The country’s biggest teaching union has said it is set to go ahead with three days of strikes over pay next week and accused education secretary Gillian Keegan of failing to prevent this.
The NEU will hold regional teacher strikes, starting on Tuesday in its Northern, North West and Yorkshire and Humber regions.
It had said that it would be willing to postpone this action if the government came up with a “serious” pay proposal in the ongoing dispute.
But the union’s joint general secretaries, Mary Bousted and Kevin Courtney, said today that the “responsibility to avert further strikes was on the education secretary, and she has failed”.
However, they also said that it was still not too late for Ms Keegan to avoid the action by making a new pay offer before the union’s executive meets tomorrow.
The planned action also includes regional strikes on Wednesday in the East Midlands, West Midlands and Eastern regions, and on Thursday in London, the South East and South West.
This follows the first day of national strike action at the start of February, which the NEU said was held “in pursuit of a fully funded, above-inflation pay rise”.
Teacher strikes: ‘Not too late’ for new pay offer
Mr Courtney and Dr Bousted said: “On 1 February, the NEU’s first day of strike action on pay, we served notice to Gillian Keegan. We warned that she had until 28 February, our next day of action in England, to come up with a serious offer for our members to consider.
“At our meeting on 15 February, no offer was made. A week later, the Department for Education’s submission to the [School Teachers’ Review Body] showed that it was business as usual. It is the government’s wish to offer yet another real-terms pay cut in 2023-24.
“The responsibility to avert further strikes was on the education secretary, and she has failed.”
The general secretaries said that Ms Keegan’s latest offer of formal talks was dependent on the NEU agreeing to call off next week’s strike. They added: “In the absence of anything for us to take to membership for consideration, we are unable to agree to these demands.
“This Saturday our national executive meets. It is not too late for Gillian Keegan to step up and give our members a new, serious offer on pay. One that addresses this year and next, rather than yet more talk about the government’s existing position.
“If her comment in the letter of 21 February is correct, that she has agreed with the prime minister and chancellor to talks to resolve the dispute, then such an offer should now be in her gift.”
A DfE spokesperson said: “On Tuesday, the education secretary wrote to trade union leaders offering to move into formal talks on pay and covering all the areas in dispute.
“This offer, which still stands, builds on six weeks of discussions and was made on the clear and reasonable condition that the NEU pauses its damaging strike action next week, mirroring the approach agreed by the government with the Royal College of Nursing.
“It’s extremely disappointing that the NEU’s leadership is not yet prepared to join these talks - and particularly as strikes have a significant impact on children’s education, especially following the disruption of the past two years.
“Ahead of its National Executive Committee meeting tomorrow, we urge the NEU to suspend its planned action and get around the table so we can work together to find a fair and reasonable package for hardworking teachers and put an end to this uncertainty and disruption for children and families.”
