Supply Teachers’
Seminar
Your contract and rights at
work
NASUWT survey
NASUWT survey, which received over 1,000 responses,
found that:
– 63% of supply teachers not paid at level that recognises
experience
– 47% believe they are used to cover the lessons of difficult
pupils
– 38% report a decline in the work available since
September 2010;
– 75% working for agencies because is only route to get
work
– 63% not had access to training and CPD opportunities
– 89% not given appropriate information to support them
when they enter the school for the first time
– 41% not always have access to food and drink facilities
Poll of supply teachers
Real-time electronic poll of supply teachers attending the
conference in March found that:
– 65% have seriously considered leaving teaching in last 12
months
– 63% say work has impacted negatively on health and
wellbeing in the last 12 months
– 42% say job satisfaction has declined in the last 12 months
– 95% do not think the government understands the needs of
supply teachers
– 82% do not think that the government values and respects
supply teachers
– 53% have had no access to CPD in the last year;
– 23% say they often or usually have problems getting supply
work or can’t get any at all
NASUWT campaign
• Statutory regulation of umbrella companies and supply
agencies;
• Pay commensurate with school-based teachers;
• Statutory duty on all state-funded schools to employ
qualified teachers for all teaching activities;
• Duty on all supply agencies to make supply teachers
aware of their employment rights from day one;
• Entitlement to regular CPD for all supply teachers;
• Supply work to be pensionable and all supply teachers
entitled to membership of Teachers’ Pension Scheme
Pay of supply teachers
• Pay of supply teachers determined by the employer
• Subject to any statutory regulations or agreements that apply
nationally and/or locally
• Nature of individual’s employment relationship is critical in
determining the pay, pensions and conditions of service
• The main supply teacher employment relationships include:
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employed directly by a local authority
employed directly by a school maintained by a local authority
employed directly by academies, free schools, independent, etc.
employed directly by an employment agency or umbrella
company
– employed as a ‘contractor’ or on a self-employed basis.
School Teachers’ Pay and Conditions
Document (STPCD)
Changes since 2010 which particularly impact on supply
teachers
• No pay portability
• No automatic annual progression
• Differing pay scales school to school
• Pay progression linked directly to performance through
appraisal
• No national standards for ‘threshold’
• More discretion in school pay policies
Rights under STPCD
Teacher employed directly by local authority or maintained
school
• Entitled to be paid in accordance with STPCD
• Entitled to be paid on the same basis as all other teachers
under the terms of the pay policy of the local authority/school
Employed directly by academies, free schools, independent
• Entitled to be paid in accordance with STPCD where school
has entered into a collective agreement with the NASUWT to
employ all teachers in accordance with national
schoolteachers’ terms and conditions
• Otherwise entitled to pay on the same basis as all other
teachers at the school
Employment under STPCD
• The STPCD defines the pay, conditions of service (including
working time) and professional duties of teachers.
• National framework
• Statutory and contractual
• STPCD describes supply teachers as ‘short notice’ teachers
and stipulates that they must be paid as follows:
38.1
Teachers employed on a day-to-day or other short notice basis
must be paid in accordance with the provisions of this Document
on a daily basis calculated on the assumption that a full working
year consists of 195 days, periods of employment for less than a
day being calculated pro rata
• Daily rate = X (annual salary)/195 days
Pay Portability
• The STPCD states:
Any pay increase …awarded to a teacher on the
main pay range, the upper pay range or the
unqualified teacher pay range …or any
movement between those pay ranges must be
permanent for as long as the teacher remains
employed within the same school but is not
otherwise to be deemed to be permanent by
operation of the terms of this Document or any
earlier Document
Upper Pay Range
School Teachers’ Pay and Conditions Document says:
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must pay a teacher on upper pay range if teacher is
employed in a school as a post-threshold teacher, for
as long as the teacher is so employed at that school
• may pay a teacher on the upper pay range if:
– teacher is defined as a “post-threshold teacher”
but was not employed as a post-threshold teacher
in that school
– teacher applied to another educational setting to
be paid on upper pay range and application was
successful
Pay Portability - Impact on Supply
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Previous salary need not apply
Dependent on school’s pay policy
Could pay at minimum of Main Range
Other schools can ignore any pay progression
• More work?
