A ballot has opened at Oaklands College for teachers to go on strike next month as staff have “had enough of the excuses for poor pay and conditions.”
Staff at the St Albans and Welwyn Garden City sites back the strike action as they are reportedly “fed up” with the current pay gap between teachers in colleges and schools currently standing at £7,000.
The ballot of University and College Union (UCU) members will close on Monday 11 March.
Previously, UCU members at six colleges took action in November and staff at 13 colleges walked out last month.
The dispute centres on the failure of colleges to make a decent pay offer to staff who have seen the value of their pay decline by 25 per cent over the last decade.
UCU said low pay was bad for staff, students and colleges, while around two-thirds of college heads said pay is a major obstacle for them when it comes to attracting staff.
UCU said colleges that wanted to avoid disruption needed to work with the union to resolve disputes.
UCU regional official, Jane Thompson, said: “Staff at Oaklands College are fed up with seeing their pay held down and believe the college can afford more than it is currently offering.
“The college’s refusal to make a fair offer has left staff with no alternative but to ballot for strike action.
“Staff have had enough of the excuses for poor pay and conditions. UCU will continue to campaign for more investment from the government but, whether this is forthcoming or not, strikes will continue until colleges show that they are prioritising their staff.”
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