Commenting on the passing of motion 12 at Annual Conference in Harrogate, Daniel Kebede, general secretary of the National Education Union, said:
“Expecting teachers to work for free is unacceptable. Appropriate payments for responsibility are an essential part of the teacher pay system.
“TLR payments reward additional leadership and management responsibilities undertaken by classroom teachers. If teachers didn’t take on additional responsibilities, schools would struggle to function effectively.
“Yet despite their importance, many teachers in primary schools do not receive any TLR payment. This unacceptable practice means that teachers are undertaking work for which they are not being paid. Even teachers receiving TLRs are in many cases not paid appropriately for the responsibilities undertaken.
“Yet again, women teachers are losing out. The exploitation of primary school teachers who are predominantly female exacerbates the gender pay gap in the sector and contributes significantly to teacher attrition.
“The NEU and the School Teachers Pay and Conditions Document make it clear that staff cannot be held accountable for subject areas they do not receive TLR payments for. Teachers, including those on the Upper Pay Range, should not be required to undertake additional responsibilities without appropriate TLRs.
“We need to move to a fair, transparent national pay structure with fully funded and appropriate mandatory payments for additional responsibilities.”