• Less pay?
Pay Progression
• No automatic annual progression
• Previously had to work in 26 weeks or part thereof
• Pay progression linked directly to performance through
appraisal
• Appraisal only applies if contract is for a term or more
• Pay more for experience?
• Bargaining?
Appraisal
• Appraisal period normally twelve months
• Teachers employed on fixed term contract of less than
one year but at least one term
• Cannot apply to ‘short notice teachers’
• Not NQT during induction
• Length of period determined by duration of contract
• Performance managed with same principles underpinning
the policy
– Objectives
– Pupil progress
– Observation
• Pay progression?
PPA Time
• Units of not less than half an hour
• During the school’s timetabled teaching week
• Not less than 10% of the teacher’s timetabled teaching
time
• Must not be required to carry out any other duties during
PPA time
• Single day supply - PPA Time?
Meetings and duties
• STPCD silent for ‘short notice teachers’
• Pro-rata principle?
• Part-time teacher should not have a greater proportion of
their directed time allocated outside their normal sessions
than is the case for full-time teachers
• Can be required to undertake break duty, registration and
assemblies
• Meetings and other activities outside of school sessions
• Minimise situations where part-time teachers are subject
to directed time either side of a period when they are not
required to be available for work
Induction of NQTs in England
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No time limit on start of induction period
No limit on period of time induction must be completed
Five-year maximum on short-term supply teaching after QTS
Can start induction if employed if post lasts one term or more
Regular teaching of the same class or classes
Short-term contract or in supply post of one term or more
School must count the period towards induction
Provide an induction programme
Cannot backdate the start of induction
Induction of NQTs in Wales
• Programme of development, monitoring and support
• Support of mentor throughout induction period;
• Flexibility for teachers working part-time, have breaks in
employment or work on short-term supply basis
• 380 sessions to complete Induction
• No time limit on NQT to complete Induction
• NQTs without regular employment can accrue school
sessions until 380 sessions have been completed
• Induction as short-term supply teacher Notification Form
• Log sessions on EWC website
• 50 sessions – access to mentor
Employment by an agency
• No national pay and conditions for supply teachers
employed by agencies
• Individual agencies free to set their own pay and
conditions
• Backdrop of general employment legislation
• Agencies charge each school a day rate when providing a
teacher
• Amount charged to school greater than amount paid to
teacher undertaking the supply work
Role and rate of pay
• Relevant rate of pay determined by nature of job
• ‘Specified work’ teaching requiring skills and expertise of
a teacher
• Be paid as a teacher
• Not a Cover Supervisor or a Teaching Assistant
• ‘Specified work’, includes planning, preparing and
delivering lessons and courses to pupils and assessing
and reporting on the development, progress and
attainment of pupils
Pensions
• Teachers’ Pension Scheme (TPS) employers will autoenrol teachers in the TPS
• If not enrolled in TPS then details of pension scheme
• Pension contributions
• National Employment Savings Trust (NEST)
Auto-enrolment in NEST
• Employment agencies which are not in the TPS may
auto-enrol teachers in NEST
• Members with a TPS pension may not want a NEST
pension.
