Independent pay review body recommends 6.5% pay rise for teachers

[noblegiraffe]

In recognition of the terrible state of teacher recruitment and retention, and against the government input that suggested teachers should get 3%, the teachers' independent pay review body has recommended a 6.5% pay rise for teachers from September.

This is far higher than the 4.5% offered to teachers by the government as a result of recent strikes, and which was rejected by all teaching unions.

After that offer was rejected, Gillian Keegan said that the matter now rested with the independent pay review body.

Now that they have made a far higher recommendation, will the government accept it? The Treasury will be absolutely furious if they are asked to shell out more money for schools, and they have argued that a higher pay offer would fuel inflation - teachers getting 6.5% would also bolster strike action in other public sector jobs.

If the government do accept it then given that they made a lot of fuss about the 4.5% offer being funded although only 0.5% was new money, they would be hard pressed to argue that they shouldn't at least fund the extra 2% with new money.

All four teaching unions are currently balloting for strike action in an argument about whether the 4.5% offer was affordable to schools (even the government admitted that many schools couldn't afford it), so will strikes continue if the government accept the 6.5% recommendation but only fund 2.5% with new money?

And would teachers accept 6.5% next year but nothing extra for this year?

Cat among the pigeons.

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/75a3316c-f735-11ed-8aec-1014d109ef78?shareToken=b7505a1ee17a27ba5362b0c1f5a12f89

Will be interesting to see where the government go now. They're properly up the creek without a paddle right now.

The Treasury are going to be a massive sticking point here. They have no idea that you actually need to invest in public services, particularly education, if you want to 'grow the economy'. They think that being utterly tight bastards who run the public sector into the ground is prudent financial management of a country. Hangover from 'austerity'.

This is the crux of it. In the aftermath of the global financial crisis, it wasn't the countries that threw themselves into austerity that did best - it was the ones who invested.

But that isn't what the Tories are about. I do find this recommendation highly entertaining. Watching Gillian Keegan combust will be such fun.

Watching Gillian Keegan combust will be such fun.

She said the matter now rested with the independent pay review body, so she can hardly say 'oh but we're now going to ignore them'. It's possible she might have also been hoping that they would make a higher recommendation.

I think the DfE know that teacher recruitment and retention needs more money and they would welcome a pay rise, you can see this from how high they have pushed the trainee bursaries, which is the only aspect of teacher pay they have control over. This'll be painted as the government versus teachers, but it's now also DfE versus Treasury.

And the Treasury are incompetent shitheads.

Ooh interesting.

Concern on twitter seems to be that this has been leaked so that teachers don't return their strike ballots assuming that the 6.5% will be implemented, then the govt reject the recommendation and teachers can't strike about it.

Any teachers reading: please make sure you return your ballot, even if voting no.

It is almost unbelievable how uninterested in education the government seem to be. And how they are actively making it difficult at every turn. And have done for years.

It makes absolute no sense 😔.

First of all it isn’t “Government” money. It’s the taxpayers money. And any increase will have to be born by the taxpayer. And they’re right about inflation too. Also Public sector jobs enjoy significant advantages that should be factored in.

Nothing is for nothing.

In the meantime the Guardian are reporting class sizes of 60 may be a possibility.

"A senior leader in a large multi-academy trust, speaking anonymously to avoid alarming parents, said: “We will be forced to collapse classes. I’m looking at going from 10 sets to eight in maths and English, with a top set of up to 50 or even 60 kids in a big space."
The leader said they were already having to “double up classes” to cover absences, and this would get worse. One of their secondary academies had 15 staff off last week, with stress-related illness noticeably on the rise.
“The senior team has been teaching 100 kids a time in the hall to relieve pressure on teachers,” he said. “Cover lessons make behaviour worse.”

https://www.theguardian.com/education/2023/may/20/class-sizes-in-england-could-go-up-to-60-warn-heads-in-funding-pay-row

Twitter reporting similar:

Have you got kids in state schools? Do you actually want them to have a teacher?

Precisely - and how ironic that the usual suspects on these threads usually bleat endlessly that it is not about the money, but that is all they are allowed to strike for but are now salivating at the prospect of 6.5% paid for by taxpayers and feeding inflation that will disproportionately people paid less than public sector workers.

Do those taxpayers want their kids to have teachers or not?

Well, this taxpayer who no longer has children in the school system is happy to pay more so that UK children can have a decent education.

And stop it with all the bleating about how much better life is in the public sector. It isn't. Want to find out? Get a public sector job. And even if it were, this isn't a race to the bottom.

I mean, this isn't teachers saying they should get 6.5%, this is the pay review body who have been basically instructed by the government to recommend lower and who have ignored that because education is in crisis.

Anyone complaining about 6.5% maybe ought to do a little research into why that has been recommended.

My husband is a secondary maths teacher in a very good school in a desirable area. They are going to be down at least four full time teachers next year and already have increased class sizes. He is extremely stressed and worried. If anyone else leaves they are seriously going to be looking at gcse classes with 35-40 children in them. Never have things been so bleak in education in the 16 years I have been teaching. It really is getting desperate. There is no money and no staff!!

I think the crux of it is going to be the funding.
I reckon a fully funded 4.5% would have been accepted.
6.5% (or even 16.5%) if unfunded isn't going to get accepted, imo, as the teachers know the rest of the budget will implode.

Exactly! This is an independent review! No teachers are expecting massive salary increases and huge benefits. 6.5% seems fair and reasonable!

Teaching is a very different job now to what it used to be. Much bigger workload and more admin. More time spent on SEND and mental health. When I first started teaching I had 26 children, a full time class ta and two 1:1 specialist tas. Now I have over 30 and no tas at all! I have to do the job they four of us used to do on effectively less money!!

I didn’t get a ballot paper last time, I contacted them 4/5times and it never came. Has anyone NASUWT had one yet? I’m going to start contacting them a week after the first person gets one this time.

NAS ballot doesn't open till 5th June. NEU have already sent out ballot papers.

DD’s school still has a teacher and 2 x TA’s in every class full time. Below average pp.

i hope it’s resolved but I don’t think the government cares about strikes as everyone is so used to school closures and accept it as a part of life.

How many schools have classrooms to accommodate 60 pupils?!
Bloody ridiculous suggestion.

Wait till they get to secondary...that's where the worst shortages are.

This recommendation is a big news story that goes beyond the teacher strikes. How will the government respond when they know that every other public sector union is watching?

How can they not accept it?

How can they refuse to fund it if they accept it.

This is what they will be frantically discussing.

They're in halls.

I’ve returned my ballot, but I am so worried. We are totally skint, and the deduction from the striking is seriously affecting me. I’ve got just enough petrol to get to work this week, just about.

@noblegiraffe that isn't particularly workable though.
The halls are set up for assemly/exams/parent's evening etc and how many halls do schools have?
One, two?
I imagine teaching maths in a sports hall would be acoustically challenging.