Teachers in Further Education (FE) colleges may earn nearly a
quarter less than teachers in schools, according to a new NFER
study.
FE teachers also tend to earn less than their peers in industry
jobs in the construction, engineering and digital sectors, and
these gaps have widened significantly over the last decade,
contributing to ongoing challenges for FE teacher recruitment and
retention in England.
The findings are revealed in a new NFER report, Building a stronger FE
college workforce: How improving pay and working conditions can
help support FE college teacher supply commissioned by
the Gatsby Charitable Foundation.
The analysis* was based on interviews with FE college teachers
and Heads of Department in construction, engineering and digital
in the North East, South East and the West Midlands, alongside
analysis of secondary data sources**.
Many interviewees reflected on how FE teaching is a fulfilling
role which may bring benefits compared to working in certain
industry sectors or self-employment. This can include better
pension benefits and longer, paid holidays. In addition, some FE
teachers coming from the construction sector reported the
opportunity to work more locally and have more sociable, less
irregular hours.
However, data from the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings
reveals that in 2021 (the latest year of data available when the
analysis was undertaken), engineering and digital FE teachers
earned 11 per cent less than those working in industry. In
construction, FE teachers earned three per cent less than in
industry, though this excludes pay in self-employment which the
analysis suggests might make the construction pay gap larger.
The research goes on to suggest some college strategies designed
to close industry pay gaps can in the longer term exacerbate the
problem. Recruiting new teachers at the top of the pay scale can
lead to subsequent poor pay progression, and impact on morale and
retention.
Interviewees also complained of high workload, often relating to
unfulfilling administrative work. Worsening student behaviour and
mental health challenges since the pandemic have also exacerbated
the challenge of retaining FE teachers.
The report calls on the Government to increase funding to the FE
sector so colleges can at least match teacher pay in secondary
schools.
It also calls for a long-term strategy and concrete resources to
help reduce workload – a principle that already exists for
state-sector primary and secondary teachers.
NFER Economist and report co-author, Dawson McLean, said:
“Further Education plays a key part in England's education
system by delivering the technical and academic training vital to
the supply of skilled workers.
“However, a historical lack of policy focus on the FE
workforce, alongside insufficient funding for colleges to
maintain competitive teacher pay, has led to enormous challenges.
Worsening pay gaps with industry and school teachers, together
with high workload, puts the FE workforce at a significant
disadvantage for recruitment and retention.
“The new Government has made a strong commitment to improving
school teacher supply in England. This commitment should apply
equally to the FE workforce.”
Jenifer Burden, Director of Programmes at Gatsby, said:
"The shortage of further education teachers in certain
fields, such as construction and engineering, is a persistent
issue in England.
“Nationally nearly half of FE teachers leave the profession
within three years. Pay is a significant factor but other
elements impact on teachers' choices. We need better data about
the numbers of individuals training for FE teaching and their
experience
“We hope that this research can be used to stimulate
consideration of how pay decisions on FE teacher pay can be
approached, much like the work of the School Teachers' Review
Body for school teachers, to inform critical policy
decisions.”
Other report findings:
- The financial responsibilities of younger workers mean they
are generally less able to take the pay cut to move from industry
into FE, driving an ageing workforce.
- Interviewees reflected how the support offered by colleges to
new staff can vary, and where this is insufficient, it is linked
to higher turnover for new recruits.
- The long-awaited FE Workforce Data Collection (FEWDC) is a
welcome new source of data on the FE workforce in England.
However, further enhancements to the data will be crucial to
ensure its longstanding value to the sector.
