Today pupils and teachers are due to return to school  after the two-week Easter break.  However, there will be empty seats and a shortage of teachers, due to people being stranded abroad because of the volanic ash cloud.

An extended Easter break may be appealing to many, but what happens when your employer seeks to dock your wages for failing to return to work?  It hardly seems fair to be penalised for something which is outwith your control.  Nevertheless, a local authority in the West Midlands has stated that it will dock pay from teachers who fail to return to work today.  It advises teachers to claim their travel insurance for lost earnings.

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