Being Paid for Interviews

[WorkerBee1425]

I’ve been applying for SLT roles from being a ML. I’m now four interviews in and HR sent me an email saying, ‘just so you are aware we don’t pay staff for interview days so you may have noticed a reduction in your pay’. I’ve never not been paid for an interview day but apparently it’s an academy rule. I’m also a bit shocked they let me get this far in. SLT jobs were I am are so competitive (6 applicants are usually there on the day), I know I will get one but I now don’t know if I can keep trying if I won’t get paid! Any advice of this is okay?

Get your contract out op and have a read 🤷

What do you mean..: you won’t be able to accept the job if you won’t be paid for the interview days?

I don’t think I wrote that? I’ve not got a job yet but I don’t think I can keep going for interviews if I’m not being paid.

It doesn’t say anything in the contract or on any of the policies I can find. I’m guessing it’s discretionary.

This isn’t directly addressed in STPCD (which academies don’t have to follow, anyway). It has always historically been an unspoken reciprocal arrangement but budgets are so tight and cover costs so high that some schools are beginning to adopt this as policy. SLT interviews can be two days so it’s potentially a significant hit. I’m aware of some schools which specifically limit the number of paid interview days which a teacher can use in any one day, usually three or four. If you’re sure it isn’t written in any policy then you can push back and ask to be referred to the specific policy or clause in your contract.

It really annoys me that our terms and conditions have been eroded so much in recent years.

Sick leave has been massively reduced in any school I've recently worked in; some now pay less than a month's full pay, others don't give paid dependent leave or paid interview days, mat leave and paternity leave get less. Pensions are "pay more, receive less". They're after the 6 weeks summer holidays. Pay is worth 30% less than it was 20 years ago and pay portability is gone. Teachers are required to do more and more and our terms and conditions just get worse and worse.

And we wonder why there is a massive retention crisis. I will now only stay in the job a few more years until my mortgage is paid off and then get out and find something easy to do.

Some schools pay, some do not. Don’t forget that your current school will have to pay someone to cover you.

We allow up to 3 days a year to attend interviews/other commitments as part of an annual leave entitlement. This is approved by the Deputy first and you cannot take ‘3 consecutive days’ unless it is an emergency. Anything over this is unpaid.

Have you got any lieu time accumulated? You could use that? Is the interview process all day?
If it’s morning then you could go to work in the afternoon. I know some processes though for SLT are lengthy….

What’s most frustrating is the annual school trip I go on during the school holidays. I get no time back in lieu and it’s the same place every year (so I’m not really getting anything out of it, apart from ensuring our pupils get a lovely experience). Feels so take take take in schools now, I do so much extra curricular and they couldn’t even just let me know they don’t pay for interviews!

Exactly, we work so many more hours than we are paid for but then they are very quick to use T&Cs to scrape back money. It should be give and take. I completely agree we can’t have unlimited days but some should be fine or at least this should be made clear!