Members of NASUWT-The Teachers’ Union at Lady Barn House School in Cheadle are taking the first of six planned days of strike action on Thursday after they were threatened with being fired from their jobs unless they accept a pay cut to retain access to the Teachers’ Pension Scheme (TPS). 

The employer is threatening teachers with ‘fire and rehire’ to force through new and inferior contracts which impose a 3.5% pay cut in return for remaining in the TPS.

Despite current financial forecasts from the school stating they can afford to continue paying pension contributions up to 2028, the employer has refused to delay the imposition of contractual changes on staff.

Dr Patrick Roach, NASUWT General Secretary, said:

“These unjustified plans are an attack on the financial security of hard-working teachers. The school is attempting to force them to choose between being left worse off in retirement or worse off now.

“To make matters worse, the behaviour of the employer has been obstructive and opaque, in an attempt to ride roughshod over teachers’ contractual terms and conditions.

“The school must now realise it cannot simply railroad these changes through and commit to a negotiated settlement to resolve this dispute.” 

Jac Casson, NASUWT National Executive Member for Greater Manchester, said:

“The school has not provided any reasonable justification for why these changes are needed now. Indeed, the school’s own financial forecasts show there are sufficient funds to continue paying pension contributions for at least the next four years.

“Instead the school is seeking to make teachers foot the bill for retaining access to a decent pension, rather than meet its own financial obligations to its hard-working staff.

“We have made every effort to suggest ways to resolve this dispute, but the employer has failed to listen or engage with us. Therefore, strike action is the only remaining option left to get the school to see sense and withdraw these plans.”