A union representing school support staff has said it will ballot members on whether to accept a £1,925 flat rate pay rise offer.
GMB is set to ballot more than 100,000 local government workers - including school staff - over the proposed offer from local government employers.
The ballot, which opens today, will close on 21 October and the union has said it will consult with its reps on what steps to take next if its members reject the deal.
Last month, local authority employers offered school support staff a flat pay rise of £1,925. At the time, unions representing support staff said they planned to “consider” the proposal.
The offer would mean a pay increase of between 10.5 per cent for the lowest-paid employees and a rise of just over four per cent for the highest-paid staff.
Unions had previously called for a pay increase of £2,000 or one reflecting the retail price index (RPI) inflation, whichever is higher.
A proposal from GMB, Unite and Unison for a one-off Covid-19 recognition payment and the introduction of a home working allowance were rejected last month.
With around half a million school support staff, the proposed pay rise could result in an overall cost to schools approaching £1 billion.
Schools are set to receive no extra government funding for the rise on top of the 2021 Spending Review settlement.
Last month, school leaders warned that the proposed pay rise for school support staff could be the “straw that breaks the camel’s back” and would be unsustainable for budgets.
Today, GMB’s national officer Rachel Harrison said that the union’s members ”kept our vital institutions running during the pandemic”.
“Like the rest of us, they’re on the brink of poverty thanks to the crushing cost-of-living crisis.
“Any real terms pay cut risks deepening the staffing crisis, but it’s for our members to decide whether they want to accept this offer.”
Teaching unions set to ballot over action on pay award
Teaching unions are set to ballot over an unfunded pay award this autumn as the cost of living rises.
Earlier this month, the NASUWT teaching union said it was “committed” to balloting its members on industrial action in the autumn term if an improved pay deal is not offered.
The Department for Education will award experienced teachers a 5 per cent pay rise from September 2022 but NASUWT previously called for a 12 per cent rise.
Similarly, the NEU teaching union is set to hold an online preliminary ballot on 24 September, to gauge interest in possible strike action, with a formal ballot to follow in November.
