The case for binding national negotiations in further education in England

Foreword

Further education (FE) in England changes lives. It should be a success story and should be celebrated. However, for too long FE staff and the invaluable contribution they make to students' lives, to employers' businesses and to enriching our communities and wider society has been undervalued and under-rewarded.

This briefing will make the case for fundamental change and binding national bargaining in FE England, a central part of UCU's campaign for a New Deal for FE.

The new Labour government in Westminster provides us with a real opportunity to proactively campaign and lobby for a New Deal for FE. If the new government is serious about investing in skills, growing the economy, and a fair deal for working people, there needs to be fundamental change in FE. Fundamental change means the creation of new national bargaining arrangements in FE England.

The outcomes of national bargaining will need to be fully funded, so all colleges implement them, and all staff get the same rates of pay and enjoy the same terms and conditions negotiated by UCU and the other unions. FE has been re-classified as part of the public sector and the time is now right for the sector to have a new negotiating framework that leads to outcomes that are implemented sector wide like schools or sixth form colleges.

UCU and college employers now have a window of opportunity to work together and shape the future of FE so that all staff, not just the few, benefit. A first step towards that end is to develop new national bargaining arrangements where decent rates of pay and manageable working hours are the norm. We need:

• an agreed road map to close the gap with schoolteachers' pay
• a minimum starting salary on a par with schools and sixth form
• fully funded sector-wide pay rises and settlements.

Binding national bargaining is central to a New Deal for FE.

Over 30 years ago FE colleges in England were separated from local authority control and became independent legal corporations. National bargaining on terms and conditions as set out in the 'Silver Book' ended. Since incorporation we have seen the sector fall behind schools and sixth form colleges regarding pay, working hours, terms and conditions, recruitment and retention, starting salaries and pay spines.

As a result of the recent pay settlement in FE Northern Ireland, England FE teachers have the lowest starting salaries of all the devolved nations and administrations in the UK.

We need a New Deal for FE and binding national bargaining outcomes.

Why we need binding national bargaining in FE England

Most other parts of the public sector are covered by forms of national negotiations or pay review bodies, but not FE in England. As a result, FE staff have some of the worse pay and conditions of all professional educators in the UK. This is not the case when we look at the situation in Wales or Scotland, where FE is considered to have parity of esteem with schoolteachers and has the investment, negotiating agreements and terms and conditions to go along with that commitment.

The respective devolved governments also take a keen interest in progressing the post 16 skills and employment agendas, which means departmental officials and ministers meet with sector leaders and trade unions.

Unlike schools in England, sixth form colleges and other parts of the public sector, further education in England does not have functioning national bargaining or a pay review body. There is no formal or developed informal route into pay and conditions talks for the Department for Education (DfE) or ministers. It is not considered a priority even though the sector has billions of pounds invested in it each year and is crucial to delivering the skills and talent that employers and our economy need to be successful. If Labour is serious about Skills England then the current national settlement in FE must change.

An example of the difference that results from having functioning and non-functioning national agreements is, for 2023/24 the starting salary for schoolteachers is £30,000; the starting salary for sixth form lectures is £30,500; and the Association of Colleges (AoC) recommended starting salary for FE lectures is £27,786.

UCU negotiates on FE pay and conditions in Wales alongside the other trade unions with the Welsh FE employers' association Colegau Cymru. UCU has reached a national agreement in Wales that covers pay, workload and other terms and conditions. The starting salary for teachers on the main grade is £30,700, mirroring schools in Wales.  

Scotland has an effective national bargaining mechanism. UCU is not recognised for lecturers in FE, however, like Wales pay and other terms and conditions are negotiated and implemented nationwide. The starting salary in Scotland for a teacher in FE is around £30,700.

National talks in FE England take place under the National Joint Forum (NJF). The NJF is an agreement between the FE unions (GMB, NEU, Unite, Unison and UCU) and the Association of Colleges. The primary purpose of the NJF is the annual pay talks that take place during the summer college term each year. However, unlike the annual pay review process for schools or the national talks for sixth form colleges, the NJF pay outcomes do not have to be acted upon. The AoC only make recommendations and AoC members (FE college and college groups) decide if they will implement them. UCU research indicates that most colleges ignore the recommendation by paying less, and some make no pay award at all. This is not the case in school and sixth form colleges.

The table below shows the 'recommendations' made by the AoC and the outcome of the School Teachers' Review Board. Note: both are referred to as recommendations. The significant difference is that colleges do not have to implement but schools do.

This flawed form of national bargaining in FE developed in 1993 when the sector was taken out of direct local authority control and each college became an individual corporation. 'Incorporation' meant the national agreement for FE, the 'Silver Book', which covered national pay and terms and conditions and hours, no longer applied and individual colleges developed their own contracts, pay scales and terms and conditions.

The recent agreement reached between employers and the trade unions in FE Northern Ireland now reinforces the need for fundamental change in FE England and how far the gap is with FE in the rest of the UK.

• the minimum lecturers' pay point to be uplifted to £30,000, with 8.4% revalorisation plus £1,000 to be added to all other lecturers' pay points.
• commitment to teacher pay scale parity.
• an agreement for an independent examination of the pay, all terms (including addressing policy review) and conditions and workload of academic staff.
• develop an industrial relations model that will transform and modernise the existing pay, reward, and conditions of service for all academic staff within regional FE colleges.