• Auto-enrolled workers can opt out of NEST or cease to
pay contributions to NEST
• One month to choose not to join, or ‘opt out’
• If workers miss the opt-out window they will not receive
any contributions they have paid until they are 55
What you should check
• Compare the rates offered by each agency
• Confirm the payment policies of the agency
• Paid on an hourly, sessional, or daily rate basis
• How payment is made e.g. bank transfer
• May not be paid for any time when they are not
undertaking teaching
• Right to register with other agencies to secure supply
work in the local area
At the school
As a supply teacher, on first reporting for work at a school (or
beforehand if possible), you should ask for:
• Tour or map of the school
– Classrooms
– first-aid/medical room,
– fire exits
– staffroom and toilets
• Emergency evacuation route and procedure
• Timetable with timing of sessions, breaks and lunch periods;
• Lesson plans for the lessons you will be expected to teach
• Details of how to access any resources
• Seating plan/list of names of pupils in class(es) you will be teaching
At the school (2)
You should ask for:
• Information about pupils - medical conditions, SEN
• Information about procedures for managing pupil behaviour
• Expectations regarding marking and assessment of pupils’
work
• Who to contact if have questions, a problem or emergency
• Pupil registration procedures and dismissal at end of day
• Confirmation of whom you should report to each day
• Details of any events, meetings or other activities taking place
that may involve some or all of the pupils you will teach
• If at the school for a period of time a copy of the school
calendar (including meetings, training days, etc.)
Agency Workers
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NASUWT campaigning for action to tackle the agencies
Exploiting supply teachers
Denying them the pay and working conditions
In Autumn Statement the Chancellor belatedly agreed to
examine the use of umbrella companies
• NASUWT has called for agencies to be regulated and
welcomes the proposal for licensing
• Licence must also make a contribution to closing tax
loopholes exploited by some agencies which cost public
purse millions of pounds a year
The Agency Workers Regulations 2010
• The NASUWT broadly welcomed the implementation in
October 2011 of the EU Agency Workers Directive,
through the Agency Worker Regulations (AWR) 2010
• Designed to ensure that agency workers are treated in
same way as directly employed workers carrying out the
same type of work
• 12-week qualifying period
Definition of agency workers
An agency worker is defined in Regulation 3 (1) as an
individual who:
(a) is supplied by a temporary work agency to work
temporarily for and under the supervision and
direction of a hirer; and
(b) has a contract with the temporary work agency
which is:
(i) a contract of employment with the agency, or
(ii) any other contract with the agency to perform
work or services personally
‘Hirer’ for agency supply teachers
The ‘hirer’ is person or entity to whom the agency worker
is supplied and is responsible for supervising and directing
the worker while they undertake the assignment
Maintained schools
• In community schools, local authority is ‘hirer’. In foundation and
voluntary aided/controlled schools, hirer is governing body
Academies, free schools and trust schools
• ‘Hirer’ is the proprietor, person or organisation that has entered into
a funding agreement with the Secretary of State and to whom the
worker is supplied
Independent schools
• ‘Hirer’ may be governing body/board, trustees or proprietor
Agency workers’ rights - Day-one
• From the first day of assignment
• Equal access to collective facilities and amenities.
• Includes access to childcare provision, use of canteen,
staff room, car parking and provision of prayer room.
• Receive information on vacancies that become available
during an assignment
• Given same opportunity as directly recruited workers to
gain permanent employment with ‘hirer’
• Hirers can only refuse workers access to facilities if they
can objectively justify the refusal
Rights after 12 weeks’ employment
• Following 12 continuous weeks in same ‘role’ with ‘same hirer’
• Right to same ‘basic’ pay and conditions as if directly
employed
• Rate of pay, hours of work, rest breaks and annual leave
• Does not extend to other benefits such as:
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pension
occupational sick pay
maternity and adoption pay
paid time off for carrying out trade union activities
expenses and other benefits
• Still be eligible to receive statutory sick, maternity, paternity,
shared parental and adoption pay and paid time off for
antenatal appointments
How much pay after 12 weeks?
