Union baron threatening winter of national school strikes while urging teachers to shun weekend marking is on six-figure pay package worth almost as much as Prime Minister's salary

Published: 15:49, 7 June 2026 | Updated: 15:49, 7 June 2026 The union baron threatening national school strikes while urging teachers to shun weekend marking got a six-figure pay package worth almost as much as the Prime Minister’s salary, it emerged today. Documents show Daniel Kebede, boss of the militant National Education Union (NEU), got a total package worth a staggering £164,654 last year. This was up by more than £10,000 (7 per cent) on the previous year, making the firebrand one of the best paid union barons in the country and putting him in the top 2 per cent of earners. It included a base salary of £137,000, £26,300 in pension and National Insurance contributions and nearly £1,300 towards a ‘car and health plan’. By contrast, Sir Keir Starmer’s base salary was around £167,000 last year. The bumper settlement came as the NEU wreaked havoc for school leaders by conducting 230 ballots on whether to take industrial action over the same period, pressing ahead with 25 walkouts or action short of a strike. A total of 477 working days were lost as a result, analysis of the documents reveals. Today it was revealed that the NEU, Britain’s biggest education union, has issued teachers with a handbook saying they should refuse to do any work that could disrupt a healthy work-life balance. The 34-page ‘workload bargaining toolkit’ for members says teachers should be consulted on the timing of parents' evenings, inset days and sports days. Daniel Kebede, boss of the militant National Education Union (NEU), got a total package worth a staggering £164,654 last year  The NEU has threatened to ballot teachers on strike action from October, paving the way for a winter of walkouts, like those pictured in 2023  The NEU has threatened to ballot teachers on strike action from October, paving the way for a winter of walkouts, like those pictured in 2023 Teachers should not be asked to mark in different coloured pens, and should be able to decide whether a pupil’s work needs to be marked. Lunch breaks of less than 40 minutes are ‘unreasonable’, the handbook, first obtained by The Sunday Times, says. It states: ‘Members should refuse to be directed to undertake any work-related tasks, such as planning, marking or responding to emails, on weekends or bank holidays, or in any way that disrupts a healthy work/life balance.’ It adds that state schools should ‘consult staff on the timings of inset days, report schedules, parents’ evenings, sports days, classroom observations and other activities and events that could affect work/life balance’. Head teachers said it was unworkable to consult the union on all decision-making. Critics also pointed out that at many schools, parents' ‘evenings’ take place in the afternoon, meaning the latest slot no longer accommodates working parents.  Tory MP Greg Smith said: 'This is a classic union baron - taking massive pay packets way beyond the reach of the vast majority of Brits, then presiding over chaos for ordinary working people. It's bonkers.' Former Tory leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith said Mr Kebede’s record suggested he was putting the interests of ‘teachers first above children’, adding: ‘Here we have a union fat cat, raking it in while threatening to take a wrecking ball to children’s education and wanting to turn this into a political fight. ‘You wonder if the world’s gone mad. I certainly think most teachers wouldn’t want anything to do with this.’ William Yarwood, campaigns director at the TaxPayers' Alliance said: ‘Taxpayers will be appalled that a union boss on a six-figure package is threatening yet more disruption to children’s education. At Connaught School for Girls in east London, pupils became so frustrated after 45 days of strikes that they launched a counterprotest demanding an education last month  Former Tory leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith branded Daniel Kebede a 'fat cat' union boss who was putting ‘teachers first above children’ ‘Parents have already seen pupils lose out from strikes and lost classroom time, while union leaders continue to push confrontation from comfortable salaries. ‘Union bosses should drop the strike threats, focus on pupils and explain what value members are getting for their generous pay packets.’ There have been mounting warnings that the NEU has grown more militant under Mr Kebede’s leadership. At Connaught School for Girls in east London, pupils became so frustrated after 45 days of strikes that they launched a counterprotest demanding an education last month. But the union has warned it will ballot members nationally on walkouts from October unless ministers give them a ‘fully-funded pay offer for teachers that exceeds inflation’. The Department for Education has so far offered a 6.5 per cent pay hike for teachers over three years, which NEU bosses branded an ‘insult’. It paves the way for walkouts as part of a wider ‘winter of discontent’ being plotted by union barons in a bid to get inflation-busting pay hikes, with barons also threatening to shut down hospitals and the railways. The NEU was contacted for comment. No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? 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