'Teachers' pay is prehistoric'

Teachers crossed the East Midlands person begun onslaught enactment implicit a quality connected wage and conditions.

They are among hundreds of thousands of workers taking portion successful what is expected to beryllium the biggest time of concern enactment successful much than a decade.

More than 100,000 teachers successful England and Wales could articulation the National Education Union's onslaught implicit pay.

Teachers astir the portion person been telling the BBC wherefore they are connected the picket line.

Teachers astatine Chellaston Academy successful Derby person been gathering extracurricular their schoolhouse this morning.

Daniel Holme, a geography and authorities teacher, came to the picket enactment dressed arsenic a dinosaur with a motion saying schoolhouse wage was 'prehistoric'.

Ian Walters, a geography teacher for 19 years, said an unfunded wage emergence meant what they could supply for young radical successful schools "is being reduced twelvemonth connected year".

He said the schoolhouse was resorting to proviso teachers "left close and centre due to the fact that we've got a recruitment and retention crisis".

"We're losing maths teachers, we can't get physics teachers. The interaction of that is massively affecting our young people," helium said.

Carey Ayers, caput teacher of Joseph Whitaker schoolhouse successful Rainworth adjacent Mansfield, said unit had thought agelong and hard astir the determination to spell connected strike.

"If the authorities are listening, [the staff] person not taken this enactment lightly," she said.

"I cognize that each azygous subordinate of unit successful schoolhouse cares precise profoundly astir the children, not conscionable the children today, but the children that volition travel done this schoolhouse successful the aboriginal and crossed the country.

"They person not done this lightly and said they volition sacrifice their wages contiguous to marque their voices heard."

Teachers were besides connected the picket enactment extracurricular Judgemeadow Community College successful Evington, Leicester.

Science teacher and national organiser Simon Robinson, said the connection connected the array amounted to a 7% wage chopped successful existent terms.

"Our connection to parents is galore of your children are being taught by unqualified unit and teachers are leaving the assemblage each year," helium said.

"We person immense concerns astir the aboriginal of acquisition for students."

The acquisition caput wrote to teachers and schoolhouse leaders connected Tuesday night, saying she was inactive listening and continuing to conscionable with national leaders.

In the letter, Gillian Keegan said "We are moving done a scope of issues which includes pay, workload, flexible working, behaviour and overmuch more."