School support workers have been awarded compensation after it was discovered they were not given their full leave entitlement, says UNISON today (Wednesday).
An investigation by the union revealed term time only workers including teaching assistants, cooks and cleaners at schools across Torfaen who had worked for more than five years were not receiving the additional leave owed to them.
Since discovering the error, UNISON has worked with Torfaen County Borough Council to ensure long serving staff at 33 schools across the area have been paid compensation. The staff will also receive the extra leave due to them in the future.
The investigation followed an employment tribunal case involving minimum holiday payments. UNISON asked for a review of leave owed to all term time staff and discovered some long serving employees were being left short-changed.
UNISON Cymru head of schools Rosie Lewis said: “School support staff are often the first faces children see when they start their school day and the last ones to say goodbye at the gates.
“Such dedication should always be reflected in staff pay and annual leave. But many staff across Torfaen’s schools were not receiving the correct amount of leave. Thanks to the work done by union officials, that’s been put right.”
Higher level teaching assistant and UNISON Torfaen branch chair Katrina Farmer (pictured above) said: “Support staff are only paid during term time, and then at a lower rate than teachers. So even a small increase in pay, or an overdue adjustment to our annual leave, makes such a difference.
“This compensation comes at a time when the cost of living is still high and is a reward for how hard staff work to ensure local children have the best start in life.”
- A total of £162,500 was paid to staff at 33 schools across Torfaen as a result of the UNISON investigation.
- Payments have been made to staff who have served more than five years and reflect each role they have carried out. Some staff received five payments.
- UNISON is the UK’s largest union, with more than 1.3 million members providing public services in education, local government, the NHS, police service and energy. They are employed in the public, voluntary and private sectors.
