The biggest real-terms pay cut in a generation will force many to leave the profession, with pupils being the real losers
- Patrick Roach is general secretary of the NASUWT, the teachers’ union
Teachers in Scotland will hold two days of strike action next month after NASUWT members voted overwhelmingly in support of the move. In England and Wales, the results of the ballot, which is under way now, will be known early in the new year. How has it come to this?
Our members are facing unprecedented financial strain. Of the teachers we surveyed, 97% told us they were worried about their financial situation, 65% were finding it difficult to pay their energy bills and 57% were finding it difficult to cover the cost of travelling to work. Meanwhile, 72% were cutting back on food spending.
A typical classroom teacher is today more than £50,000 worse off than they would have been had their pay kept pace with inflation over the last decade. In real terms, teachers’ earnings, even with the proposed pay awards on offer, will still lag behind where they were in 2010.
Patrick Roach is general secretary of the NASUWT, the teachers’ union
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