Strike Action Called Off Following Workload Agreement
Strike action planned for schools in six Scottish council areas next week has been cancelled after an agreement on teacher workload was reached.
The Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS) had scheduled walkouts over two days at schools in Glasgow, East Renfrewshire, Dundee, Fife, Perth and Kinross, and Moray.
The union issued formal notice of industrial action due to a failure to fulfill a commitment to reduce the maximum amount of time teachers spend in front of a class by 90 minutes.
A deal negotiated between the unions and the Scottish government earlier this week received approval following a meeting of Cosla, the body representing the councils that employ teachers.
EIS General Secretary Andrea Bradley stated:
"The EIS is extremely pleased that a negotiated outcome, which has been approved by all sides, has now been achieved in this long-running dispute.
This agreement will have a positive impact on teacher workload and will help to create more jobs for the many newly and recently qualified teachers currently seeking secure employment in schools across Scotland."
The strike action was planned after a ballot of EIS members earlier this month showed overwhelming support for industrial action.
The ballot results indicated that 85% of participating members backed the strike.
The union had urged councils and the Scottish government to take further steps to reduce the maximum time each teacher can spend teaching by 90 minutes, as promised in the SNP's 2021 Holyrood election manifesto.
Scheduled School Closures
East Renfrewshire was set to be the first area affected, with schools and nurseries scheduled to close on Tuesday 17 March and Monday 23 March.
Fife council confirmed that members were invited to strike on the same dates.
Glasgow City Council had planned closures for Wednesday 18 and Tuesday 24 March.
Schools in Dundee were also expected to be impacted on these days.
In Moray, schools were scheduled to close on Thursday 19 March and potentially Wednesday 25 March. Perth and Kinross was also set for closures on these dates.
Although initially six council areas were to be affected, all 32 local authorities in Scotland received official notification of the intention to strike last Friday.
