Time to be heard
NSEAD is not an organisation that is given to knee-jerk reactions, nor do we follow the crowd. Those working in schools will know that industrial action is a very real possibility this autumn, as the education trade unions consult with their members ahead of a ballot for action.
In the last week of the summer term, the UK government announced its proposed 2022/23 pay award for teachers in schools in England; whilst colleagues in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have been given very similar pay offers. All are well below inflation so would be in real terms a pay cut not a pay rise.
The education unions are united in the belief that teachers deserve better. However, NSEAD is clear that there can be no pay award unless there is also adequate funding for schools to properly reward, recruit and retain teachers. NSEAD believes that an improved pay award that is not adequately funded will put our members' jobs at risk.
As always, we take a more nuanced view of the national picture, with your subject specialist interests in the spotlight.
We are now seeking your views on pay, school funding and industrial action. If you are a member of the NSEAD Trade Union, and working in an English school, you will have received an invitation to vote in a consultative ballot. We want to know what, if any action you want to take. This is a critical moment, as we decide whether to take these issues to a formal postal ballot.
What you say will determine what happens next.
Take part, and make your voice heard.
Michele Gregson
General Secretary