The COVID-19 crisis, and partial closure of schools, has placed enormous pressure on school staff including teachers, support staff and school leaders.

Under the current circumstances, education staff are unable to complete meaningful Performance Management reviews for the academic year 2019/20 and so annual pay reviews cannot be carried out in the normal way.

The DfE, local authorities, academy employers and unions have been clear that staff must not be penalised due to the impact of the COVID-19 when pay progression decisions are made and no member of staff should suffer a detriment. The principle of no detriment means that eligible staff, including school leaders, must not be denied pay progression.

Take the steps below in your workplace, using our model resources, to raise no determent pay progression for you and your members.

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NEU Pay Progressions Checklist:

• Step 1 – organise a meeting of members to discuss pay issues and confirm member agreement to our demands on pay. Please use the form opposite to tell us you planning to do this.

At the meeting it would be useful to emphasise the importance of members acting collectively to secure their rights on pay. Materials to use to inform members of the NEU case on pay can be found on the NEU website.

• Step 2 – seek the school's agreement to giving pay progression to all eligible staff.

This model letter on the school to commit to ensuring that all eligible staff receive pay progression on their pay range in September 2020.

• Step 3 – the school agrees – report this success.

It’s really important that we hear about the schools agreeing to implement pay progression for all staff and to apply the cost of living increase across the board – it helps us to spread this good practice to other schools. Click here to let us know.

• Step 4 – the school refuses – encourage members to collectively sign our model letter to raise this issue with your governing body or trustees of your academy

Whatever the reason given by the school, it is simply unfair to deny staff the pay progression and cost of living increases they deserve. Denial of pay progression and refusal to pay even inadequate cost of living increases add to the pay cuts suffered by staff and deepen the serious teacher supply problems. We can help you to counter any arguments put by the school and to collectivise the issue to make a real difference for members. Click here to let us know.

• Step Five - Contact your Branch Secretary

If your school is still refusing to apply pay progression to all who are eligible, escalate to your Branch Secretary and let us know you have done that by clicking here.