To be absolutely gutted at getting the lowest payrise in the organisation?

[MassageGun]

I am the only person, out of 130 staff to be getting less than 5%.

I have a senior support staff role on a school, the most senior. It's a tough job juggling conflicting priorities and basically any problem that isn't directly related to teaching and learning lands on my desk. I do a good job and always get excellent reviews. Pay is comparable to an upper scale teacher without allowances.

This year teachers are getting a minimum of 5% with some of the lower paid getting more. Good.

Support staff points are all getting the same amount in pounds. For some staff this is up to 10%, also good for the lowest paid, but doing it that way means that people higher up the scale get a lower %.

I'm happy that ridiculously low paid staff will be getting a decent rise for a change, but to be getting significantly less than anyone else in the organisation, including some paid a lot more than me is really hard to take.

It's no one at the school's fault (LA school tied to national payscales) but to say I'm feeling unvauled and unmotivated would be putting it mildly.

AIBU and how do I get over it?

I'm confused. If you work in a LA school, surely your pay rise, however low you deem it to be, is coming from the budget that has already been set. So as BM, you set your budget last spring, then this shitshow government has said staff will be getting payrises which average out at 5% but they need to be funded from those budgets. To get your larger pay rise, what will you be cutting?

I'm a UPS3 teacher, on a 0.65 contract. Our Head explained how things were going to have to be tightened for us to afford the (at the time) proposed increases. Our SLT has decided to keep staffing as it is, so other budgets will be cut. As SLT and BM, you must have an overview of this, so unless your school is especially well-off, how can you afford to take more?

I'm not trying to be antagonistic. I really like our BM and she has done a cracking job. However, I do understand finance and budgeting and am experienced enough to remember 1995-7 when the last Tory government pulled similar stunts. It was horrific.

Malbec, the problem there is the government not funding the pay rises that they have set, not with school staff who think they should be earning more.

School should be funded properly, including staffing costs. School staff shouldn't be emotionally blackmailed into getting paid less and less and less over time because 'think of the children'. We've had enough of doing more and more for less and less over the last 12 years. It's about time the government considered the impact on children of their mismanagement of schools instead of expecting the people who work in them to take the strain.

Yes the budget has been set (I set it) and I forecast much higher than usual rises because we knew inflation was increasing.

Because of that our school is better placed to absorb them than most, but neither the teacher nor the support staff rises were forseen at this level when the budget was being set last December/Jan. A few hundred pound extra to make mine "fair" wouldn't make much difference when the total cost will put us £75k over budget anyway

I'm sorely tempted to take my six months' sick leave and retire,

sorry run that past me again “to take my sick leave”

what sick leave?

There's your answer, then. MATs.

You might be getting a lower relative percentage, but every time support have got 1-3%, you've received more than them in real terms.

They're just doing better in that sense for a change. And there's no point moaning about people on point 17 of UPS. They're not finance staff, they're assistant headteachers.

When you say there are “other issues”, would this “other issues” have had any impact on your increase?

And this is why SBMs are leaving or off long term. Nothing like being valued by your colleagues. Finance staff? When you have responsibility for £7m budget, buildings, 20 line reports, H&S, HR, safeguarding, catering...

I'm willing to bet you're already paid more than pretty much every class teacher at your school without having 30 children hanging on your every word and the stresses of planning and teaching them. I'd give my left arm to find a job not classroom based with a similar salary, let alone a higher salary! Sounds like you're getting paid very well for a support role to me 🤷🏼‍♀️

I’m with you OP. I work in the NHS and despite all the smoke and mirrors headline stories my “pay rise” is around 2%.

Don’t get me wrong I’m relieved to be getting anything at all and Im also very happy that in percentage terms those on lower salaries are on a much better deal but after the last couple of years it’s hard to see why I bother to work at my pay grade when one pay grade down is much closer now in terms of remuneration but for a lot less pain.

No, why would they?

Don’t have your age or sex on your CV. You need a minimum of 5 years worth of work record on it but nothing over that - experience 30 years in the past has no relevance to the experience you have now.

I have never worked in the public sector

But in the private sector… rises tend to be linked to performance

after the last couple of years it’s hard to see why I bother to work at my pay grade when one pay grade down is much closer now in terms of remuneration but for a lot less pain.

This flattening of the pay scales is going to cause problems like this.

Do you get “my 6 months of sick leave” as a benefit?! 😂

Are you a qualified accountant? If so you can be CFO of MAT. That will be a full time year round role.

In my case I am paid on a leadership pay scale like a deputy head.

Full responsibility for the H&S of 130 staff, multiple buildings, 20 line reports, every HR issue, budget management, when there's never enough money, feeding everyone, all the IT systems plus some safeguarding responsibilities and the first person OFSTED wants to see. Plus a professional qualification on a par with PGCE.

I can respect what teachers do, but sadly don't get the same in return. FWIW 2 teachers on our staff earn less than I do

And you’re part time?

This is the inflationary rise for everyone, although apparently I'm less affected by inflation than anyone else.

Full responsibility for the H&S of 130 staff, multiple buildings, 20 line reports, every HR issue, budget management, when there's never enough money, feeding everyone, all the IT systems plus some safeguarding responsibilities and the first person OFSTED wants to see

all of that - and you’re part time?

I'm full time for 49weeks pa. I'm not sure why you'd be incredulous about that. My weeks were cut, before I was appointed, to save money. My predecessor was FT 52 weeks.

If you’re a qualified accountant consider get ting in touch with some local agencies about contract roles. Depending on where you are in the country there are quite a lot around at the moment.

Twenty line reports? Doing what?
I have 6, and 20m budget for three comprehensives.

Ah - that’s pretty full time in my opinion!

But I’m going to take a punt that you’re not happy there and the relationship with the school is far from ideal?

Well yes, except for the pay 😆