Fight on for inflation-proof pay rises
The National Executive of the Education Union has voted to recommend acceptance of the government’s latest pay offer, of 6.5%. There will now be an online consultation of members.
The five Socialist Party members on the executive voted against this recommendation and are campaigning for a no vote in the consultation.
- 6.5% is still a pay cut!
- Nothing for 2022
With RPI inflation currently running at 11.3%, this is effectively another 5% pay cut – following years of pay cuts. Even the government’s own CPI inflation measure is more than this, at 8.7%.
The general secretaries are claiming the deal should be accepted as it is the “largest ever recommendation” from the School Teachers’ Review Body. But we’re also facing the “largest ever” inflation rates since the STRB began! It’s a lot less than teachers in Scotland have won, leaving their main scale £7,000 better than ours.
At the same time, the Tories have announced that they will be accepting the pay review bodies’ recommendations in all sectors where they exist. That includes police and prison officers being offered 7% and junior doctors 6%.
But this has only happened because the Tories have been put under massive pressure. So now is the time to increase that pressure – we can win more!
As we go to press, the government and the union leadership are claiming that this rise is fully funded but we are yet to see figures which show clearly what the funding position is.
Members should vote reject and join us in arguing at the NEC and throughout the union for a bold, serious, escalating fight in the autumn!
The junior doctors, hospital consultants, radiographers, rail workers and others are still fighting. The strike wave is not over and we can win more from this crisis-ridden Tory government.
NEU NEC members Sean McCauley, Sheila Caffrey, Louise Cuffaro, Nicky Downes, Steve Scott (in personal capacity)
Socialist Party members on the NEU NEC are hosting an open zoom meeting to discuss building the reject vote.
Wednesday 19 July at 6pm
Zoom ID: 953 3932 0998
