The National Education Union has explained why teachers at St Matthew’s CE Primary School in Halliwell are to take strike action next Wednesday, in the first of a series of walkouts.
The union states the industrial action at the school is in response to issues surrounding performance-related pay and management.
A total of 23 teachers will be taking part in the action, with the NEU stating that 100 per cent of its members at the school voted for the action.
Representing NEU members at the school, Joanne Squires, Bolton NEU Branch Secretary said: “Members are dedicated professionals who work hard for the pupils at St Matthew’s and deserve to be properly remunerated each year, without jumping through bureaucratic hoops and filling in endless paperwork to prove their worth to the school.
“Educators at this school want to provide a broad curriculum and fulfilling experiences for the pupils in their care, but they feel their professionalism and expertise has been undervalued in the way change has been managed at the school in recent years.
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“Members are further concerned about the impact of poor management culture on retention of dedicated staff at the school, which could ultimately lead to more disruption for pupils in the long term.
“We have been in active negotiations with the governing body and Local Authority in order to try to find an acceptable resolution to this dispute for our members.”
NEU members at the school say they have been raising their concerns for some time and have been seeking resolutions to these issues through negotiation with the headteacher, stretching back to the previous academic year.
They add that “progress has been slow and extremely limited in impact leaving the members with no choice but to escalate to a formal dispute”.
Negotiations are now ongoing with the Local Authority to try to find a satisfactory resolution.
Peter Middleman, Regional Secretary of the National Education Union, said: “Performance Related Pay (PRP) for teachers is ineffective and unfair; it increases workload and stress while undermining collaborative working.
“It is also often used to apply unfair targets and to hold down pay, having a disproportionate and discriminatory impact on women and Black educators.
“Many teachers have been denied pay progression even when they met the targets set.
“For these reasons, the School Teachers’ Review Body has recommended that the requirement for maintained schools to adopt PRP be removed.
“We welcome the steps that Bolton LA have taken towards this recommendation in the latest iteration of their pay policy for schools, but our members are concerned that elements of PRP remain.”
He added: “The hyper-accountability and associated workload issues wrought through unacceptable management practices have negatively impacted on our members’ working lives and their ability to deliver the education experience pupils at St Matthew’s deserve.
“They want to see a genuine commitment to positive change for the benefit of the whole school community.”
A spokesman for Bolton Council said that the school was “hopeful” that strike action could be avoided.
He said: “The school remains hopeful that the call for industrial action will be resolved so that pupils will not be disadvantaged.
“St Matthew’s CofE School has been working with NEU union representatives and is always keen to resolve the need for strikes.”
There are further dates of action proposed for 25th and 26th March, and 1st, 2nd, 3rd April.
In a letter sent out parents, the school said: “A number of our employees are members of the NEU and as such we are likely to be affected by the industrial action.
“The school and the governing body have therefore undertaken a risk assessment for the school to safeguard children’s safety and feel that the school will be partially open on these dates due to the requirement to deploy staff across the school classes.”
The letter goes on to state the classes that will remain open will be Reception S, Y2M and Y6H.
