One in 12 teachers denied pay rise under PRP

A survey conducted by the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL) and the National Union of Teachers (NUT) found that nearly one in 12 teachers have been denied a pay rise in accordance with the performance-related pay (PRP) system.

The study surveyed 10,000 teachers and found nearly 90 per cent regarded the decision as unfair.

PRP was enforced in September 2014 and gives schools the power to decide when teachers should progress to higher pay grades, based on their performance. However the ATL and the NUT’s findings show that nearly half of teachers think the school’s pay policy is unfair whether they have received a rise or not.

Christine Blower, NUT general secretary, commented: “The biggest risk of all is that by removing the right to pay progression and making pay prospects so uncertain, the government is going to make the teacher recruitment crisis worse.”

However a government spokesperson argued: “Teaching has a lower turnover rate than the economy as a whole – 90 per cent of teachers in state schools stay in the profession from one year to the next while the number of teachers returning to the classroom continues to rise year after year.”

The survey’s findings showed that 35.5 per cent of teachers on the main pay scale did not gain a rise due to the new system, while 40 per cent of those in the upper pay scale seeking an increase did not receive a rise.

Blower added: “The survey shows that the NUT was right to warn about the risk of unequal and possibly discriminatory treatment. The government must as a matter of urgency seek and analyse information about how pay decisions are being taken.”

Jonathan Simons, head of the education unit at Policy Exchange, contended: “The fact that one in 12 have not received progression pay rises absolutely does not prove that the system doesn’t work. It proves to some extent that it is working. A differentiation is exactly what is meant to happen.

“The key is all of those judgements are made on reliable information and reported clearly to staff. If not, then that’s an issue of concern.”