TEACHERS have spoken of their “crippling” struggles with the cost of living – including a single parent claiming she has gone without food at times – as one of the Island’s main unions continues its strike over pay.
The National Education Union has provided the JEP with anonymised accounts from teachers, sharing stories of their financial difficulties – with some warning they may have no choice but to “jump ship” and leave Jersey.
The union initiated a three-day strike yesterday, after its members voted to reject the government’s latest offer of an 8% pay increase that would take effect from 1 January 2024, a one-off payment of £1,000 on the same date and pay rises matching inflation for 2025 and 2026.
Teachers have already received a 7.9% pay rise for 2023, backdated to 1 January this year.
In 2022, the average pay of a teacher in Jersey was £54,280.
In one of the anonymised accounts provided by the NEU, a teacher wrote: “The cost of living has risen so steeply that my wage no longer stretches far enough to cover my rent, bills and meals for myself and my children.
“As a single parent, I’ve had to go evenings without food for myself towards the end of the month because I’ve run out of money and will always prioritise food for my children. As a professional with a degree and postgraduate qualifications, I shouldn’t be in this situation.”
Another said they were in “terrible debt”.
They added: “What was once affordable and seen as an attractive place to work has now become crippling. I have had summons [for] petty debts for which I am mortified. I feel absolutely trapped and in a desperate situation. On paper it looks like I earn a reasonable salary but the reality is hugely different.”
And one teacher warned that the rising cost of living, coupled with year-on-year “real-terms pay cuts”, was putting people off taking up the profession in the Island.
They said: “Jersey no longer has the appeal to UK teachers it once had. Fewer people every year are applying for teaching jobs and we are not recruiting the quality teachers we need. If it continues I will have to move back to the UK, leaving another vacancy that will likely go unfilled.”
Earlier this week, Social Security Minister Elaine Millar, who is also vice-chair of the States Employment Board, said it was “incredibly disappointing” that the NEU had rejected the SEB’s latest offer and called for the union to be “realistic”.
In a full-page advert in yesterday’s JEP, the government said that it had made an offer that was “fair to teachers and affordable for Jersey”.
It added: “This year the States Employment Board (SEB) recommended that a 7.9% pay rise should be given to public servants who provide invaluable services across the Island.
“The offer, which the government believes was reasonable and fair, was accepted by every other group in the public service, including those in the emergency services who we’ve relied on so heavily in the last year and school support staff such as teaching assistants, lunchtime supervisors and caretakers.
“Despite this, the teaching unions requested a 15.4% pay rise this year and the NEU have asked for a 17.6% rise in 2024.
“Everyone would like a significant pay rise, but the government is equally certain that Islanders can see this is simply unrealistic when average earnings increased by 7.7% in the last year.
“Giving in to the unions’ demands would put public finances into the red and keep them there.”
The union’s joint district and branch secretary in Jersey, Adrian Moss, has said its members are looking for a “cost-of-living pay rise” of 10.1%, which matches the most recently published RPI inflation rate.
