Schools in Scotland closed for second day as EIS teacher strikes continue amid pay dispute

Schools across Scotland are closed for a second day amid the pay dispute between educators, the Scottish Government and councils.

Members of Scotland’s largest teaching union, the Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS), walked out on Tuesday, February 28 as part of a national day of strike action which continued into Wednesday.

After schools reopen this Thursday, March 2, there will be a further 20 days of rolling strike action between March 13 and April 21.

The union said it will continue with strike action until a “more credible offer is put onto the negotiating table”.

The industrial action comes after the latest pay off from the Scottish Government which would see teachers earning up to £80,000 have their pay rise by 6% from April 2022, and then another 5.5% from the start of the 2023 financial year.

Last week, schools in Nicola Sturgeon’s Glasgow Southside constituency closed as teachers targeted specific areas to put pressure on those in positions of power.

The EIS is also targeting schools within the constituencies of deputy first minister John Swinney, education secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville and Katie Hagmann, a councillor in Dumfries and Galloway who is the finance spokeswoman for local authority body COSLA.