The Educational Institute of Scotland and the Scottish Secondary Teachers’ Association have become pally of late. But tensions between the two unions still surface from time to time, not least in the SSTA’s decision to take North Lanarkshire to court over a local deal implementing the national teachers’ settlement.
The EIS quickly took the council’s side as a party to the local agreement.
Then the court had to decide on the matter of costs and awarded 50 per cent to the institute, which means that the SSTA will have to raid its coffers to stump up.
It’s pleasing to record that, while merger talks are always said to be on the cards, the first tentative step has been taken: a transfer of funds from the SSTA to the EIS paid for out of members’ subs.