Since incorporation in England, the FE sector has become the most underfunded of the education sectors and with the biggest disparities between colleges' pay rates and conditions. In schools and sixth form in England, employers implement the national pay scales and pay uplift across the sector uniformly.

Sixth form teachers' pay, and terms and conditions are covered by agreements with the Sixth Form College Association. The pay rate increase typically mirrors that of the School Teachers' Pay Review body, and all colleges implement the award. Only in exceptional circumstances will this not take place. Sixth form colleges have national pay scales and terms and conditions all set out in the 'Red Book', which all colleges follow.

The table below shows the comparative difference in the growth of the gap between FE and schoolteachers' pay over recent years.  

The 'Red Book' covers pay and pay scales, pay progression, working time, policies and procedures such as sickness, maternity, paternity and shared parental leave, work life balance and CPD.

The School Teachers' Review Body (STRB) is an independent advisory non-departmental public body that provides recommendations on the pay, professional duties, and working time of schoolteachers in England. It reports to the secretary of state for education and the prime minister. The STRB is made up of economists and experts in pay and education. Each year, the STRB invites evidence from unions, the government, and other interested parties before submitting a final report to the Department for Education setting out recommendations on teacher pay for the following academic year.

The big difference between the schoolteachers and sixth form pay review processes when compared to FE in England is that with schools and sixth form the outcomes and supporting funding mechanisms result in their consistent implementation across all schools and sixth form colleges. It is only in exceptional circumstances that the pay outcomes are not implemented.

In FE in England the exception is that the AoC pay recommendation is implemented, the norm is that it is not.

We need a New Deal for FE and binding national bargaining.

A New Deal for FE

UCU has developed a joined-up strategy that seeks fundamental change to FE in England.

We have also developed some campaign materials that UCU branches can use in support of the need for binding national bargaining in FE:

• New Deal for FE posters
• New Deal for FE leaflets.

A New Deal for FE is built on the union's experiences and campaigns in recent years and covers pay, workloads, and national bargaining. It represents a fundamental challenge to the status quo at college and sector level. It resonates with members, has traction with activists and is likely to be actively resisted by the AoC and a wide range of college leaders as it is a direct threat to their power and control.

National bargaining in England does not function. It has failed to meet the aspirations and demands of members and needs fundamental change. The national FE bargaining framework and agreement is specifically set up to result in recommendations not binding collective agreements. 

A New Deal for FE is a strategy that links UCU's industrial, political, campaigning, branch organising and communications work.

This year the joint trade unions in FE (GMB, NEU, Unison, Unite and UCU) repeated our demand for a new binding national bargaining settlement in FE and you can read the full claim here.

In regard to national bargaining the union's demand is for a new national pay agreement in FE that has binding outcomes.    

The outcomes of the FE England national negotiations at the National Joint Forum are a source of frustration for the trade unions. Not only is the final offer made by the AoC a recommendation, but it is also often the case that colleges ignore the recommendation. This is particularly unsatisfactory as the joint unions invest a collective effort in producing an evidence-based claim in support of our pay demands.

Staff in FE have suffered some of the worst pay cuts when compared to the other educational workers. FE pay is some way behind school staff and other FE staff within the UK. The joint trade unions maintain their demand for meaningful and therefore binding national bargaining and negotiations. 

We consider that the reclassification of FE offers the sector an opportunity to move to a more coherent and meaningful basis for national level NJF negotiations. The joint unions also consider the examples of national level negotiations in Wales and Scotland as good reference points for the change that is needed in England. Pay review in schools provides consistency on a sector wide basis.

Meaningful national bargaining and implementable outcomes mean that FE staff will re-establish professional respect and parity of esteem with other educational professionals. By raising the level of pay and improving terms and conditions for all in the sector an even playing field is established.

For too long FE staff have been ignored and now is the time to work together to establish and new settlement for FE. We want the AoC to agree to meaningful and binding sector level negotiations. This will ultimately mean a new national agreement for the sector. As such, we call on the AoC to publicly state a commitment to meaningful, binding recommendations and to work with us to make them a reality. 

Sign our petition for binding national bargaining in FE

A New Deal for FE is possible! We call on the Association of Colleges (AoC) and college leaders to work with us and sign our pledge for a new settlement in further education (FE) in England.

We want as many members and branches to sign the petition and organise activities such as rallies and demonstrations in support of a New Deal for FE. The national union will be organising a parliamentary lobby and rally in the autumn and the more signatures we have and the more momentum around the petition the more effective our lobbying will be.

The new Labour UK government gives us the first opportunity for over a decade to promote the significant contribution FE makes to students, to employers and the skills needs of the economy. We will take our campaign for a New Deal for FE to government and seek to work with them for fundamental change.

We need you to help us press for the changes we all need.

We need binding outcomes to national pay talks. Unlike other parts of the UK where teachers' pay and FE pay is linked, in England the outcomes of national talks are not binding, and colleges have no requirement to implement any offer made. FE has been reclassified as part of the public sector. The current national bargaining agreement with non-binding outcomes is failing the sector. We need a new settlement in FE.

The outcomes of national negotiations are a source of frustration for the trade unions. The final offer made by the Association of Colleges is only a recommendation which colleges often ignore. Staff in FE have suffered some of the worst pay cuts when compared to the other educational workers. The reclassification of FE into the public sector gives an opportunity to move to a more coherent basis for national level negotiations as happens in Wales and Scotland. For too long FE staff have been ignored; now is the time to work together to establish a new settlement for further education.

Sign our petition here.