A headteachers’ union could move to a formal strike ballot if there is no new improved pay offer for teachers from the government in next month’s Budget, Tes has been told.
Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), said that the union’s policymaking council has supported negotiation with the government but warned that its patience will wear thin if ministers fail to make a new pay offer soon.
Looking forward to next month’s Budget on 15 March, he told Tes: “A formal ballot is an option if there’s no improved offer by then.”
In a consultative ballot held by ASCL in the autumn, almost seven in 10 members voted to move to a formal ballot on strike action, but an announcement on its next steps has yet to be made by the union.
Mr Barton added that calls for industrial action will grow if government “dithering” continues.
Education union bosses met with education secretary Gillian Keegan and Department for Education officials yesterday to discuss teacher pay for the first time since the NEU teaching union carried out its first national strike day on 1 February.
No new pay offer was made during the talks yesterday, unlike in the teacher pay disputes with governments in Scotland and Wales where pay offers have been made - and rejected.
Yesterday, Kevin Courtney, joint general secretary of the NEU, said that the union would look at further strike dates after 16 March if talks continue to be unproductive.
Mr Barton has also said time was ticking on the window for a decision to be made, and added: “I think we need to have a greater sense of urgency with the whole thing.”
Speaking about the Budget, which is due to take place on 15 March, Mr Barton said the union would be interested in whether the chancellor will announce public sector pay rises and if there will be some backdating.
“What that would do by definition is give recognition that this is an issue in the current year rather than in the forthcoming year.
“There does need to be a sense of an end game with this. I think the most obvious question from our point of view is are we sufficiently reassured that the talks are moving towards something.”
In a statement issued after yesterday’s talks, Mr Barton said: ”We cannot go on like this. Unless there is tangible progress towards an improved offer, the prospect of further strike action by NEU members is inevitable and will lead to members of our union, and other education unions, also concluding that industrial action is the only option left.
“Our consultative ballot in the autumn was in favour of moving to a formal ballot on industrial action but we have held off from that step and tried to resolve the dispute through negotiation. However, there is a limit to how many times we can come out of a meeting with the education secretary without progress being made.”
More talks before next NEU strike date
Commenting on the talks yesterday, a DfE spokesperson said: “Education secretary Gillian Keegan held further constructive talks with union leaders.
“They discussed a range of issues such as workload reduction, and recruitment and retention. The education secretary instructed officials to hold further detailed talks with unions and committed to more talks ahead of planned strike action.”
