Staff members at two University of Highlands and Islands (UHI) colleges in the West Highland have voted to strike action after a national ballot of UNISON members.
UNISON members working at UHI Argyll, and UHI North, West and Hebrides could walkout next year in a long running dispute over pay and job security.
The result of a Scotland wide vote was 81 per cent in favour of a further walkout from a 59.3 per cent turnout after previous strike action by support staff in colleges earlier this year.
UNISON re-balloted its members working in colleges, after the union said that college employers failed to properly negotiate with them to reach a settlement.
The union represents librarians, IT specialists, technicians, administrative and business support staff, cleaners, canteen workers and estate management staff at the colleges.
It claims that college employers had made a three year pay offer and funds were in place for the third year of the offer, with employers saying that jobs would be at risk unless the Scottish Government guaranteed funding.
UNISON Scotland further education branch secretary, Chris Greenshields said: “This ballot result shows our members feel very strongly about the appalling approach by college employers.
“College staff are facing a second Christmas in real financial hardship. Our members have been waiting 16 months for a pay rise in line with inflation, free from the ongoing threats to their jobs.
“UNISON is calling for employers to release last year’s pay rise to college staff immediately to alleviate hardship this winter and given the unforgiveable length of time this is taking.
“We are also calling for the Scottish Government minister to join talks with unions and the employers to bring this dispute to end.”
Mr Greenshields added: “Further education is surely the worst publicly funded sector in Scotland. We have had months of disputes and job insecurity, yet here we are again lurching towards more strikes in 2024.
“College staff are left with no choice but to use the ultimate sanction to get the fair pay and job security they deserve. The Scottish Government needs to do more.”
The current offer for college staff is a £5,000 pay rise full-time equivalent (FTE), including a £2,000 increase for 2022/23, £1,500 for 2023/24 and an additional £1,500 in 2024/25.
Meanwhile, the offer would see support staff in colleges receive an average 16 per cent pay increase from September 2024, with the increase being 21.5 per cent for those earning less than £25,000.
A spokeswoman for UHI Argyll and UHI North, West and Hebrides said: “As a fair work employer, we recognise the need for fair and equitable pay for our staff, however we are disappointed this action is being taken.
“We believe the offer is fair given the significant financial challenges facing the college sector, which includes an 8.5 per cent real-terms reduction in Scottish Government funding since 2021/2022, and we would like to see our staff benefit from this pay rise as soon as possible.
“Any disruption to students and their learning experience is unwelcome and we will do all we can to minimise the impact on our students.”
Colleges across Scotland have been facing significant financial challenges in recent months, suffering Scottish Government cuts of £52 million in 2023/2024.
UHI has also highlighted to The Oban Times that a “promised” £26 million fund to support the college sector has been removed.
Overall, UNISON has a mandate to take strike action at 22 colleges across Scotland, with these also involving staff at UHI Argyll, UHI Inverness, UHI Moray and UHI Perth.
UNISON Scotland further education branch chair, Collette Bradley added: “The prospect of a three-year deal was suggested by the Scottish Government, most likely as a means of securing industrial peace in a sector that has been blighted with industrial action for around a decade.
“It’s time the Scottish Government pulled out all the stops if it is serious about the working class learners who depend on colleges and the vital role the sector plays in the Scottish economy.”
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “While operational decisions on pay and staffing matters are the responsibility of individual colleges, the Scottish Government remains concerned by the impact this current action is having on students.
“We expect employers and trade unions to make every effort to reach a settlement which is both fair and affordable with a view of bringing this industrial action to a close.
“The Scottish Government recognises the crucial role of our further and higher education sector, which is why we have invested nearly £2 billion a year in Scotland’s colleges and universities, supporting them to deliver high quality teaching and training.”