The latest teacher pay offer has been officially accepted, the Scottish government has said.
Education secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville said she welcomed today’s decision by the Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers (SNCT) teachers’ panel.
On Friday, it was revealed that 90 per cent of members of the EIS, Scotland’s biggest teaching union, had voted to accept the offer, while 10 per cent voted to reject, based on a turnout of 82 per cent.
After the union confirmed at that point that strike action had been cancelled, EIS general secretary Andrea Bradley said the deal would result in a 14.6 per cent increase in pay for most teachers by January 2024. This accumulates in three stages over the course of 28 months, starting from a backdated 7 per cent pay increase for 2022-23. The EIS had over the past year led a campaign for a 10 per cent pay offer for 2022-23.
The pay offer made on 3 March means that the starting salary for a fully qualified teacher in Scotland will rise to £38,650 by January 2024. The implications for all teaching posts can be seen here.
After announcing the decision of the SNCT teachers’ panel this evening, Ms Somerville said: “This decision means that the threat of further strike action in our schools is now formally lifted, which is great news for our children and young people, particularly those who are preparing for exams in the spring.
“Teachers will receive their backdated salary increase as soon as possible, which I am sure will be very welcome.”
She added: “The Scottish government, teachers, schools and local authorities continue to work together on our collective mission to narrow the poverty-related attainment gap and deliver an education system with excellence and equity at its heart.”
The Scottish government today set out the pay deal as:
- 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023 - a 7 per cent uplift for all grades up to a ceiling of £80,000, where a cap of £5,600 (pro-rata) will apply
- 1 April 2023 to 31 December 2023 - a 5 per cent uplift for all grades up to a ceiling of £80,000, where a cap of £4,000 (pro-rata) will apply
- 1 January 2024 to 31 July 2024 - a 2 per cent uplift for all grades up to a ceiling of £80,000, where a cap of £1,600 (pro-rata) will apply.
On Friday, Ms Bradley said: “Turnout in the ballot was also high, confirming that Scotland’s teachers believe that it is now time to accept the offer and bring an end to the programme of industrial action in our schools.”
She added: “It compares favourably with recent pay settlements across the public sector, and does provide pay certainty for Scotland’s teachers for the next 16 months until the next pay settlement is scheduled to be delivered in August 2024.”
