UNISON wants pay justice for everyone working in schools and local government.
Their pay has fallen in real terms for many years and we are negotiating and campaigning for a better deal. We are making sure pay stays at the top of our agenda.
We have submitted a pay claim to the employers and now need as many members as possible to join us in winning pay justice.
School and council workers are losing out
In 2015 school and council workers’ pay is worth 20% less than it was five years ago. This is a result of government pay freezes and pay increases that did not keep up with inflation.
UNISON is campaigning for a better deal for 2016/17
We are asking for:
All school and council workers to be paid at least the Living Wage (£8.25 per hour or £9.40 per hour in London).
A £1 per hour pay rise for all staff already being paid the Living Wage.
Fairer treatment for school support staff. Many school support staff have been moved on to contracts that mean they do not get paid for school holidays, unlike teachers. UNISON is calling for a review into this.
The protection of terms and conditions. Some conditions such as those around sick pay, annual leave and maternity rights have come under threat in some local authorities. UNISON is campaigning to ensure we retain and protect them.
The impact of cuts to jobs, pay and conditions on the workforce
- Three-quarters of our survey respondents say that that their un-social hours and overtime payments have been cut.
- 76% said that employers’ expectations have increased in the last 12 months
- Over 50% said service users’ expectations have risen
- Two-thirds had been through reviews and re-organisations at work in the past 5 years – mostly due to cost-cutting
- 46% said reviews are leading to reduced staffing – reorganisation and restructuring is making jobs more difficult and leading to heavier workloads
- 73% report increased stress levels
- Two-thirds reported increased workloads and pressure in the last year
- 32% said reviews are leading to fewer resources
- 26% said they now had worse ways of working and were providing a worse service to the public as a result