Teachers and firefighters are the latest public sector workers to announce they will go on strike in disputes over pay.

The biggest teachers’ strike in years will go ahead after unions said the education secretary “squandered the opportunity” to avoid action – while firefighters have voted overwhelmingly to walkout after experiencing what their union says is a 12% drop in real-terms earnings.

The latest strikes have been announced as Sky News polling suggests support for trade unions is rising, even though walkouts are bringing public services to a standstill.

The teachers’ strike comes after last-minute talks were held by Education Secretary Gillian Keegan on Monday in a bid to resolve the pay dispute before planned strikes this week.

Members of the National Education Union (NEU) in England and Wales will now walk out on Wednesday, with more industrial action planned in the following weeks.

Wednesday’s strike is expected to include up to half a million workers, with teachers due to be joined by train drivers, civil servants, university lecturers, bus drivers and security guards from seven trade unions in what will be the biggest day of industrial action in more than a decade.

Government ‘squandered’ chance to avoid strike by teachers

The NEU has announced seven days of strikes in England and Wales in February and March, with the walkout on Wednesday expected to affect over 23,000 schools.

Mary Bousted and Kevin Courtney, joint general secretaries of the NEU, said: “Gillian Keegan has squandered an opportunity to avoid strike action on Wednesday.

“The government has been unwilling to seriously engage with the causes of strike action.

“Real-terms pay cuts and cuts in pay relativities are leading to a recruitment and retention crisis with which the education secretary so far seems incapable of getting a grip.

“Training targets are routinely missed, year on year. This is having consequences for learning, with disruption every day to children’s education.”

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Meanwhile, a headteachers’ union boss has described the talks with Ms Keegan as “deeply disappointing”.

Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), said: “Parents will have been looking for the government to avert the planned strike on Wednesday.

“Instead, the government continues to talk around the issues rather than putting anything on the table which allows for any meaningful negotiation.”

Mr Barton added: “We are sorry to report that there is therefore no resolution to the dispute and the strike is set to go ahead.”

Education Secretary Gillian Keegan said after talks failed: “It is hugely disappointing the NEU is continuing with strike action. These strikes will have a significant impact on children’s education, especially following the disruption of the past two years, and are creating huge uncertainly for parents.

“With talks ongoing on a range of issues, including around future pay, workload, behaviour and recruitment and retention, it is clear that strikes are not being used as a last resort.

“I have been clear today that unions do not need to strike to meet with me. I also reiterated my call to union leaders to ask their members to let headteachers know if they intend to strike, helping schools to minimise the impact on children.”

Firefighters likely to strike for first time in nearly 20 years

Firefighters also overwhelmingly backed strike action, with 88% voting yes on a 73% turnout, it was announced today.

The Fire Brigades Union (FBU) said it has given the government and employers 10 days to to come up with an improved offer which could be put to a vote of members in an effort to avoid strikes.

The last time there was a nationwide walkout by firefighters was in 2003.

Firefighters have experienced a 12% drop in real-terms earnings since 2010, the union says, while around one in five firefighter jobs have been cut in the same period.

It comes after members rejected an offer of a 5% pay increase in November, which unions argued was below-inflation and would be felt as a real-terms cut by workers.

The FBU argued polling has previously shown there is strong public support for strike action by firefighters, with around three in five people backing action.

FBU general secretary Matt Wrack said: “This is an absolute last resort for our members. The responsibility for any disruption to services lies squarely with fire service employers and government ministers.

“Rishi Sunak’s government has refused to make funding available for a decent pay offer to firefighters and control staff.

“Firefighters were among Britain’s COVID heroes who kept frontline services going during the pandemic. The prime minister has badly misjudged the public mood by imposing pay cuts on key workers.”

The strike announcement comes after research by the FBU and the University of Central Lancashire found firefighters are more likely to die of cancer than the general public.