TEACHERS IN WALES AWARDED NEW PAY RISES
STARTING salaries for new teachers in Wales should rise by 8.4% to more than £27,000 next year, with the upper and lower boundaries of pay ranges for all other teachers to go up by 3.75%.
The recommendations, announced today by the Welsh Government amount to a 3.1% increase in the teacher pay bill overall for 2020-21.
Responding to the news, the National Association of Head Teachers Cymru (NAHT) said it was “bittersweet” as “it does not appear that Welsh Government has chosen to fund the pay rise, meaning that schools will need to find the money from their existing budgets.”
Teaching union the NASUWT called on the Welsh Government to fund and guarantee the rise which it said still fell short of making up for the year on year decline in teachers’ pay since 2010.
The Welsh Government said the increased wage bill will be met partly from an increase in funding allocated to local authorities from Welsh Government via the Revenue Support Grant.
It said in a statement: “The overall increase in costs for the pay award largely equates to funding previously estimated for this purpose.
“It was anticipated that these increased costs would be met from the increase in funding allocated to local authorities from Welsh Government via the Revenue Support Grant, combined with provision from LAs own revenue raising powers.
“In light of the pandemic, we will be discussing the funding implications with local authorities to ensure that school budgets are not adversely affected by these changes.”
This is the second year that teachers’ pay has been devolved to Wales and the proposals follow the publication of the Independent Welsh Pay Review Body (IWPRB) report.
Education Minister Kirsty Williams said she has accepted in principle all of the report’s main recommendations and has gone further to ensure teachers in Wales receive the same increase as those in England.
The Minister has also proposed a 2.75% pay rise for head teachers, deputy and assistant heads, unqualified teachers and for teacher allowances – all greater than the 2.5% recommended by IWPRB.
Ms Williams said the proposed starting salary increase to more than £27,000 a year was aimed at encouraging recruitment.
Teachers on the Main Pay Range will receive at least a 3.75% rise and teachers on the Upper Pay Scale will receive at least a 2.75% rise.
A new statutory five point pay scale would also be introduced, so new teachers would advance to the maximum of the Main Pay Range in four years – a year quicker than previously.
The Education Minister said: “These proposed changes will help enable the development of a distinct national system that is fairer and more transparent for all teachers in Wales.
“This is only the second year since these powers were devolved and it is already clear that the approach here in Wales is developing very differently to that adopted previously.
“A number of important issues have also been addressed, including the introduction of experience-based pay progression and national statutory pay scales; both improvements that the workforce have been calling for.” She said she wanted to promote teaching as a profession of choice for graduates and career changers. “I believe these changes to pay and conditions will continue to attract high quality teachers to the profession in Wales.”
The recommended award means newly qualified teachers in Wales would get around £2,000 more than counterparts in England.
Last week the UK Government announced that starting salaries for new teachers would rise in England by 5.5% next year, with the upper and lower boundaries of the pay ranges for all other teachers to rise by 2.75%. The recommendations amount to a 3.1% increase in the overall pay bill for 2020-21 in England, which will be funded by schools.
This means the minimum starting salaries for a qualified teacher in 2020/21 will rise to £25,714 outside of London, rising to £32,157 in inner London.
An eight-week consultation will now begin, before the final pay deal is agreed in Wales. Today’s announcement is in response to the report of the Teachers’ Pay Review Body.
The Welsh Government said it has a long standing commitment to pay parity and a further announcement will be made in respect of those working in Further Education in due course.
Laura Doel, director of school leaders’ union NAHT Cymru, said: “This announcement is bittersweet for school leaders throughout Wales.
“At last we can see that education is being taken seriously as a key public service, and this pay award will be a welcome departure from the below inflation increases of recent years.
“However, it does not appear that Welsh Government has chosen to fund the pay rise, meaning that schools will need to find the money from their existing budgets.
“Today’s announcement on pay puts school leaders in a difficult position.
“With school budgets so tight every penny a school spends requires a choice: spend here, cut somewhere else. Schools should not be forced to choose between paying their staff properly and additional investment in children’s education and support.
“NAHT support the re-integration of national pay scales and the removal of performance-related pay and are pleased Welsh Government have listened to us on this.
“But an unfunded pay rise means an anxious summer for school leaders in Wales as they decide what or who they have to cut to afford pay increases for their staff.”
Dr Patrick Roach, general secretary of the NASUWT teachers’ union suggested teachers should get more to make up for lost pay in the last decade.
“Whilst the Education Minister’s ambition to make teaching the profession of first choice for graduates is laudable, the proposed pay award still falls short of what is needed to redress the year on year real-terms decline in teachers’ pay since 2010.
“The Welsh Government must now demonstrate its commitment to valuing teachers by ensuring that the pay award is fully funded and guaranteed.
“The NASUWT will be pressing for a clear guarantee from the Welsh Government on the teachers’ pay award, pay progression entitlements and job security.”
I believe these changes to pay and conditions will continue to attract high quality teachers to the profession in Wales
Education Minister Kirsty Williams