18th December 2023
On the back of the decision taken by the Northern Ireland Teachers’ Council (NITC) to call a full day of strike action on Thursday, 18 January 2024, INTO Northern Secretary Mark McTaggart stated that:
All those who hold the purse strings have agreed with the teaching unions that the issue of the vast differential in teachers’ pay in the north compared to teachers across these islands is unsustainable and must be addressed.
The ongoing discussions around finance indicate that a figure of approximately £600 million is to be allocated to solve the Public Sector pay disputes. INTO demands that the decision makers detach themselves from the notion that this funding is subject to the restart of the Stormont Institutions and immediately release this money to resolve the issues of public sector pay.
A just Public Sector pay solution cannot be dependent on the action or inaction of any politician or political party.
No teacher wants to take strike action. The only people who can prevent it are those who control these funds, and in the absence of a Stormont Executive it is incumbent on the British Secretary of State to stop acting as an absentee landlord, step up to the plate and get the issue of teachers pay resolved.
See the NITC press release here.