NUT members back one-day strike

Members of the National Union of Teachers (NUT) have voted "overwhelmingly" in favour of a one-day strike over pay.

The union held a ballot on whether to strike on April 24th, after the government proposed a pay rise that was below the level of inflation.

Noting that the nation needs to attract graduates to teaching jobs, Steve Sinnott, general secretary of the NUT, said: "Young teachers need to be treated fairly. To bring the best young graduates into the profession, teachers' salaries need to be competitive with those for graduates in the private sector."

Mr Sinnott said that the NUT did not want to return to the "bad old days" of real-term paycuts and called for an offer above the current one of 2.45 per cent.

Figures show that 198,989 ballots for the vote were issued, with a turnout out of 64,101. Of these, 48,217, or 75.2 per cent, voted in favour of strike action.

The Department for Children, Schools and Family has asked the union to reconsider, saying that the move will disrupt children's learning, place burdens on other teachers and cause problems for parents.