Rotherham College teachers announce strike

Members of the National Union of Teachers at the college on Moorgate Road, Rotherham, will be striking from 12.50pm next Thursday, when they will stage a demonstration outside.

The union says that last year college employers said they could only afford a 0.75 per cent pay increase but promised this year to begin restoring comparability with higher-paid school teachers.

Now the NUT claims the college wants to renege on this commitment by freezing pay at a time when prices are rising by five per cent and pension contributions are due to rise by 50 per cent.

The union also says that having already slashed Education Maintenance Allowances and increased student fees to £9,000 per annum, the Government plans to cut sixth form college funding by 12 per cent in cash terms—25 per cent with inflation- over the next four years.

The NUT claims this is already leading to course cuts, larger classes and increased staff workloads.

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College principal Dr Richard Williams said: “We respect the right of the union to take industrial action over pay but the position is that as a member of the Sixth Form Forum the college cannot be giving pay rises at the moment given funding cuts.

"We’re staying in line with the public sector pay freeze.

“I can understand the feelings of the sixth form teachers. Their pay has slipped a little behind school teachers but that’s because school teachers had a generous settlement two years ago when the Government agreed a deal before the recesssion, which is out of step with the current economic climate.”

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