By Gavin Mackintosh-
A number of British schools are denying teachers their pay rise – despite being given a £187 million government grant to raise teacher pay.
Research carried out by the NASUWT teaching union found that some schools have been blackmailing teachers by threatening to sack them if they claim their entitled salary increase, ranging from 1.5 to 3.5 per cent.
A survey conducted by the teaching union discovered that 12 % of the 6,900 teachers were told they would not get any pay rise at all. A further 45 per cent are yet to be informed of a decision.
NASUWT general secretary, Chris Keates, has described the situation as one in “complete chaos”.
The findings revealed by Tes for schools- an online educational website with excellent researchers -shows the growing problems faced by teacherds in many schools. This is on top of the many strains teachers face from difficult and badly behaved teenagers in many schools.
The teaching union revealed that teachers in receipt of the full pay award, received payment that was backdated only as far back as a few weeks in January, instead of all the way to September. Over one in 10 NQTs were not getting any pay award at all because they had signed contracts in July based on last year’s rates. The revelation calls for intervention from The Department Of Education and Ofsted, who will be expected to do their best to confirm that teachers are getting the appropriate rise in wage.
A £508 million pay grant in addition to a £187 million infusion for this year is more than enough to ensure rises for teachers and headteachers without the sort of greed and bullying going on in many of these schools. to part-fund (beyond the first 1 per cent) a pay award of 3.5 per cent for teachers on the main pay scale, 2 per cent for those on the upper pay scale and 1.5 per cent on the leadership scale.
But Ms Keates said local authorities were giving schools options as to how much of the pay award they could pay. But she said: “In academies, it will tend to be a straight-forward ‘we’re not paying you.’” Ms Keates criticised the government for failing to ring fence the grant for use on teachers’ pay, adding that some schools were “using their discretion” to spend it on other things.
“Teachers have been conditioned in some schools to not stand up for their pay because they are constantly being told ‘if we pay you then we’re not going to be able to have supply teachers in and you’re going to have to cover’ or ‘you’re gonna lose your job’,” she said.
“Our strategy at the moment is getting out into schools and trying to turn around this view that some have that their school can’t afford it.” Ms Keates said the NASUWT staff had gathered DfE information on the budgets of every school in the country and said that more than 80 per cent were running a budget surplus, which collectively amounted to almost £4 billion.
She added: “When we go into schools and say to teachers ‘this is what your school has got in reserve they’re absolutely shocked and become really angry.”
The survey by the union highlights teacher ‘anger’ and shows one-fifth of teachers are considering leaving the profession because of pay