GS Report

The General Secretary reported:

• Key focus was building to deliver a strong indicative ballot result to force a dying government to invest in our children’s future and to set the priorities for a new Government
• Visiting his old school, morale in the profession is at rock bottom due to the omni-crises of SEND, recruitment and retention, workload, critical funding shortfalls and the RAAC debacle – with no prospect of Government investment
• Engaging with the Labour Party – on the basis that we work with them where we can and work against where we must
• For the pre-election period, we’ve relaunched the School Cuts website and we’re seeking commitments from all Labour and Lib-Dem prospective parliamentary candidates for an education funding pledge – our aim is to encourage a national discourse about investing in our young people and the education system
• Change will not come from cosy chats at the DFE but with the engagement of our members and the empowerment of our reps and officers to campaign and bring industrial pressure upon the government

Talks with NJC unions

The Union is clear that it must implement the annual conference 2023 resolution to, ‘End the undertaking not to actively or knowingly recruit support staff’.  To date this has involved active consideration of the complex matters of how and when to do so. Executive has been mindful that if we begin to actively or knowingly recruit support staff in the maintained sector, this could trigger another TUC dispute that would put the union in breach of TUC Principles 2 and 3. The NEU has participated in the TUC-brokered talks in good faith and positively engaged with the process. However, the stance of the NJC unions must be acknowledged and was noted by the Executive in the circulated correspondence.  The Executive agreed to establish a Task and Finish group to consider these complex matters and to bring proposals back to Executive by no later than July 2024.

Pay dispute

• Briefing held for all regional/Organising field staff – maximum capacity for member-facing work; staff allocated to each branch
• Activists and staff working closely to identify workplaces that need support; workplace visits in larger schools without reps
• Online tool to address issues and questions being developed and will be shared with all reps/officers – activity at workplace level will boost turnout – by up to 20%
• Regular evaluation of the communications/messages that land well
• Government has delayed submitted evidence to the STRB – deliberate device to frustrate our indicative ballot – no pay offer to coalesce around
• Need to acknowledge that members’ appetite for action is not yet where we need it to be – against a very different backdrop to 2022/3

In response to questions from the Executive about the framing of the dispute and the messaging, the General Secretary noted that the framework for the dispute and the roadmap had been agreed by the Executive in December, with further decisions in January and before the Executive at this meeting. 

The Executive then agreed the following in relation to the pay dispute/ballot matters:

Recommendation 1 – Teachers’ Ballot

That the ballot questions for the schoolteachers (England and Wales) and sixth form college teachers (England only) should be:

• Do you agree that you should receive an above-inflation pay rise for 2024-25?
• Would you vote “yes” to strike action for a fully funded, above-inflation pay rise that constitutes a meaningful step towards a long-term correction in pay, and further funding to provide improved levels of staffing provision in schools, colleges and education services.

Further, to ratify the recommendation from the Wales Committee that schoolteachers in Wales should be asked a further question about their willingness to take strike action if the Welsh Government impose a change to the school year with a four-week summer holiday.

Recommendation 2 – Support Staff (England)

To conduct a support staff member consultation as soon as practicable after confirmation of the NJC unions’ pay demand, without further reference to the Executive, asking, at once, the following set of consultation questions:

CONSULTATION 1

• Do you support the NJC unions 2024-25 pay demand of XXX?
• Would you vote “Yes” to strike action alongside NJC unions in support of their 2024-25 pay demand?

CONSULTATION 2

• Would you vote “yes” to strike action alongside NEU teacher colleagues for further school funding, that fully funds pay awards, fully protects support staff terms, conditions and job security and provides improved levels of staffing provision in schools, colleges and education services?

Recommendation 3 – Support Staff (Wales)

To accept the recommendation of the Wales Executive Committee members and include Wales support staff in the England Support Staff ballots, but when doing so ask them a further question about their willingness to take strike action if the Welsh Government impose a change to the school year with a four-week summer holiday.

Recommendation 4 – Communications

• To issue press releases this week, ahead of the preliminary ballot going live, to secure media coverage of the re-launch industrial and political action around both pay and funding;
• To use the Government’s submission of written evidence to the STRB as major comms push during the preliminary ballot (likely around the 6 March Budget)

Recommendation 5 – National Demonstration

That a final decision on the best way to take forward national/local days of action be made at the next Executive cycle once we know how the preliminary electronic ballot is progressing.

The Executive also endorsed all Strategy Committee reports from January and agreed:

• Task & Finish Group: Regional/Wales Council standing orders and constitution review 
• to back to the next Union Strength meeting to discuss further and to produce proposals around:
• How we can maximise member activity through regional and local meetings
• How current rules allow for member participation and any proposed changes
• Phil Clarke, Sarah Carter, Liz McLean, and Mairead Canavan were elected as delegates to the EI World Congress in Buenos Aires in July and the funding of two places, to be paid from the International Subvention Fund
• Executive amendments were agreed to the following Conference motions: Motion 26 – Maternity Rights; Motion 17 – SEND in crisis and Motion 27: Menopause
• Agreed a motion to TUC LGBT+ Conference 2024 and elected Denise Henry as an Executive delegate
• noted the variance report noting the overall position is currently showing a surplus of £4,773,763 against a budgeted surplus of £5,688,158 (a negative variance of £914,395)
• Subscription income is showing a positive variance of £65,316 against budgeted income.  (also reported under the financial report to Executive)
• Noted the signed final accounts. As a result of an adjustment to the tax, the final reserves position has increased from £107.3 million to £108.2 million
• That the Union’s AR21 would be filed with the Certification Officer shortly and the member statement circulated
• The extension of our contract with the company which produces our summer membership renewal be extended until 31 December 2024 and that full tender exercise takes place to agree a new contract with effect from 1 January 2025
• That the Executive is consulted on the proposal to amend Standing Orders to allow general motions to be debated before the full Executive, when appropriate, for further consideration by OSG
• An annual donation of £500 to affiliate/donate to the Truth about Zane campaign
• The motions “Boycott Barclays! Stop Banking on Apartheid” as amended and “Disability Equality Training” (unamended) were agreed by the Execuitve.