Colleges now ‘facing indefinite strikes’ as lecturers row deepens
A bitter dispute between staff and bosses looks set to get even worse,
SCOTLAND’S colleges are facing the threat of “indefinite” three-day weekly strikes as a bitter dispute over the future of lecturing intensifies.
Staff are also being balloted on action short of walk-outs that could see them mark assessments but not enter or share results through their institution’s systems.
If voted through, the move by the EIS Further Education Lecturers’ Association (EIS-FELA) would affect thousands of students and plunge graduations into uncertainty.
The row erupted after college representatives were accused of seeking to replace lecturer posts with “instructor/assessor” positions.
Union leaders said the Colleges Scotland Employers’ Association (CSEA) had refused to ratify one section of a proposed national role profile that sets out the core professional responsibilities considered to be “unique” to a lecturer’s job.
They claimed disagreement had arisen because employers wish to use non-lecturing staff to fulfill these responsibilities.
EIS-FELA bosses said failure to protect lecturer roles would deprive staff of vital class preparation time and remove the need for them to be registered with the General Teaching Council for Scotland (GTCS).
This week has already seen a deterioration in the situation, with employees today preparing to continue a strike as they bid to force a climbdown.
The CSEA said the allegation that it was seeking to replace lecturers was “unfounded” and called the action unnecessary. It added that the only outstanding issue still to be finalised was around the wording of the national role profile.
CSEA leaders also said they had requested that discussions continue to gain further “clarification” on how the profile would be used and rejected accusations they had refused to “ratify” an agreement.
But John Kelly, EIS-FELA national salaries convener and a lecturer in business at West College Scotland, insisted the risks to further education were grave.
“My current contract includes a set period of time for class preparation but the contract for an instructor does not,” he explained.
“For learning and teaching to be of value we require preparation and planning.
“It’s shocking in terms of work-load for staff – they might be told they have to do their preparation in the evening or over the weekend – but also from the perspective of students. If there’s no time set aside for class preparation, the quality of education on offer just plummets. Instructors also have lower salaries.
“We’ve also been campaigning for compulsory registration of lecturers with the General Teaching Council for
Scotland (GTCS) and that is now happening. We signed an agreement with Colleges Scotland in 2019 which ensures that lecturers will have to be registered with the GTCS in the way school teachers are, which is a good thing. And then this [replacing lecturers with instructors] comes in.
“Instructors will not have to be registered with the GTCS and I can really see a two-tier system developing in further education in which some courses are taught by registered lecturers and others aren’t.”
Calling for ministers to intervene, he added: “An indefinite, three-day weekly strike at colleges is a possibility. The terms of our ballot mean, in effect, that it could happen. I would hope it doesn’t come to that but goodwill amongst staff is now draining away fast.”
Matt Crilly, NUS Scotland President, branded the situation “scandalous” and said an “immediate resolution” was needed.
A spokeswoman for the CSEA said: “We know students are worried – however colleges are taking steps to ensure that disruption for individuals will be at an absolute minimum at this critical time in the academic year.
“The EIS-FELA has refused repeated requests to suspend the strikes while meaningful discussions carry on – national industrial action is wholly unnecessary.”
Addressing an NUS Scotland-hosted online debate, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said it was “not acceptable” to get rid of lecturers and re-hire individuals to do the same job “on lesser conditions”.
She added: “I am very clearly saying to employers, ‘get round the table and get this resolved.’”
I can really see a two-tier system developing in further education