Give teachers in England a deal similar to nurses to avoid strikes, says union

Ministers could avoid teachers’ strikes in England this summer if they make an improved pay offer as good as that made to NHS nurses, the leader of one teaching union has proposed.

Dr Patrick Roach, general secretary of the NASUWT union, called on the education secretary, Gillian Keegan, to reopen talks to allow pay negotiations to continue, saying strikes were “not inevitable” if a better deal could be reached.

Speaking to journalists at the NASUWT’s annual conference in Glasgow, Roach said he would recommend a pay offer to his members if it was similar to that offered by the government to NHS nurses.

“I’d be prepared to put a positive spin on it – why wouldn’t I?” Roach said. “We’re going into negotiations in good faith and with some integrity. We sit around the table, throw stuff out, and we’re not going to get everything we’re looking for, we understand that.

“But frankly, if we’ve got something which looks good enough and smells good enough, why would I not put that to my members with a positive spin?”

NASUWT members have voted to hold a ballot on industrial action, while the National Education Union (NEU) has announced five more strike days by its members during the summer term, with the first strike scheduled for 27 April.

“The secretary of state could be facing industrial action on a significant scale before the end of the academic year. That will be regrettable,” Roach said. “Our view is that industrial action is not inevitable. While I’ve written to Gillian Keegan to put her on formal notice, it’s not inevitable. If she gets around the table and we can hammer out a deal which can command the support of our members, that’s the end of the story.”

The deal offered by the government to NHS nurses last month includes bonus payments for this year between £1,655 to £3,789 depending on salary band, and a 5% pay rise in 2023-24 for most nurses.

Keegan’s previous offer to teachers was for a £1,000 one-off payment this year and an average pay increase of 4.5% next year.

In response, the Department for Education (DfE) noted that the average salary for a classroom teacher in England was £39,500. In comparison, the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) estimates the average nurses salary was £33,400 in 2021, rising to about £35,000 last year.

However, the funding of any teachers’ pay settlement could be a stumbling block given the potential impact on school budgets. The DfE has said that only the one-off payment and 0.5 percentage points of the pay rise would be covered by new funding, with the rest coming from existing budgets.

Keegan’s offer was strongly rejected by NASUWT members in a consultative ballot, 87% voting against accepting it. The deal has also been rejected by the three other teaching unions, including the NEU, the National Association of Head Teachers and the Association of School and College Leaders.

The DfE said: “The offer was funded, including major new investment of over half a billion pounds, and helps tackle issues teachers are facing like workload. NEU, NAHT, ASCL and NASUWT’s decisions to reject this offer will simply result in more disruption for children and less money for teachers today.”

In his speech to the NASUWT conference, Roach said Keegan “hasn’t yet passed her probation” period as education secretary. “And she won’t, unless she pulls her finger out and gives teachers a proper pay rise, fully funded,” Roach told delegates.

Roach said Keegan’s “haste” to reach a deal after just six days of talks “resulted in a contemptuous offer that received the response that it deserved”.

In a message to Keegan, Roach said: “Get back around the table while there’s still time. Negotiate a proper deal, or deal with the consequences.”