United Kingdom - Union demands pay rise for school staff - December 31, 2025

Unions representing 1.4 million council and school staff are calling for a wage rise of at least £ 3,000 (€ 3,444) to recognise soaring workloads and increasing household costs. Unite, UNISON and GMB have submitted their joint annual local government pay claim for 2026-27, demanding a substantial award from April after years of effective pay cuts, which have left staff struggling to keep up with rising household bills. The unions are warning pay for council and school staff continues to lag behind many other public services.  In turn, low wages have led to a recruitment and retention crisis while demand for key services – such as social care, children’s services and housing support – has soared.

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For more information, please contact Paul de Beer or Oana Ciuca, De Burcht (Scientific Bureau for the Dutch Trade Union Movement) p.t.debeer@uva.nl or the Head of communications at the ETUI, Mehmet Koksal mkoksal@etui.org. For previous full issues of the Collective bargaining newsletter please visit https://www.etui.org/Newsletters/Collective-bargaining-newsletter or consult the archive with all articles in our database at www.cbnarchive.eu. You may find further information on the ETUI at www.etui.org.