Scottish Secondary Teachers' Association announces strike dates

A second Scottish teachers' union has confirmed dates for strike action in a drive for improved pay.

Members of the Scottish Secondary Teachers' Association (SSTA) will walk out on either 7 or 8 December.

A ballot of the union's 6,500 members saw 96% vote for strike action on a turnout of 71%.

Members of Scotland's largest teachers' union, the EIS, are due to strike on Thursday in a move which will close almost all of the country's schools.

Education Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville said the Scottish government was committed to supporting a fair pay offer for teachers.

Council body Cosla said it was "working at pace" on a revised pay offer but warned of "extremely challenging financial decisions".

The SSTA expects some school closures as a result of its strike action, while others will be only partially open with timetables disrupted.

Its members rejected a 5% pay offer in September.

SSTA president Catherine Nicol said "not even one more penny has been put on the table" by the Scottish government since then.

General secretary Seamus Searson said: "This common practice of waiting to the last minute to reach a pay agreement shows a complete lack of respect for teachers as this pay award should have been paid in April.

"Teachers' pay has fallen in real terms by 25% over the years and the failure to act promptly only adds to teachers' frustration.

"The SSTA strike action will take place over two days and is intended to send a clear message to Cosla and the Scottish government that teachers are serious about a fair pay deal."

The local authorities affected by SSTA strike on 7 December:

The local authorities affected by SSTA strike on 8 December:

EIS members will stage a 24-hour walkout on 24 November after voting overwhelmingly to strike. They are calling for a 10% pay rise.

On Sunday, the EIS said they were confident a new pay offer would be made to avert the strike but the union was still preparing to take action.

EIS general secretary Andrea Bradley said the union was "hopeful" of a new offer and was prepared to negotiate.

Deputy First Minister John Swinney has previously said there was no more money to fund public sector pay rises.

His cabinet colleague, Ms Somerville, said on Monday: "I spoke to trades union representatives on Friday and restated that I am keen to work with Cosla, as the employers, to allow them to make a revised pay offer and avoid unnecessary strikes.

"I have been clear, however, that the Scottish government has a fixed budget and if we are looking to fund public sector pay offers, then that money must come from somewhere else in the budget."

A Cosla spokeswoman said: "Scottish local government values its entire workforce, of which teachers are a key part.

"Making an offer that is affordable enables councils to protect the whole of education services and ultimately improve outcomes for children and young people.

"Along with Scottish government, we are working closely and at pace to ensure a revised offer can be brought forward, however, there are extremely challenging financial decisions that must be made, and the consequences must be understood.

"We will remain in active discussions with our trade union partners."

The Scottish Conservatives said "the buck stops with SNP ministers" for the impending strikes.

The party's education spokesman Stephen Kerr said: "They must belatedly pull out all the stops to ensure a deal is struck to avert these damaging strikes, especially as they now have additional funds for education as a result of the Chancellor's Autumn Statement last week."