School staff strike over proposed sick pay changes

The picket line outside Oulton Academy

Teachers at a secondary school in Leeds have gone on strike over proposed changes to sick pay.

The National Education Union said the Carlton Academy Trust, which runs Oulton Academy in Rothwell, plans to cut the entitlement to paid medical leave for new staff to 15 days.

Current staff members said they receive six months' full pay if they are ill, and would not get other company benefits if they kept the current arrangement.

The Trust said it had offered "credible solutions" to avoid strike action.

Ben Pallister, a science teacher at the school, was among those on the picket line on Wednesday morning.

He said the walk-out was about "securing the future of education".

"We have got a huge recruitment and retention issue, most teachers aren't staying longer than five years and obviously that's detrimental to our students' education," he added.

Ben Parsons is among the Oulton Academy staff members on strike

Mr Pallister said he had recently returned from a 15-day period of sick leave due to "mental health and anxiety".

Under the new contract, that would have used up the entirety of his entitlement, although the Trust has said further days could be given on a case-by-case basis.

Mr Pallister said the current policy was a "safety blanket" and added: "I would be terrified to have a sick day.

"If I'm not 100% my teaching isn't at 100% and therefore my students are going to suffer."

Staff would "absolutely be back" on strike if an agreement can't be reached, he added.

Rachel Ferraby, a learning support assistant at the school and trade union representative, said they wanted to negotiate with the Trust.

She added: "We just want equity with all staff and educators around the country."

In a statement, the Trust said it had offered "credible solutions to all three grounds for industrial action, including a full legal guarantee to ensure continuation of national terms and conditions throughout their employment at the school".

The statement continued: "These have been rejected, in addition to an insistence on punitive terms that would effectively cede control of the school and trust to them."

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