Created on: 15 Mar 2023 | Last modified: 21 Apr 2023
A revised pay offer was recently made by Scottish Government and COSLA. The new offer, announced by the media this week before it was given to teaching unions, offers only a marginal improvement on previously rejected offers.
As a result, the EIS has rejected the offer and will continue with its current programme of strike action until a more credible offer is put onto negotiating table.
The offer was for:
• 6% for 2022-23
• 5.5% for 2023-24
• Capped at £80,000
The 6% value of the offer for 2022-23 is insufficient, with CPI inflation currently sitting at 10.5% and RP! At 13.4%. The 6% uplift for 2022-23 is only 1% less of a pay cut than that previously offered by the Scottish Government and COSLA and formally rejected twice by the Teachers’ side of the SNCT. The suggested year two component of 5.5% has not been negotiated at all within the SNCT. The conduct of the Scottish Government and COSLA in the process of making this offer without proper negotiation, has been unacceptable.
As a result of the clear decision to reject this offer, taken by EIS Salaries Committee, the Executive Committee has also unanimously agreed that the current programme of strike action will continue as scheduled. Action for Reps: Please keep members informed of recent developments in the pay campaign.
The EIS has announced an escalation of its action to include targeted strike action in schools within the constituencies of key decision makers within the Scottish Government and COSLA. The escalation of action means that there will be targeted action in the constituencies of the First Minister, Deputy First Minster, Cabinet Secretary for Education, and COSLA Resources Spokesperson, Councillor Katie Hagmann.
As the Scottish Green Party is a party of the Scottish Government, part of its Education Spokesperson’s (Ross Greer) regional constituency has also been targeted – the part of Clydebank and Milngavie constituency that lies within the East Dunbartonshire Council area. Precise details of the schools involved in this action on the relevant dates can be found in the Pay Attention section of the EIS website.
School Branches are encouraged to send messages of solidarity to striking colleagues in the target constituency areas. Where geographically possible, individuals to visit may wish to visit picket lines en route to work on the days of the targeted strike action, the first cycle of which is Wednesday 22nd February till Friday 24th February, inclusive.
There will be two days of national strike action for all members on Tuesday 28th February and Wednesday 1 March. This will be followed by a further 20 days of rolling strike action across all 32 councils between 13 March and 21 April 2023. Further information about these dates will be published in due course.
Action for Reps: Please ensure members are aware of upcoming strike dates and that preparations are underway for picketlines and participation in any local campaign-related activity.
The EIS is in the process of organising a national demonstration of members and supporters to take place on Saturday 11th March in Glasgow. We plan to turn the streets of Glasgow green and pink as we march from Kelvingrove Park to Glasgow Green for a mass rally involving a line-up of great speakers and some rousing music!
Action for Reps:
1. Please encourage members’ own attendance at the demo - make sure they have saved the date!
2. Seek their help in promoting it to supporters. Ask members to take a few promotional leaflets each and distribute them to friends, family, etc. (leaflets will be included in the materials currently being sent to schools)
3. Consider leafleting in your local area to promote the demo. Get in touch with Paul Benzie (pbenzie@eis.org.uk) if you need more leaflets to be sent to you for this.
4. Set up a placard-making session and get creative with your colleagues, using the materials that are currently being sent to branches to help make our key campaign messages clear and visible on the day!
5. Get in touch with your Local Association re arrangements for transport, assembly on the day, etc. International Women’s Day Event: Taking our Place in the Union – Growing Women’s Trade Union Activism, Today
The EIS will celebrate International Women’s Day this year, by reflecting on our past, and looking to the future of women’s union activism.
The event will feature the screening of ‘A Woman’s Place is in the Union’, a short film exploring EIS women’s activism in the ‘70s and ‘80s, before an inspiring conversation with our panel speakers, reflecting on how we can grow women’s trade union activism, today. There will be a wine reception following the event, where attendees are able to make their own activist posters with illustrator and facilitator Jules Scheele.
The event will be hosted by EIS Equality Convenor, Nicola Fisher. Speakers include Annie McCrae (EIS activist in ‘A Woman’s Place is in the Union’ film), Eve Livingston (author of ‘Make Bosses Pay: why we need unions’) and Eireann McAuley (Equality and Policy Officer with the Scottish Trades Union Congress), with more to be announced. The event is open to all EIS members as well as any student teacher and will also be livestreamed. Travel expenses will be paid by the EIS.
