'Teachers deserve a real pay rise' - Derry councillor

Supporting the strike action taken by teachers, Derry City and Strabane District councillor, Shaun Harkin (People Before Profit) said teachers deserved a "real" pay rise. 

He added: "People Before Profit joined striking teachers on picket lines in Derry and across the North. We fully back their strike and commend all the trade unions for taking united action. 

"Cruel budget cuts enacted by the Secretary of State and consecutive Stormont Executive's have punished teachers, education workers and pupils. 

"Those treating our teachers, our education workers, our children and our schools with contempt are responsible for all the disruption caused by the strike. Teachers go above and beyond for our young people, yet they have seen their pay cut by 25% in the past decade alone. A real pay rise for teachers is an absolute necessity in the face of soaring costs. Teachers deserve to be properly paid and properly valued. 

"The strike action is about pay but also for proper investment that will allow our children to thrive. Teachers and education workers are keeping schools afloat through significant self-sacrifice, but this is not unsustainable. We cannot recruit and retain teachers with the offer of yearly pay cuts and mounting workloads," said Cllr Harkin.

Cllr Harking added that further "coordinated strike action" across the public sector, including in the health service, was needed to "overturn punishment budgets and present a serious challenge to the Tory administration".

He said: "Claims by the Secretary of State that he cannot act are nonsense. We say resolve the strike now by agreeing a real pay rise for teachers and reversing cuts to the education budget."