Tessera

SecEd @seced.bsky.social · 3mo ago

Equal pay is about assessing jobs properly and ensuring staff are fairly paid. It's not about the views of one out of touch ex-minister. Teaching assistants do vital work and it's a shame Claire Coutinho doesn't recognise this.

Post on X from Shadow equalities minister Claire Coutinho: Bin men waking up at 4am to do manual, smelly work in all weathers is simply not the same job as being a teaching assistant.

‘Equal value’ laws which demand they are paid the same are clearly wrong and unfair.... https://x.com/ClaireCoutinho/status/2071989606724317655?s=20

UNISON response: Equal pay is about assessing jobs properly and ensuring staff are fairly paid.

It's not about the views of one out of touch ex-minister.

Teaching assistants do vital work and it's a shame @clairecoutinho doesn't recognise this.

UNISON in Schools @unisoninschools.bsky.social · 3mo ago

🗣️WEBINAR: Climate change, intersectionality, and intergenerational justice 📅 14 July 2026, 12:30 PM - 1:30 PM 🌱We are hosting a webinar discussing how climate change and inequality are connected, and how UNISON members can help build a fairer, more just future. 👉Register here: shorturl.at/vfu3Q

Microsoft Virtual Events Powered by Teams

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🌡️✊ It's too hot to work safely in many workplaces, but the UK still has no maximum legal working temperature. We're backing calls for change. Sign the petition ⬇️

We need a maximum working temperature

A red weather warning has been issued for some parts of the country. We need the rules to keep us all safe at work. Please sign the petition for a maximum working temperature.

unsn.uk

Being worse off is not a pay rise. Since 2010, local government pay has fallen by an average of 26% in real terms. This year’s offer falls far short of what you need and deserve. 📲 Check what it means for you: unisonpaycalculator.co.uk  Pledge to be part of the plan to win.

Mobile phone with NJC pay calculator: Council and school pay. This year's NJC pay offer for council and school workers is 3.3%. Let's calculate your new salary: Enter your current salary: 25584. Calculate

Mobile phone with NJC pay calculator: Council and school pay. Your new annual salary is £26,428.27. Over the last year, inflation has averaged 4.2%* Where does this leave your salary? Show me. *RPI, latest NJC Pay year (April 2025 - March 2026)

Mobile phone with NJC pay calculator: Council and school pay. This means your pay will be -£230.26 below the cost of living. Neing £230.26 worse off is not a pay rise. Calculation is based on a full-time salary, if you entered a part time salary, these amounts will be different.

UNISON in Schools @unisoninschools.bsky.social · 3mo ago

🌍💚 On #CleanAirDay, broadcaster and environmental journalist Tom Heap reflects on why green activity matters and how climate change is already affecting our lives. Speaking at a Year of Green Activity fringe event at #uNDC26, he praised UNISON members for their commitment to climate action.

🌿Today is Clean Air Day 🌿 👀Why not take the opportunity to watch our webinars about clean air in schools? ✅Improving Air Quality in Schools: what can we do - youtube.com/playlist?lis... ✅Improving Air Quality in Schools: leaders making it happen - youtu.be/kczgMQ5Ds6M

Improving Air Quality in Schools: what can we do? - YouTube

UNISON has joined with the CORSI_ROSENTIAL Foundation UK and other UK trade unions with members in education to host this webinar on exploring the impact of ...

youtube.com

UNISON in Schools @unisoninschools.bsky.social · 4mo ago

Local government unions have rejected the 2026 pay offer and are demanding meaningful pay negotiations in a letter to employers signed by all three unions - UNISON, Unite and GMB. UNISON are balloting members for strike action from 9 July.

Letter to the Employers’ Side Secretary, Naomi Cooke, 28 May:
Dear Naomi

The NJC Trade Union Side are writing further in response to your letter of 24March 2026, making a full and final offer of a 3.3% pay increase from 1 April.

All three unions firmly reject this pay offer. Our members remain dismayed and angered at the offer, which fails to make up ground on the loss of the real value of their pay over the last 16 years, and is far below what they need and deserve.

We believe that the most recent financial settlement offers scope for a better offer.

Moreover, we wish to reiterate our disappointment at the National Employers’continual refusal to engage in meaningful pay negotiations.

