Teachers find money for additional pay rise

Tuesday 24 December 2019

Jersey teaching staff will be getting an additional pay rise in the New Year after finding savings to fund it.

The 0.8% salary boost - effective from 1 January 2020 - comes as part of a gainshare agreement with the government.

The deal made between trade unions and the States Employment Board - the body responsible for public sector employees' pay and working conditions - means that any savings made through changes to ways of working can be shared 50/50 with the government.

Pictured: Plaques used during the teacher strikes earlier this year.

The news comes as a new pay framework for teaching assistants has also been agreed, aligning them more closely to teachers and enabling career progression so that they can step into the role of teachers.

It means that they will also receive a salary increase in line with teachers - 4.8% (RPI plus 1.3% plus the additional 0.8%) through the gainshare agreement.

Government officials said the new pay scale was endorsed by representatives from trade unions NASUWT, NEU, Prospect and Unite.

Earlier this year, teaching staff went on strike amid a public sector-wide pay dispute.

Pictured: Constable Richard Buchanan, SEB Vice Chair.

Constable Richard Buchanan, SEB Vice Chair, suggested that tensions had now been replaced with a more productive relationship, commenting: "I’m pleased we have reached an agreement with teaching unions that will benefit teachers, teaching assistants and the government. 

"We can now move forward together in 2020 to find ways to improve our processes and allow teachers and teaching assistants to share the savings we identify."