National salary rates for colleges to end pay gaps of £5,000

The Scottish Government has come under increased pressure from teaching unions to re-introduce national bargaining in the sector, with gaps of up to £5,000 in the salaries of those doing the same job at different colleges.

The Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS), the country’s largest teaching union, has repeatedly called on the Scottish Government to take action by returning to the system of national  bargaining which was removed in the 1990s.

Earlier this year, the Griggs review of college governance also called for a return, after outlining the “great differentiation” across colleges due to individual pay negotiations for each institution.

Larry Flanagan, the EIS’s general secretary, said there was now a need to reintroduce the earlier system: “The EIS has long campaigned for a return to national bargaining for the pay and conditions of Scotland’s FE lecturers.

“The Scottish Government made a commitment to restore national bargaining in its manifesto before the last Holyrood elections. In addition, the Griggs review – which was commissioned by the Scottish Government – made the recommendation that Scotland’s colleges should return to a system of national bargaining.

“Given that there is such a degree of consensus, it is disappointing that no real progress has been made towards implementing a return to national bargaining in further education.”

Scotland’s colleges are currently undergoing a major shake-up as part of the Scottish Government’s regionalisation strategy, which will see the existing institutions rearranged under the leadership of 13 regional boards. Mr Flanagan said the overhaul meant there was now an even greater need for uniformity in the pay and conditions of staff.

He added: “As the Scottish Government continues with its programme of college regionalisation and the merging of individual institutions, this highlights the urgency of moving towards an improved method of negotiating lecturers’ pay and conditions through national bargaining.

“Currently, the difference between the pay of lecturers in two different colleges for doing the same job can be over £5,000.

“There are some even more glaring differences between colleges in terms of other conditions of service such as working hours, class contact time and annual leave.

“In a country as small as Scotland, with an further education sector that is seeing an increase in college mergers, it makes less sense than ever for Scotland’s colleges to continue to have such divergent pay and conditions for lecturing staff.”

Mr Russell said: “I have been clear that there should be a system of national bargaining for colleges and I believe there is a growing body of opinion which questions the need for around 40 different sets of terms and conditions.

“Our college reform programme is transforming the sector.”