College staff across Scotland strike amid funding warning
- Published
College lecturers are calling for an improved pay deal
College lecturers and support staff from across Scotland are on strike in a dispute about pay and concerns over underfunding.
More than 2,000 staff from three unions are taking part in the action.
It comes as Scotland's spending watchdog warned that colleges were at serious financial risk after an 8.5% drop in real terms funding since 2022.
Audit Scotland is urging the Scottish government to speed up efforts to protect the sector.
Members of the Unite, Unison, and EIS-Fela unions are taking part in Thursday's strike, which comes at the start of a rolling schedule of industrial action planned to take place over the course of September.
All three unions are in dispute with the Scottish government over a new pay award.
The EIS Further Education Lecturers Association (EIS-Fela) claims the current offer would have to be funded through significant job losses across the college sector. Lecturers also say they are still waiting for a fair settlement for last year's pay claim.
Hundreds of members protested outside the Scottish Parliament ahead of First Minister's Questions.
The pay dispute has been going on for months
The head of the agency which represents Scottish college employers described the strikes as "deeply disappointing".
Gavin Donoghue, director of College Employers Scotland, said: "This will only cause disruption and anxiety for students. Colleges have plans to mitigate the impact of these strikes and the vast majority will remain open."
The Audit Scotland report also warns that underfunding of the college sector could have a disproportionate effect on lower income families, from which more than a third of young people go into further education.
Rising staff costs, at more than two-thirds of total spending, are the main cause of worsening financial risk.
The Scottish government said ministers were operating in the most difficult public spending environment in the 24 years of the Scottish parliament and had committed to making college spending more flexible, with moves towards a new funding model.