Staff at Lewisham Southwark College have decided to strike over pay

Staff at LSC are to strike, after 93% of ununionised staff vote in favour of action. Pic: Callum Haslehurst-Mackenzie

Staff at LSC are to strike, after 93% of ununionised staff vote in favour of action. Pic: Callum Haslehurst-Mackenzie

Staff at Lewisham Southwark College have announced they “have had enough” and will strike later this month in a row over pay.

In a statement released this morning, staff said they would walk out on Tuesday, May 22, and Wednesday, May 23, if the college fails to address “serious concerns over pay”.

The college is part of NCG, a Newcastle-based education provider, with staff across the UK. Earlier this year, NCG refused to implement a national pay deal of just 1% for its staff and removed the London weighting allowance for those working at Lewisham Southwark College.

In the past five years, college staff had been offered just one pay increase, of just one percent, their current salary leaving them 25% worse off financially than in 2009. In the recent ballot, 93% of unionised staff voted in favour of strike action.

University College Union (UCU) regional support official, Jon Bryan, said: “Staff at Lewisham Southwark College have seen their pay held down for years and they have had enough. Strike action is always a last resort, but staff clearly feel they have been left with no alternative.”

“Such a strong mandate for strike action should focus the minds of NCG management and they must deal with the pay issue if they want to avoid serious disruption later this month.”

According to their annual report, NCG has an annual turnover of over £155m, making them one of the largest educational organisations in the UK.

The London weighting allowance, scrapped by NCG, is paid to certain teachers in London to help with the cost of living in the capital, which is higher than anywhere else in the UK.

At the time of writing, NCG had not responded to Eastlondonlines’ requests for comment.

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