29 September 2005

Lecturers Threaten Industrial Action

NATFHE–The University & College Lecturers’ Union, today (29 September) outlined plans for its pay campaign for 2005-6, which will be run jointly with its sister union, AUT. The unions will be demanding that at least a third of top-up fees and other new income for universities should be used to improve the pay of university staff.

Plans for the campaigns include lobbying and, if necessary, concerted industrial action in 2006.

NATFHE said it will be asking why promises regarding the use of top-up fees to improve pay appear to be being ignored – and why £1billion of (RDS) funding for the recruitment and development of staff was not ring-fenced for its stated purpose.

When MPs on the education select committee quiz ministers on funding, NATFHE hopes they will ask:

if they are planning to act on the recommendations that pay levels be increased to improve retention of experienced staff and to assist the recruitment of high calibre graduates
why none of the RDS funding (which by the end of 2006 will amount to £1b of public money) was ringfenced or hypothecated to ensure adequate resources were used to improve staff pay
why academic staff had been led to believe that institutions would use funding announced by the Secretary of State in 2001 to address pay levels, and if falsely raising the expectations of academic staff has further diminished morale amongst key staff within the sector.

Roger Kline, head of NATFHE’s universities department said: ‘We have had the evidence in the Bett report. The government promised extra money for pay and universities are about to receive massive amounts of new money, so now it's time to ‘top-up’ university pay. No more excuses. We shall be pressing the politicians for explanations and action, but if that fails, our intention is to organise large scale and effective industrial action in 2006

‘It is a scandal that most universities appear to have no plans to use significant amounts of top-up income to improve university pay, although we were led to believe that this was one of the purposes of imposing new fees. Its not just academics - many non-academic staff in universities are also badly paid. NATFHE hopes to work closely with the unions representing these staff.

‘We would hope that the committee will put to the DfES that commitments given by the Prime Minister and Minister of State* to the sector are delivered, by stipulating that at least a third of the new top up fee and other income is hypothecated for staff pay from September 2006 onwards.‘

Notes for Editors

We note the statements:

Tony Blair (IPPR/UUK meeting January 14 2004):
'The shortfall of teaching funding has badly hit the salaries of academic staff, which have shown practically no increase in real terms over two decades. This at a time when professionals in virtually every other sector, including school teaching and the health professions, have improved their positions significantly.’

Former higher education Minister Alan Johnson in the House of Commons on 29 April 2004:
‘... the Prime Minister, in a speech late last year, said: "The shortfall of teaching funding has badly hit the salaries of academic staff, which have shown practically no increase in real terms over two decades." That is one of the reasons why we are pursuing the controversial measures in the Higher Education Bill.[1] Not only are we putting in an extra £3 billion from the taxpayer, but an extra £2 billion will come through existing fees and through the increase. University vice-chancellors tell us that, in general, at least a third of that money will be put back into the salaries and conditions of their staff. That will make an enormous contribution in tackling a very serious and deep-seated problem.’

UK UNIVERSITY LECTURERS’ PAY (in the post-92 universities)

Starting pay and career progression

Lecturers start careers (on average at age 28 after a PhD), on £24,352 rising to £30,304.
After 14 years (having become senior lecturers) most earn £37,513.
(Figures: Annual Salary £pa from 1 August 2005 assuming 3% increase on 2004).

Equivalent professionals can rise to much higher salary levels:

University Lecturers/senior lecturers 24,352 to 37,513
General Practitioners: 46,455 to 70,710
Teachers (advanced scales): 37,902 to 47,469
Tax Inspectors: 44,520 to 63,990

(Professions indicated are all comparators used in the Bett Report on academic pay. Figures are current salary range).

Pay increases: 1994-2003 – a widening gap with other professionals.

From 1994 to 2003 salaries of the following professions have changed in real terms as follows:

Higher education teaching professionals	+6.6%
Public sector average earnings	+12%
Personnel, training and industrial relations managers	+23%
Managers/senior officials in government (HEO to senior principal/grade 6)	+31%
ICT professionals	+22%
Medical practitioners	+27%
Secondary education teaching professionals	+12%
Chartered and certified accountants	+12%

[Source: New Earnings Survey (series)]

International comparisons - Commonwealth

	Lecturer*	Senior Lecturer**	Associate Lecturer***	Professor
Australia	44,198	54,093	65,067	83,463
Canada	28,949	35,076	43,183	54,006
Malaysia	14,926		29,385	51,725
N.Z.	33,603	42,906	55,711	63,610
Singapore		55,385	83,077	129,231
S. Africa	31,277	37,872	45,037	51,765
U.K.	24,955	32,348	43,457	54,158

Equivalent UK terminology: * (Post 92 Lecturer. Pre 92 Lecturer A)
** (Post 92 Senior Lecturer, Pre 92 Lecturer B)
*** (Post 92 Principal Lecturer, Pre 92 Senior Lecturer).

[Source: Assn of Commonwealth Universities survey 2001-2 (PDF file). Figures are US$ with a Purchasing Power Parity conversion factor, providing a more accurate idea of the value of the pay ]

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