Created on: 20 Mar 2019 | Last modified: 22 Apr 2020
In response to an open letter Colleges Scotland distributed to College Lecturers today EIS General Secretary Larry Flanagan said “This is a disingenuous statement from Colleges Scotland, which continues to conflate harmonised equal pay with a cost of living pay rise.
It also inaccurately portrays the steps the EIS has taken to keep its members fully informed throughout the dispute as well as the content of these communications.
“It is a blatant attempt by Colleges Scotland to bypass the proper collective bargaining process with trade unions via the National Joint Negotiating Committee. This is a clear breach of the Fair Work Convention and the latest example of unacceptable behaviour by a management body that is clearly unwilling to negotiate in good faith towards a fair pay settlement for college lecturers”.
To correct some of the inaccuracies in the Colleges Scotland statement:
EIS-FELA Members have been advised of the terms of the management’s offers and directed to the EIS website for further information.
EIS FELA’s most recent newsletter (March 2019) clearly stated the terms of the management’s offer, as have previous communications.
The Colleges Scotland open letter suggests that the EIS-FELA has agreed to concessions in relation to terms and conditions. Nothing has been agreed with the Management Side and this is a concerning breach of the negotiation process.
EIS-FELA has never sought parity with the support staff trade unions in relation to the transfer to permanence agreement.
Various costings have been referred to in the open letter. The EIS-FELA position in relation to these costings is contained in the parliamentary briefing paper which we issued to MSPs last week.
EIS-FELA has moved and negotiated in good faith. Colleges Scotland has refused to engage meaningfully in negotiations.