Lecturers strike over pay (From Stroud News and Journal)

Lecturers strike over pay

LECTURERS fighting for a fair pay deal walked out of classrooms and picked up banners for a two-day strike on Tuesday.

Demonstrating outside the entrance to Stroud College, the NATFHE members explained that many lecturers do not want to stay in the job because their wages lag behind their counterparts in schools.

"But this is not just about our pay," said art lecturer Justin Gregory. "It's more about provision of college places too."

Mike Goff, NATFHE branch chairman and college IT lecturer believes further education is in decline because staff cannot be retained on a wage lower than school teachers.

His union said that after five years in the job, school teachers are paid £25,746 per annum, whereas college lecturers receive £21,374.

"Morale is rock bottom," he said. "We are continually expected to work more hours for less money.

"The Government has promised parity with school teachers by 2004 but we are already more than 10 per cent behind."

He said lecturers had been offered a 1.5 per cent raise but teachers' have been offered another five per cent.

He queried the number of support staff that Stroud College employ, which he believed were at the expense of teaching staff.

College principal Hugh Pollock said he sympathised with the lecturers' pay situation but disagreed with comments about staffing levels.

"Since 1994 further education colleges' funding has stood still," said Mr Pollock.

"Whereas all other sectors of education has gone forward.

"I have a certain amount of sympathy - they can see secondary school pay going up but we simply don't have the money."

He said that the college has considerably more teaching staff than support staff, working full-time and part-time.