Teachers will gather in St Thomas’ Square in Newport later today (Thursday) as they walk out for the 2nd time in the continuing row over pay and funding.
Those on strike – that’s those who are members of the National Education Union – will take to picket lines outside local schools and will join a demonstration in the county town.
Medina College, Carisbrooke College, The Bay CE School (Secondary) and Christ the King College are closed to almost every pupil, although Year 11 at Medina, Carisbrooke and The Bay are expected to attend as normal today.
The only secondary school to avoid closure is Ryde Academy, which remains open. However, there will be some impact on internal staffing and therefore there may be some changes to the students’ usual way of learning.
A number of primary schools will also be fully or partially closed, which clashes with World Book Day. It means that some pupils will completely miss out on the annual event.
Peter Shreeve, Assistant District Secretary of the National Education Union, has said:
“So many on the Island were hoping for progress. It’s disappointing that so little progress has been made to solve this issue. The NEU has repeatedly said they are willing to have substantial negotiations at any time, in order to tackle pay and workload, which impacts on recruitment and retention.
“We sincerely hope that the Education Secretary does meet with education unions after these regional strikes. But if she does, she must come up with a serious offer that can be put to members. An offer which will ultimately improve recruitment and retention.
Article continues below this advertisement “Indeed, it’s worth sharing the comments from one Isle of Wight teacher after attending the picket and then the rally in St Thomas Square on the first walkout.
“They said: ‘I am going home and planning to catch up with some marking. I’ve got some special needs paperwork to complete too. Then, I suppose I’ll make sure my lessons and photocopying are all sorted for tomorrow, as I have a full teaching day.’ All this extra work on a day, when it’s unpaid! This is the norm.
“Indeed, we know teachers work more hours than they are actually paid contractually. They have to, otherwise they would not be able to do the job. It’s certainly difficult to understand the workload and stress a teacher is under unless one lives it.”
Further walkouts are due to take place on the Island on Wednesday 15th and Thursday 16th March.
They said: ‘I am going home and planning to catch up with some marking. I’ve got some special needs paperwork to complete too. Then, I suppose I’ll make sure my lessons and photocopying are all sorted for tomorrow, as I have a full teaching day.’ All this extra work on a day, when it’s unpaid! This is the norm……
Just not enough hours in the day is there you should try a job where you only get 28 day’s holiday a year no sick pay and have to work 8 till 5:30 all for under 30k a year
Trained up for the job they should know the consequences
Maybe if you hadn’t slacked off in school you, too, could have a decent well paid job.
I did work hard in school. Got myself an engineering degree and a Masters. Was earning £45k back in 2000 and retired in 2020 on £87k with a nice pension.
Retired and moved back to the Island in 2021. Now have a good income from my private pensions and still earn more than your £30k working 2 days a week from home.
Well done it’s a shame you moved back to the island
Ooooo fancy pants , but well done
Unfortunately your kind of work ethic is very rare now .People prefer to sit on their backside moaning about people who made better life choices than themselves ,and then expect to get paid for doing bugger all .
Don’t take your kids out of school as you would get fined but they don’t mind letting them stay at home when it suits them
Bang on there u are , what a joke lazy staff don’t like it get a another job what ever happen to the passion of teaching just greed now
It’s a tough job. I think they deserve a better deal.
Teachers salaries start at £28,000 per annum, that’s for a newly qualified teacher in their first job, and go up to £44,000 with experience. A Leading Practitioner in a subject can earn up to around £64,000.
Those figures are for jobs outside of London e.g. the Isle of Wight.
Head Teachers earn a lot more, anything from £60,000 up to £130,000.
Add in 12 weeks non teaching time per year (it’s not classified as ‘holiday’), a decent pension plus some get gym discounts etc and it’s a pretty good package.
28k might have been a decent wage 15 years ago but it’s bang average in 2023, considering you need a degree and a subsequent qualification it is not appropriate. The non teaching days are not classed as holiday because it not a holiday, they are working. Do you think when a shopkeeper closes the front door he’s on holiday? Get real.
So not only do they want more money they also want to be paid for working on a strike day never enough is it.
Just woke brainwashers now.
Give them nothing extra.
Teachers jobs never been so easy.
For most end up with helpers in the class to tend the odd children.
My relative is a teacher and works at the prison teaching some evenings.
So hardly worn out at the end of the day, just for greed not need.
Glad so many have seen through these workshy chancers now.
IF the job is so dire we have almost full employment, UP AND LEAVE ‘IF’ you are so hard done by.
Another one of life’s little failures blaming anyone but themselves for their own miserable existence aren’t you Ivy (or whatever you are calling yourself today)
Time to finally grow up and realise your miserable little life is down to you and the decisions you have made. Not “wokes” (I doubt you even know what the word means), single parents, benefit claimants, immigrants, the EU or any of the myriad of other things you bitter old losers constantly bleat and whine about.
You are the reason for your own failure.
Your relative is 10 times the person you are, and you know it.
What a pity you choose to hide behind a computer. I invite you to talk to my daughters school to explain to them why they are so lazy and spend their day doing nothing.
My daughter arrives at her school 7.45 to prepare lessons,arrives hope at 19.30 on most days even though she is contracted 9.00-5.00.
Where is she in the easter holidays Barbados? No taking less fortunate children on a three day school trip with 24 hrs a day responsibility.
Hang on where is she saturday morning having a lie in ? No taking the school soccer team out. What happened in her lunch hour called out by the police to help one of her childrens family that had problems with the child at home social services busy. People
like you me me sick
Searle is one of several nasty, bitter old failures on this site who would rather blame anyone and everything but themselves for their own miserable existence.
You daughter sounds like an awesome person and you deserve plenty of credit for her, too.
Get back to work you lazy f**kers
Maybe you should and keep your foul mouth to yourself!
Its a bit sad really, they gather in St Thomas’ Square to protest to whom exactly? Nobody of any importance, or that can help their case, will ever see their protest. The Island is too remote and government don’t seem to care what happens here anyway. I suppose it makes the teachers feel better that they’ve done something symbolic but frankly, they are wasting their time!
What are the year 11’s going to achieve these kids are about to write their GCSE, what use is a supply teacher because that is what they have on strike days. Absolutely disgraceful I wish l got as much holiday a year when l worked as teachers get. So, a pay rise is going to lessen the workload and stress level is it, if they are so stressed maybe teaching is not for them.
Plenty of tory lovers here when reading the comments
Oh fully support the teachers. You should hear their stories, despite wages falling most teachers spend their own money for basic school equipment etc, because schools are so underfunded. Some classrooms have No heating. While they want decent pay reflecting their work, responsibilities and professional status, mostly they are concerned about the lack of resources and investment in education. If in doubt, please talk to them. (It would help if the education minister would)
They will always tell you the worst stories did they not tell you the ones where they have many sick days with stress or a bad back but still get full pay normally attached to the end of a school holiday