Fife Council has insisted a letter to teachers about covering classes for striking colleagues was not an attempt to intimidate them.
Ahead of a strike on Thursday, teachers were told those not participating could be expected to provide cover where the instruction was reasonable.
Those who refuse to do so were assured they will not face disciplinary action “at this time” but warned this may not be the case for future strikes.
The EIS teaching union’s Fife branch claimed the letter undermined industrial action, and nationally the union spoke of “strike-breaking tactics” by some “aggressive” local authorities.
EIS members are not involved in Thursday’s action and have been advised by their union against doing the work of striking colleagues in other unions, such as covering classes.
Fife Council claimed it had simply intended to reassure teachers they would not face disciplinary action.
Who is striking?
Secondary schools across Fife will close on Thursday for a strike by the smaller Secondary School Teachers Association (SSTA) and NASUWT Scotland unions.
On November 24 all schools closed during a strike by the EIS and the Association of Headteachers and Deputes Scotland (AHDS), and further closures are likely during action in January.
What does the letter say?
The letter says: “Fife Council does expect that teachers not participating in industrial action follow a reasonable instruction when asked to provide cover.”
It will not pursue formal action against colleagues who choose not to cover “at this time”, it says, but that it “does reserve the right to reconsider its position on this matter before further strike action planned for January 2023”.
EIS Fife spokesperson Graeme Keir said: “It is not just in this letter that Fife Council have taken steps to undermine industrial action they have also, in some schools, expected teachers to make time up on the days following industrial action, and they have sought to limit the size of picket lines outside schools.
“Fife Council should be supporting us in this cost-of-living crisis rather than seeking to cause more anxiety.”
Talk of disciplinary action ‘unacceptable’
But council leader David Ross said the council was making it clear there was no threat of disciplinary action.
“No-one should be forced to carry out the work of a colleague who is taking strike action, and it’s especially unreasonable where colleagues are also involved in the same dispute for a fair pay deal for teachers and have the right to show solidarity.” he said.
“Talk of disciplinary action is both unhelpful and unacceptable.”
The authority’s executive director for education and children’s services, Carrie Lindsay, explained: “We fully support the rights of our staff to take lawful industrial action, and the positive relationships we have with our trade unions are very important to us.”
The council can, she said, consider where it is reasonable to ask staff to cover duties, if this is in accordance with their terms and conditions.
She added: “We also fully understand the challenges faced by staff who are not taking part in the strike, and we wrote to all staff explaining no action will be taken against staff who choose not to cover classes for striking colleagues on Thursday.
“Our intention was to ensure that our teachers knew that we were not intending to take this action.”
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