Pay agreement for 2024/25
The recognised local government unions - Unison, GMB and Unite - have agreed with the employers (the Local Government Association) on this year’s pay round.
After membership consultative exercises, the three Unions have accepted the employers’ “full and final offer”.
The local government unions submitted the following:
- All employees are to receive a wage rise of £3,000 or 10%, whichever is higher
- All employers to agree on a clear plan to reach a minimum pay rate of £15 an hour in a maximum of two years
- An additional day of annual leave for all staff regardless of their current entitlement.
The employers’ responded with the following:
- An increase of £1,290 (pro rata for part-time employees) will be paid as a consolidated, permanent addition to all NJC pay points 2 to 43 inclusive. This equates to a 2.5% pa rise at the top of the scale and 5.7% at the bottom.
- An increase of 2.5% on all allowances
The NEU view on the pay offer
For our part, the National Education Union stood ready to join in any industrial action that may have been called by the three unions in an attempt to improve on the deal, after NEU support staff members voted overwhelmingly (92% in England and 96% in Wales) to reject the pay offer. However, the decision by the three recognised unions to accept the employers’ final offer means that no action will be taken this year to address the continuing scandal of low pay amongst school support staff.
However, in discussions with the government over the implementation of the latest pay rise for teachers, the NEU won an additional £1.2 billion for schools to fund the teacher pay rise and the - now accepted - support staff pay offer. So, thanks to NEU pressure, schools now have additional funds to meet the costs of your pay award.
Beyond teachers and support staff working together to ensure fair pay implementation and reduce workloads, we are actively seeking to develop unity with sister unions in schools and colleges, We would like to take this further and explore the potential of a joint union organising campaign among support staff, to build their voice at work.
Backdated pay award and its impact on Universal Credit
Following confirmation of the LGA 2024/25 pay award, the NEU is aware of the implications backdated pay can have on our support staff members, especially those who receive Universal Credit payments. To tackle this concern, we have model template letters available below that members and reps can use to request that employers stagger any backdated pay due. This is to minimise the risk of any future reductions in Universal Credit payments for members, which can be affected by one-off backdated payments.
To clarify, any arrangement of staggered pay should only be initiated at the request of the employee(s).
The Union is not recommending a specific time frame for staggered pay, however, a period of three months may be suitable in most cases, depending on individual circumstances.