On an annual basis the UCEA conducts pay negotiations on behalf of HE employers with recognised trades unions and the University is committed to participation in these negotiations. This year’s negotiations took place in an uncertain financial climate against a backdrop of all Higher Education Institutions facing significant financial pressures. Given these financial pressures and uncertainty facing the sector, UCEA has confirmed there will be no uplift in the national pay spine for 2020-21 which at Oxford applies to all non-clinical staff.
UCEA has issued the following statement:
In July UCEA informed trade unions that, given the pressures facing the sector, we were not in a position to offer an uplift in pay for 2020-21. Despite the recent announcements of initial student numbers, that position remains unchanged. It is too early to assess the impact of those initial numbers alongside the unprecedented financial challenges faced by all of our members. What is clear is that the late changes to the handling of school exam results mean that student numbers remain uncertain, while higher education institutions continue to deal with the longer term financial effects of Covid-19, Brexit and significant increases in employers’ pension contributions.
The scale of the financial challenges posed by the pandemic has been recognised by our trade unions. Nonetheless, UCEA has agreed to a New JNCHES autumn meeting to review the financial position of the sector and, if circumstances allow, we are willing to begin negotiations for the 2021-22 pay round earlier in the calendar year.
Automatic service-related increments for eligible staff will progress as usual and the University has maintained its commitment to implement the Oxford Living Wage which provided a pay increase for the lowest paid staff with effect from 1 August.
For any staff experiencing unexpected financial difficulties as a direct result of the coronavirus pandemic the University has set up a Staff Hardship Fund.
