For months a battle has been waged between members of teaching unions and the Scottish Government over pay for teachers.

Tens of thousands have marched in cities demanding a pay increase, in a move which they believe would restore value to the profession following public sector pay caps.

Offers have been made by the government and rejected by the Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS), which is Scotland's largest teaching union.

The latest offer of a 9% increase, comprised of 3% from April last year, 3% from January, and an additional 3% in April, with a further 3% next year, to be funded with Scottish Government cash, was voted down by 57% to 43% by its members.

The EIS want an immediate 10% pay rise and revealed last week it is even closer to strike action over the issue.

It could mean that teachers would strike in April, close to exam time for pupils.

So why are teachers threatening to go on strike? Here's three reasons highlighted by teaching staff which they say has led to their support of industrial action.

"It's always been challenging and demanding but I loved it," explains one teacher, who we are calling Laura to protect her identity.

"I truly loved my job. I used to boast to the kids I had the best job in the world. There was nothing I would like better than going into my work.

"Unfortunately that's not the case anymore."

Laura loved working with children, and after working as a Sunday school teacher and a Rainbow Guider, gave up her job in investment to become a full time teacher.

But soon she found the workload getting on top of her.

"Every lesson that you do is supposed to be all singing and dancing to meet the needs of learners at all times," she says.

"You have to do daily plans, weekly plans, termly plans for every group within the lesson, you have to have learning intentions written out.

"It just goes on, it never stops, you never catch up, and then there's the marking on top of that, plus report cards, assessments, learning journals, learning logs, it just goes on and on."

Teachers have criticised the large classrooms, with the expectation to give their full attention to some 33 pupils at a time.

"You've got to spend one to one with some children and you can't when you have 33, so their behaviour might impact on the rest of the class, and you can't possibly manage it."

Laura says violence in the classroom is a 'common occurrence', adding that children have sworn at her, a chair was thrown at her and she has been spat on.

"There was an adult who intervened between two children once and had her wrist broken to stop a child attacking another child," she adds.

"It's just accepted that is just part of your job. Nothing is done to the child, you're not given any support about it, but it's traumatising for yourself and other children who are witnessing it daily."

While teachers are sometimes criticised for complaining while having shorter working days and long holidays, Laura says the reality couldn't be more opposite.

"Teachers work their holidays, work their weekends, work their evenings," she says.

"I used to be in there until 6pm every night, then come home and once my child was in bed work until three or four in the morning, work weekends, and I still couldn't get anything done.

"It's not an easy job at all. You never switch off. There's always someone wanting you to do something, a form to fill in or a parent to phone, it's just never ending."

One of the biggest topics surrounding the plans to strike is over teachers' pay.

The EIS want the government to give teachers a 10% pay rise, which would go some way to recognising the workload teachers face.

The pay teachers currently earn has been blamed for the current crisis in recruiting and retaining staff.

Gail Macgregor, education spokeswoman at Cosla, previously said the most recent offer of 9% was "at the absolute limits" of what councils could afford.

She said: "We absolutely value the education of our young people and throughout these negotiations have reiterated the value we place on our teachers and the work that they do."

However, Laura says supporting strike action following her 14 years as a teacher would not be motivated by money.

"It's not about the money. I didn't go into the job for the money, but you want to be rewarded for what you put in," she says.

"I was dedicated, I truly loved it.

"It just needs to be more manageable, there's so much paperwork, duplication after duplication, just for ticking boxes so that management can say you've done this, you've done that.

"Your professional judgement should be enough."

As much as Laura loved her job, she says that things quickly changed. Cutbacks, lack of support and paperwork demands added pressure to her daily life, so much so it affected her health.

"My mental health suffered greatly, I'm constantly living with high anxiety," she says.

"I never switched off, always scared to go into work, not knowing what I would be facing - violence, just challenging behaviour constantly, mostly due to the children not being supported correctly due to lack of resources, but that didn't really help me at the time."

Laura says that over a decade as a teacher, she was forced to give up her role due to the impact on her health, which has had repercussions in other areas of her life.

"I've been dismissed due to ill health. I am soon to lose my house. I don't think I will ever teach again," she says.

"I don't think I will be able to teach just physically. I am still seeking medical care and counselling long term."

"It's not a profession I would recommend anyone going in to."

A survey by the EIS union found that three quarters of Scottish teachers feel stressed about their workload.

Meanwhile local authorities are struggling to fill teaching spaces across the country, with incentives such as relocation packages not enticing teachers to move to more remote areas.

In Cullen, Moray there has been a massive struggle to fill the headteacher position in the local primary, which has been vacant for more than a year and a half.

Vivienne Cross, from Moray Council, explains: "We have had issues with filling posts for quite a time now, that's all kind of posts, teaching posts, permanent posts, part time posts, filling maternity leave."

Laura says the stress she had endured has "changed her life forever".

"I don't know if I can ever go back into a classroom or teach but I would wholly back a strike," she says.

"People don't understand the pressures teachers are under."

According the the Scottish Government, teaching levels are at their highest since 2010.

Programmes such as the drive to recruit teachers in STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering and maths) are trying to encourage people to change careers, with a £20,000 bursary offered as an incentive.

Education secretary John Swinney says of the scheme: "In many of the approaches that we are taking to initial teacher education where young people and students are coming out of school or university that were not finding enough individuals who are prepared to go into teaching.

"So we need to make sure that other age groups are able to enter the teaching profession, many of whom will already be in employment and have existing commitments."

Despite the threat of a teaching strike, the number of teachers in training has risen over the past three years.

Student teacher Sarah Lumsden told STV News that while she is aware of the issues teachers face, it hasn't changed her mind over pursuing a career in the profession..

"I am aware there are issues within the teaching industry just now, but there's problems everywhere," Sarah says.

"It's definitely not something that has prevented me following through this choice."