Falkirk teachers' union criticises offer from Cosla and Scottish Government

dailyrecord.co.uk:

A revised pay offer for teachers has been dismissed by a Falkirk trade union leader as "a campaign through press offices".The offer was made by COSLA and the Scottish Government on Tuesday evening, offering teachers a six per cent pay rise in the current year and a further 5.5 per cent in the new financial year, which starts in April.Teachers have been striking for 10 per cent this year. Read more: Falkirk to take lead on developing new green freeport Crucially for councils, the new offer comes with Scottish Government cash of £156 million to fund the two-year deal.But the EIS, Scotland's largest teachers' union, was furious that details of the proposed deal were given to the media before the offer was formally made to teachers.It also object to the fact that the revised offer was made without any input from the Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers (SNCT).Colin Finlay, local association secretary in Falkirk EIS, attended an executive meeting today (Wednesday) to discuss the offer.Speaking after that meeting, he said: "To be clear, this offer sums up the Government and COSLA's attitude."This isn’t negotiation, it’s a campaign through their press offices."The only positive is that it’s a tiny baby step in the right direction.

The EIS has rejected both the offer and condemns the despicable tactics of the Government and COSLA."We urge them to make a genuine attempt to negotiate around the bargaining table.”At the moment, strikes remain on as planned with the next national action that will affect Falkirk taking place on February 28 and March 1.The details of a pay deal for teachers - and exactly what it will cost councils - is just one of the key pieces of information Falkirk Council needs before it sets its budget