GRADUATE teachers are being told to consider new careers or go abroad as a classroom jobs crisis deepens, it was claimed today.

Scotland's largest teaching union, the EIS, has urged the Scottish Executive to act with an accelerated programme of class size cuts to create more teaching posts.

Or, they say, thousands of teachers will be forced to leave the profession.

Councils say they are bound by the requirement to employ newly qualified teachers for one year.

But some teachers claim they are abusing the system by filling permanent posts with probationers on £19,000 instead of staff on £24,000 or more to cut costs.

Renfrewshire Council denied any wrongdoing, but one 30-year-old science teacher said: "I was one of 80 secondary probationers employed by Renfrewshire this year, their largest intake ever, and there are no jobs for 2007-2008 because they are taking on 150 probationers."

There are 3495 teachers completing their probation year in Scotland but only around 500 full-time and permanent vacancies.

Another probationary teacher from East Renfrewshire claims she was advised by her college lecturers to consider a new career or go abroad.

She said she had "taken eight years out" to gain classroom experience and train as a teacher, adding: "I am now ending my probationary year with no job."

Education secretary Fiona Hyslop is expected to announce plans to cut class sizes this week in a bid to ease the jobs crisis. She said: "I am committed to taking early action."

In Glasgow there were 680 applications for 44 primary jobs and 660 applications for 81 secondary posts.

Glasgow EIS secretary Willie Hart said: "Glasgow EIS has already written to our national body asking that the issue is taken up by Scottish Executive as a priority."

Despite the shortage of vacancies, record numbers of students are being enrolled by teaching colleges. St Andrews college in Glasgow has increased the number of places from 60 to around 370.