Created on: 15 Mar 2023
Dear Member
You should by now have received your ballot paper in the re-ballot for the 2022-23 pay round. (If you have not received your ballot, please email us at ballots@eis.org.uk).
The law states that Trade Unions must re-ballot every six months when taking industrial action and this is the point at which we must do so in the 2022-23 pay round to ensure we can continue to take any necessary strike and action short of strike in pursuit of the 2022-23 pay round.
You can find the 2022 pay offer on our website.
You will not receive a ballot paper if you are at UHI, RCS, SRUC or Edinburgh Napier University as these institutions are not included in this ballot as they are not part of the 2022-23 New JNCHES pay dispute.
The situation on the 2022-23 pay round remains that we have not received any improved offer from UCEA on the pay imposed in August 2022.
To be clear, the offer and subsequent imposition, for 2022-23 was a massive real terms pay cut. You received 3% while inflation, as measured by RPI went to over 14% in the same period.
That's why it is vitally important that you use your ballot and give us a fresh mandate to keep up the pressure on the employers to increase their offer for 2022-23 and invest in staff pay.
The EIS reluctantly agreed to pulling forward the pay talks for 2023-24 to December (2022) and January (2023), which normally happen in March & April, because we were led to believe that UCEA may make an offer which would allow us to settle both 2022-23 and 2023-24 pay claims. Instead UCEA offered a sub-inflationary offer for 2023-24, bringing part of that poor offer into February 2023, to try and buy off strike action and end the dispute.
You can find the 2023 pay offer is available here.
This year, RPI inflation, as of January sat at 13.4% and UCEA offered 5%. That equates to huge real terms cuts in both years. As of this date, the trade unions have not agreed to the pay element of either the 2022-23 or the 2023-24 pay round. Your Employer, following an UCEA recommendation has now imposed the pay element of the 2023-24 offer; i.e. they have paid it despite no agreement being made.
Following the lodging of a dispute in the 2023-24 pay round, ACAS facilitated talks were convened to try and break the deadlock. The employers steadfastly refused to increase the money on offer. As a result this issue was parked to try and make progress on “pay related matters” in the hope that this might offer something for our members which could be progressed.
A series of "Terms of Reference" for time limited negotiations has now been produced. These will now be considered by the EIS-ULA Executive Committee, alongside the democratic structures of the other trade unions.
The joint trade union statement on the Terms of Reference can be found here.
You can find them here:
It is the view of the EIS negotiators that this is the best that could be achieved in the current discussions facilitated by ACAS on the pay related matters of the 2023-24 dispute, but we do foresee significant hurdles ahead in getting anything substantial from these negotiating streams. We have been very clear with UCEA that we will not agree any pay spine which does not benefit our members.
UCEA have also demanded that we cease industrial action over the period of negotiations (which would take us through to next year). We have refused to meet that demand, as have the other trade unions at this time.
You can help us in these negotiations by keeping up the pressure on the employers and voting YES to Strike Action and YES to Action Short of Strike in the current industrial action ballot.
We know these are difficult times for our members, but that is precisely why we must keep up the pressure. You are worth more than you are being paid, and it’s time the employers stopped investing in themselves and started investing in front line staff.
Keep up the pressure and we can achieve a better settlement on pay for both the 2022 & 2023 pay rounds.
Vote YES & YES today!