is unwilling to pay appropriate professional salaries to the teachers working in our schools. Pay for Scotland’s teachers is continuing to decline in comparison to other graduate professions and to teacher salaries in other European countries. This simply must be rectified.” The spokesperson added, “The Teachers’ Side remains committed to negotiations via the SNCT in the hope of agreeing a fair deal for Scotland’s teachers. Further talks are planned, via the SNCT, following the Spring holiday period. There is a clear expectation, on the part of the Teachers’ Side, that the Scottish Government, a party to the negotiations, will be required to take a view on the ongoing discussions and to play an active role in reaching a settlement.”

(ENDS)