Will the government now acknowledge that the *real* rate of inflation is closer to 2.5% per month than 2.5% per year and do something, for goodness sake, the prop up the pound before we have another hyperinflationary Sterling crisis just like 1976?

Paul, Coventry,

All you people who think it's an easy job, come teach my class of disruptive 16-yr-old boys for an hour, 4 times a week. Then mark the 200 books I mark a fortnight, in my own time. Then run unpaid revision classes after school as I'm doing. I love my job - but please don't tell me I don't work hard.

Gemma, Manchester,

I was one of the striking teachers yesterday, for all those calling us unprofessional sorry to screw up your childcare plans. I have been teaching for 14 years. And its nor all holidays and 9 to 3.30 its hours of planning, marking, teaching, extra curricular clubs.

Richard, London, England

The so called 19 % pay rise has seen 10% eroded due to below inflation pay in the last 4 years now add current inflation against our 2.5% pay rise for the next 3 years and I'm back to where I started 14 years ago. I strike for my profession , my colleagues and my family.

Richard, London, England

People in the private sector love to feel self righteous about those working in public service especially when they ask for a few crumbs which fall under the corporate banquet table. Earning much lower wages for equivalent skill sets and responsibilities.

Get A Soul

Jana Mills, Canterbury, UK

Sack all the teachers and replace them with the illegal immigrants with low wages immingration problem solved with no council tax hike.

Brian, Scotland,

Please realise that teachers pay for their pensions (9% of salary), are well qualified and are not paid for the holidays.

The proposed inflation rate is essentially a pay cut. I would never condemn other professions fighting for fair working conditions- shouldn't we support this for everyone?

C Spencer, London, England

I hope that after this action, teachers have the grace to stop calling themselves "professionals"!

Richard, Bedford, UK

I believe the UK Public should be educated on the hours worked and what a teacher actually does. My wife’s day begins at 0630 with planning of that days lessons and regularly finish beyond 10pm plus Sundays with weekly planning. 16+ hours days / 80 hour weeks. Would you do that for £ 25k per year?

Andy T., Ash, Canterbury, UK

If they worked in the private sector, a strike would mean don't turn up for work the next day!

Barry Rowley, London, UK

Zero sympathy for any public sector workers (other than the military who's pay is reprehensibly bad) who whinge about below inflation pay rises. Those of us in the private sector, who pay the public sector's wages, have had sub-inflation 'rises' for years. Sick of being a wage slave to state waste.

John, Stirling , UK

British teachers have worse pay and worse working conditions (number of lessons per week) than their peers in Western Europe. It was time they got wise to this.

And why do head teachers in the UK get paid more than double the income of an experienced teacher? The size of the disparity is unjust.

jimbo, Oslo, Norway

JC, London - 'go back to work or resign please'.

if all the teachers that are on strike resign,
Qu.1 what would happen to the 8000 schools that are closed today?
A.1 they would stay closed!!

result: you tell us...

brio murphy, liverpool, merseyside

A newly qualified teacher in London receives, yearly, £25,000 (today's Times), 12-14 weeks' holidays, and pay just 9% of their salary for a generous and heavily subsidised final salary pension scheme. Oh that private industry offered such generous terms.

Nurses and policemen likewise do well.

Lizzie Carlisle, St Albans, UK

And nor should they feel guilt, is a 4.1% rise even close to what they deserve? Being from a teaching family I have watched the school day start at 8am and end at 12pm, and feel it's despicable that none of the press reports have highlighted just how much work they do to give us the best education.

Claire, London,

Despicable bunch! All public sector workers are facing below inflation pay increases (including doctor, Josh) reflecting the harse econonic realities of today - what is so special about teachers that they can walk out when they don't get what they want??

Kevin, London,

The reason well always holiday during school term time is not that we don’t like children – we just can’t stand teachers.

Brian Christley, Abergele, UK

The teachers have my complete sympathy. Why is their pay not being compared to that of lawyers, accountants etc?
Why should they feel guilt about demanding a fair deal? How else will they get a good deal unless they are disrpuptive. The "don't hurt the children" plea is emotional blackmail.

Mike, Hertfordshire, England

I agree the salary teachers get is fair compared to other similar professions. Don't forget teacher on average have 16 weeks holiday per year compared to an average of 5weeks in other professions. If you factor this extra holiday into the equation, the salary isn't too bad.

mat, leeds,

"Teachers’ pay has increased by 19 per cent in real terms since 1997."

Teachers' pay has increased quite a lot in recent years. Many hard-working parents who have to work over the summer have not done so well. Why should taxpayers keep having to pay more money for a poorer service?

Des, Edinburgh,

Let's just see how guilty they feel when I confront them at the next parents evening!

Ian Jones, Reading, UK

Rubbish. The teachers should realise that the job they do is more important that money and be satisfied with what they get offered. If they don't like it they can always leave. After all, 90% of the kids coming out of school will only use 1% of the knowledge they gain.

James Macdonald, Camborne, Essex

The underlying issue is inflation: if real inflation was at 2% then this would be less of an issue, but because it runs at closer to 5% (as a low estimate) a lot of pay rises are in fact pay cuts. compound this over 10 years and the picture becomes clearer.

ben, folkestone, uk

Teachers feeling guilty? They're far too important for that.

Lower pay increases should be the premium they pay for job security and good pensions.

Get over yourselves, please, you're not the be all and end all and you did choose the job you're in.

