What is the modernising pay agreement?

It is an agreement between the unions and the Association of Colleges (AoC) to implement a national harmonised pay scale for college staff in England. The agreement followed recognition from the government and employers that FE salaries were falling well behind other public services particularly schools. The national pay scale was introduced to help FE salaries catch up.

How would I benefit if my college implemented the national pay scale?

The introduction of the national harmonised pay scale would mean higher salaries for college staff. When you move on to the new national pay scale you should go across to the next highest salary point. For example, if your current salary is £17,300 you would go across to point 14 on the new scales taking your salary to £17, 778.

The minimum wage in the college would also increase to £7.01 an hour, better than either the NHS or local government. The national pay scale would also reduce the pay gap between school teachers and lecturers. The college should also carry out a Job Evaluation exercise as part of the modernising pay agreement. Job evaluation is a way of ensuring that college staff receive equal pay for work of equal value.

What about incremental pay progression for support staff moving onto the harmonised pay scale?

As part of the negotiations with the college, we want to ensure that all support staff are entitled to incremental pay progression in the future.

Some colleges currently employ support staff on spot salaries, so moving on to the national pay scale would be a great opportunity to negotiate incremental progression points.

What is Job Evaluation and how does it fit in with the national pay scale?

Job evaluation schemes are used to expose pay anomalies and pave the way for achieving fair pay and grading structures. At a very basic level job evaluation is the process that measures each element of your job and gives it a total score. Job evaluation will then establish a ranking order for jobs and fit them into a non-discriminatory pay and grading structure to ensure staff receive equal pay for work of equal value.

The unions and the AoC have agreed a job evaluation scheme specifically designed for the sector called the Further Education Job Evaluation Scheme (FEJE). FEJE has been designed with the explicit purpose of covering the full range of jobs within FE colleges.

As part of the modernising pay agreement colleges should introduce the Further Education Job Evaluation scheme to ensure equal pay.

How long has our college had to bring in the better pay rates?

The modernising pay agreement was reached in 2004. The colleges have now had more than four years to honour the agreement. The majority of colleges have honoured the agreement and the unions are now calling time on those colleges refusing to do so.

What if our college says it canÕt afford to introduce the national pay scale?

The AoC surveyed all FE colleges before they agreed to the national pay scale. The AoC would not have signed up to the agreement if it was not affordable.

The unions will negotiate a timetable for implementation locally if a college can prove it has serious financial problems.

Why does it matter if our college wonÕt honour the national pay deal?

Staff working in our colleges do a first class job, yet receive second class salaries compared to other colleges. For every year that the college refuses to match the national pay scale our pay will fall further behind.

This will affect our pensions.

Our college is not a member of the AoC, so how does the modernising pay agreement and the national pay scale affect me? The pay agreement is between the FE trade unions and the AOC and therefore its members. Most colleges are members of the AoC. The unions regard the pay agreement as a national standard in England and therefore seek to have it implemented in all colleges including those that are not members of the AoC.

What are the unions doing about it?

We are calling on the college to open urgent negotiations with the unions on implementing the national pay scale.

What can I do to help?

Keep an eye out for campaign events being organised by the local unions. Attend joint union meetings and show your support for the campaign.