Teachers’ Unions Warn of Strikes and Political Campaigns

The National Education Union (NEU), the UK's largest teachers' union, has warned it will campaign against Labour MPs and is preparing to launch a formal strike ballot if the government's recommended 2.8% pay rise for teachers is not improved and fully funded. NEU delegates in Harrogate voted to proceed if the upcoming spending review fails to address their concerns about pay and school funding, with a preliminary ballot showing 93.7% rejection of the current offer. The union argues the pay rise is inadequate, unfunded, and hampers teacher recruitment efforts. In a related development, staff at further education colleges in Northern Ireland have overwhelmingly voted in favor of strike action over pay and working conditions, citing long-standing pay disparity with school teachers. Both actions reflect widespread dissatisfaction with government responses to pay and funding issues in education. The mounting tensions suggest a growing risk of widespread industrial action across the UK education sector.