TEACHERS’ unions were dismayed that councils and the Scottish government failed to bring a new offer to pay negotiations this week.

The Education Institute of Scotland, the biggest education union north of the border, warned that strike ballots would be “inevitable” if a “substantially improved offer” is not made this month.

Last month teachers overwhelmingly rejected a “final” pay offer of 3 per cent. Unions, understandably, argue that a 10 per cent rise is needed to make up for a decade of wage stagnation.

There is now speculation that EIS could target strikes at the constituencies represented by the First Minister, her deputy John Swinney and Finance Secretary Derek Mackay.

EIS leader Larry Flanagan made the suggestion at a union meeting discussing potential courses of action if the Scottish government and councils do not make a further offer.

One parent whose children attend schools in Ms Sturgeon’s constituency tells me he’s ambivalent about the idea.

“I can understand why the EIS would consider targeted strike action like this and I would support their right to do so,” says the dad, who asked not to be named. “Even if — in the short term — my kids’ education would suffer.

“However, tactically I think it would be an error by the EIS as they would be perceived by many as targeting the children of SNP-voting parents.”

Perhaps. It may still, however, be the course of action which produces the most leverage. Public support is a useful tool to deploy in an industrial dispute, but it counts for nothing if you don’t have your opponents under the kosh. And I’m a little sceptical unions can sway the public one way or another through their industrial tactics.

As we’ve seen with the vitriol unleashed on both teachers and women council workers striking for equal pay by hardcore cybernats, allegiances quickly become entrenched.

An alternative for the EIS is national strike action. This comes with the heavy proviso of meeting the Tories’ ballot thresholds — imposed in the 2016 Trade Union Act. Postal workers (CWU) and university lecturers (UCU) overcame this hurdle in national ballots — but Civil Service workers (PCS) did not, with huge support for strike action, but turnout falling just below the required 50 per cent.

Teachers would need to meet another threshold on top — the requirement in so-called critical public services for 40 per cent of members to back strikes.

My money would still be on them pulling through if they press ahead with this option. Their anger at the government’s stalling tactics should not be underestimated. Mr Swinney, who holds the Scottish government’s education portfolio, has repeatedly championed the 3 per cent rise as the best in Britain. But hyping up a piss-poor pay package because it’s the least worst of a bad bunch is not a convincing sell.

The workforce is also probably easier to organise than the low-paid civil servants, often working part-time in alienated offices, who make up the membership of PCS.

A successful teachers’ ballot would require enormous mobilising efforts. So it’s understandable that their unions want to consider other options before expending huge amounts of time and effort.
But all this should be beside the point. What kind of nation sees a real terms pay cut of 24 per cent over ten years as a just reward for the education front line? Nicola Sturgeon’s Scotland, apparently.