Colleagues,
SSTA representatives were involved in pension negotiations during the summer but there remains no immediate prospect of an acceptable offer. The very real threat to our pensions continues with younger teachers bearing the largest burden of this particular attack on our conditions of service.
It is vitally important that the Work to Contract continues, and strengthens, throughout the next few months. Those previously arranged events and outings have all taken place and the Working Time Agreement provides our template for this session. SSTA representatives will continue to oppose the attack on our pensions at the Pensions Working Group Meetings and Pensions Working Group Technical Sub-Group (which examines the effect of possible changes to conditions.)
Leaflets and posters are currently in production and will be in schools very shortly. Updates on progress of talks will be made available as soon as we have something to report. Advice on the Working Time Agreement and any aspect of the Work to Contract is available to you at any time via our staff. If it would be helpful to arrange a visit to talk to members in your school please contact the General Secretary at <a href="mailto:info@ssta.org.uk">info@ssta.org.uk</a> adding ‘for Ann Ballinger’ as a subject heading.
In the meantime some general advice is offered below:
1. The teaching week is divided into 3 sections; class contact of 22.5 hrs max; protected preparation and correction time of 7.5 hrs (or 1/3 of class contact) and 5 hours which covers everything else.
2. The 5 hour block covered by the Working Time Agreement, which may have a calendar attached, includes:
• Departmental Meetings
• Curriculum Development
• Additional preparation and correction
• Whole school meetings
• Working Groups
• Parents' Evenings
• Preparation for, and marking of, Assessments (formal and informal)
3. These duties are allocated blocks of time in the WTA (e.g. 40 hrs for Meetings) and that is your contractual obligation.
4. Any additional time given to your employer is a Gift from you. Our commitment to the Work to Contract means we are withholding that gift.
5. Certain activities are voluntary and should not be undertaken during a Work to Contract. These include:
• Lunch time corridor supervision
• Lunch time dining room supervision
• Clubs
If your working commitments exceed your available time please contact your line manger and ask him/her which duties you should omit to enable you to complete the required tasks.
If you wish to keep track of their working week please use this spreadsheet which will calculate your hours on a weekly basis
If you have any questions or wish to discuss this further please don't hesitate to contact us at info@ssta.org.uk or by telephoning 0131 313 7300
