Teachers in England schedule two additional strike days in July

Teachers in England will engage in a strike on July 5 and July 7, the National Education Union (NEU) Britain's largest education union, announced on Saturday (17).

The industrial action is part of an ongoing pay and funding dispute with the government.

These newly added dates supplement the previous at least six days of walk-outs by teachers in England from February to May.

Following the rejection of a government pay offer, which included an average rise of 4.5% and a one-off payment of £1,000 in April, teachers are now considering additional strikes for the upcoming Autumn.

While teachers in Wales and Scotland have resolved their disputes, the NEU expressed dissatisfaction with the efforts of Britain's Education Minister, Gillian Keegan, in preventing further industrial action in England.

"Time and again the National Education Union, alongside its sister unions, have called for the Education Secretary to get around the negotiation table to settle this dispute for a fully-funded teacher pay increase. Time and again our calls have fallen on stony ground," the NEU said.

Britain's education ministry said the strikes would hurt students and cause more disruption for parents.

"Thousands of schools are receiving significant additional funding as part of the extra 2 billion pounds of investment we are providing for both 2023/24 and 2024/25 which will take school funding its highest level in history next year, as measured by the IFS," it added.

In response to soaring inflation, workers in various sectors including healthcare, transport, and the civil service have embarked on strikes throughout the past year across Britain.

These industrial actions were driven by pay disputes as inflation rates reached their highest point in four decades.

(Reuters)