Unions who represent teachers have warned they could strike this autumn over pay and the National Education Union (NEU) are preparing a ballot of 450,000 of their members across the UK.
Kevin Courtney, joint general secretary of the NEU told the Observer they will ballot their members unless the government offers more than the 3% rise the Education Secretary put forward.
Courtney said, “If there is no significant improvement on 3% – which will leave an 8% gap with inflation this year alone – we cannot avoid a ballot.
“The mood among teachers has changed. Last year the issue was mainly workload.
“This year it is workload and pay.
“Teachers are doing calculations to see what their hourly pay works out at. Pay is already down 20% on 2010.”
NASUWT who are another teacher’s union, warned that they will ballot members on industrial action from November.
Unison who represent NHS staff fear that millions of healthcare workers will see their annual pay increase to fall short of inflation.
The NHS union said that if the government does not meet the pay rise to match the current 9.2% inflation rate, then this could lead to a mass exodus of staff quitting their jobs with combined industrial action.
Unison’s General secretary Christina McAnea said, “The government has a simple choice. Either it makes a sensible pay award, investing in staff and services and reducing delays for patients.
“Or it risks a potential dispute, growing workforce shortages and increased suffering for the sick.”
This week the Rail, Maritime and Transport workers’ union (RMT) will stage walkouts on 21, 23 and June and the knock impact will be felt all week for commuters.
Transport secretary Grant Shapps accused the RMT of “gunning” for industrial action which will cost between £100m and £150m a week.
Shapps told Sky News this morning, “It is a huge mistake. The unions have been gunning for this strike throughout. This strike is completely unnecessary.
“It is going to inconvenience millions of people – students doing their GCSEs and A-levels, people trying to get to hospitals to try get operations that have been postponed, perhaps, during coronavirus.
“It is disastrous. It is no way to behave on the railway. There is no advantage to this.”
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