Emily Norton

Another round of teacher strikes has commenced in the UK, with staff walking out of Greater Lincolnshire classrooms today and tomorrow.

Strike action was taken in North and North East Lincolnshire, along with Yorkshire and Humberside regions, on Tuesday, February 28.

Members of the National Education Union (NEU) in Lincolnshire will join their colleagues across England and Wales on picket lines on Wednesday, March 1.

Decisions on school closures and any other disruptive action will be made by individual headteachers, and parents have been advised to check ahead in case of additional childcare requirements.

The strikes are primarily over unmet demands for better pay, though the NEU also argues that they are to highlight the underfunding of schools.

The Department for Education offered most teachers a 5% pay rise for the current school year, well below double digit levels of inflation.

There will be more strike action on March 15 and 16, unless an agreement over pay can be reached.

Lincolnshire NEU member Jill Evans, who spoke to The Lincolnite during a multi-union demonstration in Lincoln city centre last month, said:

“It’s not about pay, it’s about TAs that aren’t funded properly and would earn more in supermarkets than classrooms,” she said.

“Teachers can’t do their jobs because of the lack of funding, and it’s the children who suffer as a result.

“We already work holidays, weekends and evenings, and don’t have any work-life balance.

“We’re ready to talk, but I’m not sure if the government are ready to listen.”

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British Steel has announced 260 staff will be made redundant at its Scunthorpe plant, almost 7% of its overall workforce.

Despite ongoing funding talks with the government and its Chinese owners, the coke ovens will be switched off at the North Lincolnshire site – the ovens produce fuel to power its blast furnaces.

China’s Jingye Group, the company’s owner, says the move is partly to “overcome global economic challenges”, as well as rising energy costs.

“Decisive action is required because of the unprecedented rise in operating costs, surging inflation and the need to improve environmental performance”, they said in a statement.

It confirms fears expressed by unions on the morning of Wednesday, February 22.

Unite the union has vowed to fight for every job under threat, accusing owners of failing to make good on commitments to major investments in the plant.

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “British Steel workers are faced with the toxic combination of a greedy employer that is reneging on investment promises and a shambolic UK government that has no serious plan for the industry.”

“Unite’s members in British Steel are clear that they will fight this and they will have the full support of their union.”

Unite national officer Linda McCulloch said: “This union has not yet seen any financial justification for the closure of the coking ovens. British Steel needs to come clean and open its books in order to try to justify its decisions.

“Unite will pursue every avenue, including industrial action, to defend members’ jobs at British Steel.”

The Community steelworkers union has warned it will not accept redundancies if British Steel closes its coke ovens.

North Lincolnshire Council Leader Rob Waltham.

North Lincolnshire Council has said it will work with the local MPs Holly Mumby-Croft and Andrew Percy, the Government and other agencies to support local people affected by the news.

North Lincolnshire Council leader, Councillor Rob Waltham said: “We are pulling together a task force at pace to work with Government departments and local steel representatives including unions to see how we can support everybody involved.

“The Government has been working hard behind the scenes to protect the future of the steel industry in Scunthorpe and help them reduce their energy costs and move to a greener business model.

“I am sure this work will continue and in the meantime the council and partners will do all they can to support any of the workforce who may be affected.