Teachers’ work as markers for the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) lies beyond the scope of ongoing industrial action, the EIS teaching union has said - but they should still “give careful consideration” about whether to take it on.
That advice appears in a letter to members from EIS general secretary, Andrea Bradley, who said that some secondary teachers had “expressed reluctance to sign up to be markers for the forthcoming SQA exam diet while the pay dispute...remains unresolved”, adding: “Many others have suggested that refusal to mark could be considered as part of the EIS’s campaign of industrial action in pursuit of fair pay.”
Today, EIS members have begun a new wave of pay strikes that will target the constituencies of key politicians, including first minister Nicola Sturgeon and education secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville.
However, Ms Bradley underlined that the EIS, Scotland’s largest teaching union, currently has a mandate for strike action only.
The most recent pay offer was swiftly rejected by the EIS last week. It amounted to 6 per cent for 2022-23, still well short of the 10 per cent the EIS has been campaigning for, followed by 5.5 per cent for 2023-24. Various rounds of strikes remain scheduled, including national action on Tuesday 28 February and Wednesday 1 March.
In her letter, emailed to EIS members yesterday, Ms Bradley said that ideas such as refusing to mark for the SQA ”merit close consideration [but] we need to be clear about the context in which decisions in this area should be taken”, adding: “The current mandate for industrial action is for strike action only and relates solely to employment under the terms of the Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers (SNCT).”
Ms Bradley said: “The industrial action mandate that we currently have does not extend to action short of strike, such as refusal to undertake certain duties, and does not cover engagement by separate employers, such as the SQA. Contractual arrangements that individual teachers agree with the SQA are beyond the locus of the SNCT and so, any targeting of SQA-related activity must be considered in this light and outwith the scope of the current industrial action.”
Even so, Ms Bradley said that “members are entirely within their rights to decide if they wish to sign up to be SQA markers at all or if they might wish to delay sign-up to become an SQA marker until the current SNCT dispute over pay is resolved”.
She added: “Indeed, the EIS would suggest that any secondary member who has not already entered into a contract and who has been approached by the SQA to become a marker, or who is considering noting their interest in marking, give careful consideration to whether they might wish to delay sign-up until such times as the current dispute is settled.
“This is a decision that is entirely at the discretion of individual members whose circumstances are reflected in the above. The EIS is clear that it is entirely within the right of any member to decide to enter into a voluntary arrangement with the SQA or not.”
Ms Bradley said today that the union had taken legal advice before advising that it was up to members whether they want to enter into voluntary agreements with the SQA to mark exam scripts.
The round of EIS strike action running from today until Friday, and again from 7-9 March, targets areas represented by first minister Nicola Sturgeon, deputy first minister John Swinney, education secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville, Scottish Greens education spokesperson Ross Greer and Katie Hagmann, resources spokesperson for local authorities’ body Cosla.
This is due to be followed by national strikes on Tuesday 28 February and Wednesday 1 March, and another 20 days of rolling walkouts across Scotland’s local authorities between 13 March and 21 April, following strikes earlier in 2023 and late last year.
Ms Bradley said: “Today’s intensification of strike action is a direct result of the failure of the Scottish government and Cosla to deliver an acceptable pay offer to Scotland’s teachers.
“As a result, this intensified strike action is targeted directly at the politicians with the ability to deliver a better pay offer that can end this pay dispute - just as is happening in health.”
Leanne McGuire, chair of the Glasgow City Parents Group, said it does not support the targeted action, as it “seems really inequitable and unfair” on pupils in affected areas.
In an “open letter to pupils”, released yesterday, Ms Somerville wrote: “I want to reassure pupils, parents and carers that my focus remains on resolving this pay dispute, delivering a fair and sustainable settlement for teachers and ending disruption in our schools.
“The threat of further disruption in the run-up to the exam diet is particularly concerning. I have written to local authorities asking them to consider how secondary schools can remain open for pupils preparing for exams, and this is being reviewed by councils on a school-by-school basis.
“Pay talks are continuing and I would, again, appeal to trades unions to suspend industrial action while these discussions are ongoing.”
Today, Ms Somerville said: “I had hoped that everyone involved in this dispute would agree that pupils should not have the worry of disruption to exams hanging over them.
“I am bitterly disappointed, therefore, that the EIS is threatening continued industrial action in the run-up to the exam diet.”
She added: “We are working with partners, including the SQA, local authorities and education directors, on contingencies for exams, should industrial action continue.
“The National e-Learning Offer continues to offer a wide package of support that pupils preparing for exams can access from home while schools are closed.”