Details:
16th March 6.30-9.30pm
Radisson Blu Hotel, Glasgow
301 Argyle St, Glasgow G2 8DL
Register for the event.
Action for Reps: Please share details with all members, and any student teachers in your area, to encourage attendance. The enclosed poster can be shared and displayed.
The EIS Equality Networks aim to connect EIS members who are underrepresented in the profession and keep them up to date with equality news and initiatives. The Networks advise the Equality Committee on equality issues, and thereby give members the chance to shape EIS policy.
Action for Reps: Please share details of the following Networks with relevant members:
EIS BAME Network
EIS LGBT Network
EIS Disabled Members’ Network
Training is available for all EIS Reps and activists who are thinking of becoming a Rep. The 4-day courses are offered in 2 x 2-day blocks and are aimed at Reps who are relatively new in the role or those who have had no formal union training.
Action for Reps: If you are a Rep, Health and Safety Rep or are a member interested in becoming one, then please visit the Meetings and Events section of the EIS website for all the latest courses and contact your Local Association to be nominated.
The EIS is committed to providing all members with high quality professional learning opportunities that support career-long professional development. Members interested in attending courses, should contact Rob Henthorn (rhenthorn@eis.org.uk) or Pauline McColgan (pmccolgan@eis.org.uk) EIS Professional Learning Coordinators, to register interest.
Action for Reps: Please advise members of the opportunity to visit the Professional Learning section of the EIS website for
upcoming professional learning opportunities in your establishment.
Applications are now open for the EIS Action Research Grants programme 2023-24. EIS members can access £500 of funding to facilitate both learning and action and, in doing so, offer teaching professionals the opportunity for personal and professional development. Researchers are further supported by regular peer-support meetings and guidance from academic partners to enhance their projects and wider professional learning.
EIS Action Researchers go on to present at conferences and events across Scotland and share their findings with the wider sector.
Interested members can hear more about how the scheme can support their professional learning at the open session on Monday 27th February, 3:30pm, Online via Zoom. Attendees will hear from a recently completed researcher about how their project took them from classroom-level enquiry to international conferences and publication, as well as guidance on how to write an effective grant proposal.
Action for Reps: Please let members know about the Action Research Grants and encourage those interested to contact Professional Learning Co-Ordinator Robert Henthorn for a list of possible topics and information on how to apply.
New Probationers - There may still be current probationer teacher colleagues who have not joined the union. EIS membership is free for all current probationers until December 2023. After that, probationers can get a further 50% discount on full membership for the following nine months if they update their direct debit details with us by the end of their 18-month free period. EIS members who joined as students should update their membership details, for example school details, at the start of their probationary year.
Previous Probationers - There may still be teachers in your school who are no longer in their probationary period but did not join at the end of their free membership (ended Dec 2022). Please check and follow up - if they did not set up a direct debit with the EIS, they are not members.
Action for Reps: Encourage current probationer teacher colleagues to join for free online today and speak to your colleagues who were previous probationers about continuing their membership.
If you have new colleagues who are EIS members, they should update their school base or personal contact details on the MyEIS section of the website as a matter of priority, given the current industrial action campaign. Remind them to log on using their EIS number. It is quick and simple to set up a password. Alternatively, as a Rep, you should have access to member lists for your school and you can update details on their behalf.
Action for Reps: Visit www.eis.org.uk/Account/EISLogin to update member details.
If you have an issue that you need help resolving, contact your Local Association Secretary. EIS Local Associations also meet regularly to discuss local issues, and members are welcome to attend and stand for positions on the Local Association’s Committee of Management. Several Local Associations also have their own websites with useful information.
Action for Reps: Contact your Local Association Secretary to find out what meetings and events they are running over the coming months and to get involved.
As the Pay Attention Campaign steps up, this is the ideal time to set up an EIS branch meeting. Your EIS Organiser can support with this by attending and speaking on the Pay Campaign or a specific topic of your choice.
Action for Reps: Visit www.eis.org.uk/Contacts/Organisers
Thank you for all that you are doing as an EIS Rep to support members in branches and to contribute to the national pay campaign.