Dad ‘fines’ teachers for strikes after he got penalty for taking kids on holiday
A fuming dad has ‘fined’ his children’s teachers for going on strike in response to being given a penalty for going on holiday in term time.
Wesley Joyce, 42, was fined £360 after he took his children on a 10-day all-inclusive break to Turkey last month.
His children Leonie, 18, Jai-Jai, 15, and Maddox, 10, and stepchildren Cleo, 15, and Hallie, five, joined him and wife Stacey, 34, for the trip of a lifetime.
The builder from Worcester said: ‘The holiday came to £7,000 with seven people all inclusive.
‘If I went in the summer holidays it was £12,000 – that’s a difference of £5,000.
‘We just couldn’t afford that and why should we. The memories of a family holiday will live with them forever.’
The family left on June 8, and they returned on June 22 to letters stating they had been fined £60 per parent, per child.
The mothers of Jai-Jai and Maddox, who were not on the holiday, have also been fined £60 each.
In response, Wesley posted a letter to his children’s two schools, demanding teachers be given a penalty for refusing to work.
In it, he said he wasn’t able to ‘grant you the ability to strike’ and their absence will be ‘noted as pathetic’.
Wesley added: ‘About a month before, just as they had their 13th day of strike action assuming it wouldn’t be an issue as they’ve done it.
‘It’s beyond belief. Does it matter what day you’re studying. It doesn’t matter in the summer holidays.
‘My son went to school last week and the teachers were on strike, he just watched a film all day.
‘How’s that helping him. Jai-Jai has done really well this year but now he’s got 10 absent days.
‘It baffles me how they need all that time. It’s not about how much they get paid or not.’
The family was fined £360 in total for the holiday, but that would double to £720 if the penalty wasn’t paid within 21 days.
One mum recently told the press she was happy to swallow the fines because it still saved her more than £10,000.
Schools in England have faced eight days of walkouts by National Education Union (NEU) members since February over pay during the cost of living crisis.
And if a deal isn’t reached over the summer, further strikes could be on the cards in the autumn during the Conservative Party conference.
Kevin Courtney, joint general secretary of the NEU told The Observer: ‘For the NEU we would plan on striking during the Conservative conference in early October and calling on parents, teachers and support staff to mount a huge demonstration in Manchester.’
Claiming the strikes are ‘unnecessary’, Wesley added: ‘I know children who haven’t been fined who have left and gone on holiday.
‘They’re in the position of who are you to fine us. You can’t fine us. Teachers know the conditions and pay scale, so why do they strike.
‘If you don’t like the job, go find somewhere else.’
Another mum claims she has lost £2,000 to teachers’ strikes this year after she was unable to work so she could look after her children.
Wesley said he approached his children’s schools – Tudor Grange Primary Academy Perdiswell where and Cleo and Hallie attend, and Christopher Whitehead Language College where Jai-Jai attends – asking for an authorised absence, but said his request was refused.
Neil Morris, headteacher of Christopher Whitehead Language College, said: ‘Mr Joyce may be fined for taking his child out for 10 days. The child will have crucial exams in 32 weeks.’
Tudor Grange Primary Academy Perdiswell declined to comment.
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