Why are teachers willing to take part in Industrial Action

1. PROTECTING SCHOOL
TEACHERS’ PAY
Michael Gove says he is at war with the teacher unions
NUT and NASUWT are fighting back - a joint programme of
lobbying, rallies, action short of strike action & strike action
In January 2012 he said that teachers are “happy with failure"
and "enemies of promise”
We say Michael Gove is waging a war on teachers

2. THE WAR ON TEACHERS
What Gove has done so far:
• Pay freeze
• Attack on pensions
• Attack on performance management
• Forced academisation of schools
• And now – Attack on the national pay structure
What he intends to do in future:
• Attack on conditions - PPA time, protection from cover,
longer working hours and working year

3. THE RESULT
NUT/YouGov survey on teacher morale (Jan 2013)
• 55% say morale is low or very low
• Up 13% since April 2012
• 77% disagree with school-based pay determination
“If anyone says to you that 'staff morale is at an all-time
low', you know you are doing something right."
- Ofsted Chief Inspector Michael Wilshaw, Dec 2011

4. PAY – CUT BY 15% UNDER GOVE
During the Coalition Government’s term of office:
• Pay freeze for 2011 and 2012
• 1% limits for 2013 and 2014
• Pension contributions up on average by 3.2%
Impact including inflation
• Over 15% loss of spending power
Can we afford to stay in teaching?

5. THE NEW PAY ATTACKS (1)
• End of fixed pay scales - schools decide if teachers
will progress, by how much and on what criteria
• More PRP - all pay progression linked to appraisal
and to individual teachers’ performance
• End of pay portability when you move schools
• 2013 STPCD published in April 2013 – schools to
adopt new pay & appraisal policies by Sept 2013
• Decisions based on PRP for all teachers beginning in
September 2014

6. THE NEW PAY ATTACKS (2)
• Main scale & upper scale replaced by ranges - no
fixed points, schools decide how much to pay
• Progression on all ranges based on performance
• Portability of pay points abolished
• Portability of UPS status abolished
• Tougher criteria for applying to upper scale
• Leading Practitioner range replaces ASTs/ETs
• New fixed term TLRs (“TLR3”)

7. 10 REASONS TO OPPOSE GOVE'S
PAY PROPOSALS
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
He wants to abolish fixed pay points on the pay scales – so no
guarantee that you will progress by the same amount as now
He wants PRP for all teachers – even though it doesn’t work in
schools, and decisions will be based on funding or whether your
face fits
He wants to end Main Scale progression based on length of
service – hitting recruitment and retention of new teachers by
creating doubts about pay progression
He wants even closer links for appraisal and pay – ending any
chance of a process that supports your professional
development
He wants to change the threshold process – almost certainly to
cut the number of teachers moving to the Upper Pay Scale

8. 10 REASONS TO OPPOSE GOVE'S
PAY PROPOSALS
6.
He wants fixed-term responsibility payments worth less than now
– and then to review the whole TLR system
7. He wants heads and governors to waste time negotiating pay with
every teacher – not supporting teaching and learning
8. He wants schools to be allowed to cut your pay when you move
school – teachers will be scared to move and women on career
breaks will be hit hardest of all
9. He intends to limit our 2013 increase by only 1% – while inflation
and higher pension contributions cut our purchasing power.
10. He has now asked the STRB to go further – reviewing leadership
pay, TLRs and allowances, working time and working conditions –
even bigger changes may be in store if we don’t stop this now

9. PAY AND SCHOOL BUDGETS
STRB reviewing pay for September 2013
• Government pay limit - an average 1% increase - to apply
• STRB asked to advise on “adjustments to the salary scales … to
reflect the average 1%” – no guarantee of any increase yet
School funding for 2013-14 already announced
• Zero cash increase per pupil in overall funding for schools
• “Minimum Funding Guarantee” – this allows individual
schools to get up to 1.5% less per pupil after formula changes
• Pupil Premium up by 45% - only part protection against these
real terms cuts in schools’ main budgets