Achi news desk-
No new offer is expected for lecturing staff represented by EIS-FELA.
A source close to college employers said: “Recent informal talks between College Employers Scotland (CES) and support staff trade unions have made good progress.
“Employers have agreed to offer a revised three-year salary offer which can be formally given to the support staff trade unions this week.
“It is hoped that the support staff trade unions will then put this new proposal to their members in formal votes, and prevent further industrial action.
“Salary negotiations with the EIS-FELA are ongoing.”
The college’s support staff have been in dispute with employers since 2022, when they lodged a pay claim and joined lecture staff in a national dispute over the terms of a pay deal and guarantees that there will be no compulsory redundancies.
Unions eventually voted in favor of launching industrial action and have held 13 days of strike action so far.
Before this week, the latest offer from college employers included a £5,000 pay rise over three years for all staff – lecturers and support – at all pay grades.
Support staff unions GMB and Unite have already accepted this offer.
Unison has by far the largest membership of the three unions and, as such, carries three votes in negotiations compared to one each for GMB and Unite. This analysis means that a contract will not be agreed for support staff until around 2,500 Unison members approve a proposal.
Read more: Pay attention to lecturers on strike – but don’t forget the support staff
Disputes between employers and support staff have been common over the past decade. Since 2014, there have been at least seven separate disputes over pay and terms of employment.
In addition to the current pay dispute, support staff have been involved in a dispute over an ongoing job evaluation process. This was supposed to be a six-month process as part of the job reconciliation required for national bargaining to come into force in 2016 but has dragged on for more than six years.
Support staff represent around half of the college’s workforce, and jobs range from classroom support to IT staff to building management.
Read more: How ten years of disputes have shaped the college sector
Most recently Unison voted in favor of striking in 2023, with a mandate that runs until the end of May.
College employers have previously made two offers to trade unions which have been labeled “full and final”, and have said there is no room in college budgets to improve on the latest offer, which will cost around £ 72 million to pay all the staff.
Financial details of the new offer have not been disclosed. However, it differs from previous offers as it is specifically for support staff and does not include college lecturers.
Sean Baillie, organizer of GMB Scotland, said that an acceptable wage offer for college support staff would be welcomed but many months too late.
“Scotland’s colleges are built on the shoulders of our members and could not function without their commitment, skills and experience.
“A proposal that recognizes that will be welcomed but has taken far too long. This lengthy negotiation process cannot be repeated.”
EIS further education officer Garry Ross said the lecturers’ union expected to hold talks with CES next week.
“The EIS-FELA has not received a better offer from College Employers Scotland in relation to its current national pay dispute.
“The EIS-FELA recognizes that successful negotiations will only result in a better offer being tabled to stop further industrial action later this month.”
Unisein and Unite have been asked for comments.
Due to the structure of the national bargaining system, although the EIS-FELA lecturers’ union and support staff trade unions are part of tripartite negotiations with employers, support staff can reach an independent decision without EIS-FELA being part of the process.
Read more: ‘Chronic underfunding’ – Colleges face a budget gap of almost half a billion pounds
The industrial disputes are set against a backdrop of serious financial concerns across the college sector. The Herald’s recent spotlight series on the state of Scotland’s colleges revealed that the sector faces a funding gap of £500 million over the past three years.
Employers and trade unions have called on the Scottish Government to tackle “chronic underfunding” of the sector.
Off the back of the Herald series, the issue of college funding has been the subject of constant controversy at Holyrood and the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Graeme Dey, is facing multiple calls this week to step in and resolve the long-running disputes.
