SCOTLAND’S largest teaching union has secured almost £700,000 in compensation settlements for members injured at work over the past year.

The Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS) has worked with members making 14 claims for violence in workplaces, personal injury and accidents. 

The total won by the EIS represents an increase of more than 100 per cent compared with the 2019 figure of just over £290,000.

The union has warned that the increase in claims remains a concern, pointing to a lack of health and safety enforcement being responsible for the largest number of cases. 

EIS general secretary Larry Flanagan said: “It is never a welcome development to report on an increase in compensation payments received by our members.

“While the sums involved do represent success for the EIS in pursuing appropriate compensation for injuries suffered at work, our clear preference would be to see these types of injuries eliminated entirely from our schools, colleges and universities.”

The claims won for EIS members in 2020 include an award of £200,000 for a worker left seriously injured following an assault by a pupil. 

Another member suffered a high level of stress due to lack of support in the workplace and was awarded £90,000, while another claimant won more than £65,000 due to health problems suffered in the workplace. 

Mr Flanagan said: “Many teaching professionals have felt particularly vulnerable in their places of work over the past year as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. 

“Working in buildings that many teachers do not believe are Covid-19-secure, without sufficient safety mitigations in place, has had significant implications for the physical and mental wellbeing of many of our members.”