Given our unions’ rejection of the offer, we urge you to engage in meaningful negotiations on the2026/27 pay award as a matter of urgency.

Yours sincerely,
Kevin Brandstatter GMB
Clare Keogh UNITE
Mike Short UNISON
Trade Union Side Secretaries

🤔Want to have a better understanding of autism? 🌱Grow your confidence working with autistic people? 👉Then sign up to our Autism Awareness for Schools Support Staff online workshop on June 08 - 09 💥Register here: learning.unison.org.uk/.../autism-a... 🏃‍♀️Places are limited, don't miss out!

learning.unison.org.uk

UNISON in Schools @unisoninschools.bsky.social · 4mo ago

⚡️For anyone that was unable to attend, you can now watch our webinar on the impact of climate change on schools! 📽️ Watch here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=buRI...

UNISON: The impact of climate change on schools

YouTube video by UNISON

youtube.com

🌡️🔥 Being too hot at work risks staff health and productivity. UNISON says legal maximum workplace temperatures and investment to adapt to climate change are long overdue. Read more ⬇️ unsn.uk/4nBn4Va

Regulating workplace temperatures and adapting for climate change is long overdue, says UNISON.

UNISON in Schools @unisoninschools.bsky.social · 4mo ago

UK climate warning prompts calls for maximum workplace temperatures | ITV News A maximum temperature for workplaces “is essential” says UNISON AGS Jon Richards "Any decent employer would want their staff to be at their best to do their job efficiently"

❓Did you know that by 2050 the avg number of days that temperatures in schools reach or exceed 35°C will increase by 70%? ❓Did you know that 1 in 4 schools will be at risk of flooding by 2040? Join our webinar today at 4pm on what we can do about it: shorturl.at/ALBdr

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UNISON in Schools @unisoninschools.bsky.social · 4mo ago

Message of support from UNISON general secretary @andreaegangs.bsky.social on behalf of Tom Barker, a teaching assistant and UNISON steward at Ash Field Academy.

FB post from Andrea Egan, UNISON general secretary: I stand in full support of Tom Barker who was wrongly suspended by Ash Field Academy in October 2025 following a successful industrial action ballot in opposition to cuts, which Tom played an instrumental role in securing. Tom and UNISON have repeatedly asked the Trust to provide details of the allegations against him and have yet to receive a satisfactory response. Tom is a dedicated teaching assistant at Ash Field Academy and has provided valuable support to vulnerable children for nearly 10 years. He is a committed UNISON member who has campaigned for fair pay and safe staffing at the school and is a member of the NEC. It is simply outrageous and totally unacceptable that the Discovery Schools Academy Trust which runs Ash Field feel they have the right to victimise workers who take strike action. I expect Tom to be allowed to return to work so he can continue supporting the students and colleagues at the school. If Tom is not reinstated we will have no hesitation in escalating this dispute. Solidarity to all workers taking strike action on 13th and 14th May in support of him.

Academisation has led to variable transparency, weak local accountability and decision making processes that are often remote from parents, staff and communities. Unions have published a joint-statement on government plans for every state school to join an academy trust.

Trust plans will divert money from pupils and lead to more complicated system, say unions - UNISON National

UNISON is among seven education unions voicing concerns

unison.org.uk

A full house in Leeds today as school support staff come together to share experiences and build skills. 👏 Kicking off with e-safety expert Karl Hopwood on online safety and the challenges for children and schools. #OnlineSafety #Schools #USchools26

School support staff at schools seminar in Leeds

Karl Hopwood, e-safety expert at schools seminar in Leeds

🎓📊 Sutton Trust polling shows schools are cutting support for Send pupils as staff numbers fall. UNISON says education reforms will fail without properly funded support staff. Ministers must match ambition with resources. unsn.uk/491MXr2

Sutton Trust polling highlights importance of support staff to ministers’ education reforms, says UNISON

Media debate on school meals often misses the bigger picture. Many schools have contracted-out their catering to private sector firms who profit from providing poor quality food, cutting staff pay and cutting the resources that school kitchens need.

School canteen with meals being served. ‘Cost‑cutting, private contracts and tight budgets leave school staff and kitchens overstretched’