John, Coalville, Leicestershire

As a retired teacher I support the present action whole-heartedly. MP's award themselves huge salary increases, negotiate the best pension shceme in the country, and yet some of them condemn the strike. At least teacers train and have to qualifty for their jobs - not so MP's.

G Ware, York, G Britain

Has anyone received a pay rise this year? While the Government continue to pull the 'Official Rate of Inflation' figure out of their overpaid rears every year we are all worse off. Teachers no more than anyone else

Danny, Middlesbrough, United Kingdom

Of course they don't. They've got to be able to afford the petrol for the 4x4, the increased mortgage on the 4 bedroomed detached and compensate for the falling value of the pound on their three foreign holidays a year. There's no such thing as a poor teacher....plenty of 'failing' children though.

judy, Liverpool, England

Jim Knight Schools Minister has said his Government respects the findings of the independent review body award for teachers and they should accept 2.45%. Pity his Government didn't respect the findings of the review body for police pay which the Government refused to pay fully. Hypocrite!!!!!

chris, reigate,

Many parents feel no guilt for taking children out of school to go on cheaper holidays. When children have been to the dentist many of them are kept home for the rest of the day - I know this as I am a dentist. Why should teachers feel guilty for children missing one day of school?

Gopal Varma, Bristol, UK

by leaving many parents to either take days off work or find emergency care for the children, teachers will find very little sympathy amongst parents, and the attitude of "we feel no guilt" is sure to get more backs up!
they SHOULD get a proper pay rise, but striking is not the way to achieve it!

nicki, manchester,

This just sums up modern teachers. As long as the school gets the results that make it look good nothing else matters -least of all the pupils. One mother recently said of her 18-year old daughter, "she's got all the qualifications but the hasn't been educated". What an indictment of schools today.

Roger Tilbury, Worthing,

Take the pay rise out of their pensions, just like Labour did to the millions of private pension scheme to fund the last lot of pay rises.

I see there is no comdemnation from the trade unions supported Labour leadership, is Brown dithering again?

steve tea, manchester, cheshire

Josh, Sheffield. Big difference! The private sector (except banks!) has to balance its books or fail - it can't call on Government money to fund its pay cheques. As a member of a food manufacturing company, I (and the rest of the staff) have had to live with below-inflation payrises for many years.

Bob Finbow, Haverhill, England

No they do not need more money they need to manage their finances like the rest of us. The majority of those in teaching today are not worthy of the title teacher, as teaching is not what they do.

sareups, milton keynes,

We can't afford to pay them a fair wage. We have 20 million mosquito nets to buy

Panikos, London, UK

It's pretty despicable that the government minister is attacking the strikers with hate-mongering ("I share the anger of parents who see their children missing out on education") rather than tact and understanding. Labour governement? Could have fooled me.

Pete W, Bristol, UK

I'm confused, teachers have said they are underpaid for the last 20 years or so, so why do people join a profession where they know the money is poor, and then complain all the time about it.

Personally, I wanted to be a ski instructor, but there is no money in that, so I have to work in IT.

Paul, LEEDS, UK

Simple.
If you do not feel you are being paid enough money for the work you do, find a new job or career.
It certainly is not exceptable to strike and disrupt the tuition of a million children.
This sort of behaviour is disgusting.

Andrew Johnson , Manchester, England

Those that can, do. And those that can't, teach. And those that can't teach, teach Gym. And now it seems that those that can teach, are holding their hands out for money yet again, in an abject display of greed. Money for old rope, and months of holidays, teachers make me sick!

Stephanie Towers, Bristol,

They should all be glad they have a job, with the abysmal job they have done educating our kiddos.

Larry, Enfield, UK

If teachers are unhappy with pay they should look for another career. I personally feel teacher's pay should be performance based(on a variety of factors)&that they should not automatically move up the payscales! Maybe then this would force the poor teachers out of the system!

Stephen, Cumbria,

£34,281 sound a decent wage to me and extra £70 before tax should be enought to cover the extra expenses. Teachers should learn to swap around to make sure they are getting the best deals for their utilities.

Aaron, Southampton, UK

The teachers say that they need better pay to attract the quality of people required.

If I was a teacher I would think again, if they get their way. 80% of the current teachers will be out of work.

Maybe they have a case after all.

Leo, Birmingham, England

The comments by the Schools Minister probably go some way towards showing why the strike is happening. So easy to go after the easy "it's so disruptive for poor parents and children" vote rather than addressing the issues. I am a parent and I'd prefer to see teachers properly paid and no strikes.

Kevin, London, UK

Does the government feel 'guilt' for giving teachers a pay cut? Do the newspapers feel 'guilt' for siding with the powerful over ordinary working people who only want what is rightfully their's?

Marie Xenos, Enfield, UK

And so they shouldn't feel any guilt. You would feel no guilt asking for more money in the private sector or moving jobs for a better paid position.
The news this morning was comparing their pay to nurses & police constables, neither of whom are paid enough and struggle to get the staff. Doctors?

Josh, Sheffield,

Why doesn't your headline read Government 'feels no guilt' about underpaying teachers? They do an important job- pay them what MPs earn!!!!!

Miss Dee, Tayside, UK

I recently checked the breakdown of where my local council spends its tax. Given that council taxes have doubled in the last 10 years I was surprised to find that 80% of the budget goes on education. I work in the private sector and was given 0 pay rise this year - go back to work or resign please.

JC, London,