England’s biggest academy trust has backtracked on controversial plans to let teachers opt into a less generous pension scheme to boost their pay from this September, unions have claimed.
The National Association of Headteachers (NAHT) told Schools Week that the United Learning Trust has decided against implementing the proposals – which have also reportedly been opposed by education secretary Bridget Phillipson.
The 92-school MAT planned to use academy freedoms to offer its staff an alternative to the teachers’ pension scheme (TPS) – using savings from employer contributions to hike their take-home pay instead.
But the NAHT said the trust confirmed at a meeting yesterday “that it would not be rolling out the proposal in September”.
It’s not yet clear if the plans have just been put on hold, or axed altogether. ULT did not respond to our requests for comment.
But NAHT general secretary Paul Whiteman said he hopes to have “seen the back of these ill-conceived plans”, but vowed to “fight” them again if they re-emerge.
‘Dangerous pension proposals’
“While we understand that teachers are not immune from cost-of-living pressures, what is needed [is] sustained government action to restore the attractiveness of teaching, including restoring real-terms pay to 2010 levels,” the union leader said.
“These dangerous proposals would have undermined efforts to work with the government to do that, impacted sector-wide terms and conditions, and potentially destabilised the TPS, which is reliant on everyone’s contributions.”
The change came after unions “lodged a joint collective dispute with ULT” over the scheme in May.
Reports in March also suggested the Department for Education had told the chain that it opposed the move, which is a first for state schools. The governent had requested the trust put forward a business case for the changes.
Supported by 1 in 6 teachers
At the time Sir Jon Coles, the trust’s CEO, stressed he was “confident in our legal position” and that he planned “to go ahead with the scheme, despite threats from government officials”.
He also accused unions of “not representing their members” for opposing the scheme, citing the results of an internal survey showing “some 25 per cent of staff” had “expressed interest” in it.
An Education Policy Institute study earlier this year also found one in six teachers would prioritise an immediate pay increase over a higher pension.
Rebalancing public sector pensions to offer more pay upfront has also been floated by the Institute for Fiscal Studies.
But Whiteman added: “We have opposed this divisive plan from the beginning and are pleased that common sense has prevailed.
“A good employer should not be asking dedicated teachers to give up part of their pension to make up for a shortfall in their salary.”
Vow to ‘fight’ revived plans
Schools Week revealed last year ULT was planning to offer its teachers the choice of an alternative pension scheme from 2025, alongside the TPS.
Currently, teachers have to pay between 7.4 and 11.7 per cent in contributions, with employers stumping up 28.6 per cent of the worker’s salary.
Under the plan, teachers who wanted to opt out of the TPS would be able to contribute either 0, 5 or 10 per cent of their salary in a new defined contribution scheme.
The trust would contribute at least 10 or 20 per cent. The money saved by United Learning on employer contributions would go towards bumping up pay for teachers on the alternative scheme.
This would mean starting salaries rising across its schools outside London from £32,850 to almost £38,000, and from £39,000 in inner London to £45,000.
Pepe Di’Iasio, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said: “We’re pleased this plan will not now be going ahead. The teachers’ pension scheme is a really good benefit of a career in teaching and something we need to cherish and protect – particularly in the circumstances of a recruitment and retention crisis.
“Our fear was that the proposed trade-off between pay and pension would ultimately undermine the teachers’ pension scheme. We need to work together – across all schools and colleges – for improved pay and conditions for our superb teachers.”
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