College staff reject latest offer in pay dispute

Staff outside Stockton Riverside College in an earlier strike held in December

Union members at five Teesside colleges have rejected the latest pay offer from the schools’ management.

Industrial action before the end of March is now being considered, the University and College Union (UCU) said.

It comes as strikes were held by staff at the colleges in January, as well as November and December, over calls for improved pay rise offers.

A spokesperson for the colleges said they were “disappointed” that UCU was considering further strikes and said that they had a “continuing” desire to bring the dispute to an end.

The colleagues involved in the long-running dispute are:

• Bede Sixth Form College

• The Skills Academy

• Stockton Riverside College

• NETA Training Group and

• Redcar and Cleveland College

They are all run by the Education Training Collective (ETC).

Pay rise

UCU is calling for a pay rise for staff for the 2022-2023 academic year.

ETC staff received a 3% pay rise for the 2022-2023 academic year, with a further 1% rise from May 2023.

An ETC spokesperson said this was higher than the Association of Colleges' recommendation.

But UCU general secretary Jo Grady said: “It cannot be right that staff on as little as £23k are being offered 3.25% in totality for 2022/23, when in the same year ETC’s principal raked in a total package of over £300k.”

Separately, the ETC has offered a 6.5% pay rise to staff for the 2023-2024 academic year, which they said was in line with the Association of Colleges' guidance.

This pay offer, as well as the 2022-2023 pay offer, has been implemented on an interim basis, the ETC said.

The UCU said it had not yet accepted the 2023-2024 academic year pay offer either.

Ms Grady said members were prepared to strike again and that ETC “urgently” needed to re-enter discussions and put forward a “sensible offer”.

An ETC spokesperson said the group’s financial position did not allow for further percentage increases to consolidated pay.

They also said that they have offered staff “two consolidated wellbeing days” and improvements to lecturer and course leader pay scales from August 2024.

“Our pay rates compare favourably to other local colleges,” they said.