Over two-thirds of college teachers could quit the sector over the next year if their pay does not improve, a survey has suggested as a nationwide college strike ballot opens. Members of the University and College Union (UCU) will today begin to vote on whether to take industrial action across 89 colleges. The ballot will close on October 10. The UCU, along with four other education unions, earlier this year asked for a pay increase of over 15 per cent due to inflation, a national workload agreement and binding national pay negotiations. A survey of over 2,000 college workers, published today, revealed that almost all (96 per cent) said their income either does not cover their costs of living or only just about covers their cost of living. Almost four in five respondents (79 per cent) said their financial situation is having an impact on their mental health, while more than two thirds (69 per cent) said they could leave the sector if pay does not improve. Last year, the Association of Colleges recommended that colleges give staff a 2.5 per cent pay increase despite union demands for a 10 per cent uplift. The AoC has so far refused to make a pay offer recommendation for 2023/24. In July the government announced that it will pump nearly an additional £500 million into colleges over the next two years to help fund pay rises. But the new funding will be added through the 16 to 19 funding formula, meaning colleges with larger 19+ student populations won’t get as much. Allocations to reveal exactly how much extra funding colleges will each receive are yet to be published. AoC chief executive David Hughes said it was “disappointing” to see UCU going ahead with ballots on pay “shortly before our mutually-agreed formal, meeting date to negotiate on the annual pay award”. “We delayed making a recommendation earlier this year because we did not want to let government off the hook on funding. That clearly worked, with extra investment announced in July by the education secretary,” he added. “As we clearly explained to UCU and the other unions, we cannot make a pay recommendation until colleges are clear about how much extra funding they will receive. Government is aiming to provide that clarity for colleges in the next couple of weeks.” UCU general secretary Jo Grady said today’s survey findings “lay bare why our members will be voting in huge numbers to take strike action”. She added: “College staff are the beating heart of our communities and transform the life chances of hundreds of thousands of students every year. But they are struggling to survive and pay is so low it is harming their mental health.” The colleges being balloted are: 1. Abingdon and Witney College 2. Activate Learning 3. Askham Bryan College 4. Bath College 5. Bishop Auckland College 6. Blackburn College 7. Blackpool & The Fylde College 8. Bolton College 9. Bournemouth & Poole College 10. Bridgwater and Taunton College 11. Brockenhurst College 12. Brooklands College 13. Burnley College 14. Burton and South Derbyshire College 15. Bury College 16. Calderdale College 17. Cambridge Regional College (Camre) 18. Capital City College Group 19. Chelmsford College 20. Cheshire College South & West 21. Chesterfield College 22. Chichester College Group 23. City College Plymouth 24. City of Bristol College 25. City of Liverpool College 26. City of Wolverhampton College 27. Colchester Institute 28. College of West Anglia 29. Craven College 30. Croydon College 31. Darlington College 32. Derby College 33. DN Colleges Group 34. Dudley College 35. Ealing, Hammersmith & West London College 36. East Coast College 37. East Durham College 38. East Sussex College Group 39. Exeter College 40. Farnborough College of Technology 41. Furness College 42. Gloucestershire College 43. Heart of Worcestershire College 44. Heart of Yorkshire Education Group 45. Hugh Baird College 46. Isle of Wight College 47. Lambeth College 48. Leeds College of Building 49. Leicester College 50. Loughborough College 51. Middlesbrough College 52. MidKent College 53. Milton Keynes College Group 54. Myerscough College 55. Nelson & Colne College Group 56. New City College 57. New College Durham 58. New College Swindon 59. Newcastle and Stafford Colleges Group 60. North Warwickshire and South Leicestershire College 61. Northampton College 62. Nottingham College 63. Oaklands College 64. Orbital South Colleges 65. Petroc 66. Plumpton College 67. Runshaw College 68. SK College Group 69. South & City College Birmingham and Bournville College of FE 70. South Devon College 71. South Essex College 72. South Gloucestershire and Stroud College 73. South Thames College Group 74. Sparsholt College 75. Stoke-on-Trent College 76. Strode College 77. Suffolk New College 78. Tameside College 79. TEC Partnership 80. Truro & Penwith College 81. Walsall college 82. Warrington & Vale Royal College 83. Weston College 84. Weymouth College 85. Wigan & Leigh College 86. Wiltshire College 87. Windsor Forest Colleges Group 88. Wirral Metropolitan College 89. Yeovil College
Tired 5 September 2023 The use of Zero hours contracts seems to be getting overlooked by all sides, especially regular annual repeated contracts. Aside from the instability, there is a very complex relationship with pension contributions & days worked and it doesn’t favour the worker! The uberisation of the education workforce.
Happy To Teach 5 September 2023 I don’t know, the idea of holding students’ education hostage over pay is a little unsettling to me.