• Amount the agency supply teacher will be paid depends
on pay policy of ‘hirer’
• Expect to be paid same as teachers doing similar work
and similar level of skills and experience
• Teacher may request a copy of the pay policy of school at
any time
• Where pay policy is unclear or is not provided upon
request
• Contact the NASUWT for advice
Issues
• Does not mean that workers would become permanent
employee of hirer after 12 weeks
• Qualifying period of 12 weeks must be continuous
• Not all breaks will interrupt continuity completely
• Some breaks merely cause continuity to pause
• No minimum hours to be worked in any week
• Therefore any time spent working in any week will mean
that week is eligible for 12-week qualifying period
• A ‘week’ is defined as a calendar week starting on day
worker starts with hirer (for example Monday to Sunday)
Impact of break on qualifying period
Any break for any reason of up to six
weeks (e.g. summer holidays)
‘Pauses’ the period
Annual leave, school holidays or other ‘Pauses’ the period
school closures
Up to 28 weeks’ sickness absence or
jury service
‘Pauses’ the period
Where an agency teacher is on
The period continues
maternity, paternity or adoption leave,
these weeks all count towards
qualification
The ‘same role’
• 12-week qualifying period must be spent in same role
• Role considered the ‘same’ role unless it involves a
substantially different type of work.
• The NASUWT considers that all classroom teaching
would be the same role irrespective of the subject and the
age range of the pupils being taught in any school
• Regulations requires that an agency must send written
notification to the agency teacher if it intends to move
him/her to a ‘new’ role.
The ‘same hirer’
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Move between schools within the same local authority
Within the same academy chain (MAT)
As long as the employer does not change
Role is substantially the same
Provisions for ‘connected hirers’
12-week qualifying period continues
• Moving between different schools where there is a change of
employer
• Academy, free school or independent school
• Qualifying period restarts
‘Permanent’ contracts with agencies
• If worker has ‘permanent contract of employment’ with
their agency
• Right to equal pay in schools does not apply
• Other basic rights do apply (access to facilities and
vacancies)
• Contract must provide that agency continues to pay
worker between assignments when there is no work
• Rate of pay should be minimum of 50% of highest weekly
pay in previous 12 weeks
• No lower than the National Minimum Wage
Permanent contract terms
• Regulation 5 of the AWR (the right to equal pay) is disapplied
• The contract must include the following for the derogation to
apply:
– the scale or rate of remuneration and method of calculation
– the location(s) where the agency worker might be expected to
work
– the expected hours of work during an assignment
– the maximum number of hours of work that the agency worker
may be required to work each week, during any assignment
– the minimum number of hours work per week that may be offered
to the agency worker
– the nature of the work that the agency worker may be expected to
be offered
Umbrella companies
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Managed Services Company legislation April 2007
Introduced to get rid of third-party service companies
Many have now reappeared as umbrella companies
Some of these companies are based outside the UK
Two thirds of supply teachers asked to sign agreements
with umbrella or offshore companies
• Allow supply agencies to avoid paying tax
• Teachers commonly denied their entitlements on pay,
pensions and working conditions
• Asked to pay both Employer’s and Employee’s National
Insurance contributions
What you need to know
• Seek advice on terms of your contracts with recruitment
agency and umbrella company
• If required to enter agreements with umbrella company as
precondition for being provided work report this to your
NASUWT Local Union Representative
• Making work provision to a supply teacher conditional on
employment by the umbrella company is unlawful
• Always check payslip to ensure that PAYE and NI contributions
have been deducted
• Liability to account to HMRC for both tax-deducted and NI
contribution lies with umbrella company
What you need to avoid
• Avoid claiming tax-related expenses without first obtaining
legal advice
• Avoid signing any document absolving recruitment
agency or umbrella company of any liability
• Not paying the employer’s NI contribution or income tax
– Always check your payslip
Tax treatment on work-related expenses
• Claiming work-related travel and accommodation expenses is
permissible by law
• Only if temporary worker carrying out work of limited duration
• Number of assignments, based at different workplaces
• If only single assignment expense claims will not be permitted
• Can claim expenses, provided their workplace meets HMRC’s
definition of a temporary workplace, where attendance lasts no
longer than 24 months
• As soon as you know that your assignment at that workplace
will last beyond 24 months stop claiming travel and
accommodation expenses
Supply Advisor
You can visit the ‘Supply Advisor’ website to rate
your experience of working for supply agencies in
the UK and help to improve conditions for all supply
teachers
www.supplyadvisor.co.uk.