Update on pay award 2024 - 25

19 Jul 2024

Latest update on the 2024/25 pay negotiations

Each year UCEA, the Universities and Colleges Employers Association, which oversees pay for 170 member organisations enters pay negotiations with the Higher Education Trade Unions (TU’s) though the NEW JNCHES framework to agree the pay award for that year.

As part of this year’s pay negotiations, UCEA has met regularly with officers for each Trade Union (UCU, UNISON, Unite, EIS, and GMB) to reach a collective agreement on the pay award for this year. Negotiations were due to conclude by 29 April but were extended at the request of the TU’s and a final negotiating meeting took place on 26 June.

On 3 July 2024, UCEA made its final offer, outlining a phased uplift ranging from 2.5% to 5.7%.

UCU has since rejected this offer and UNISON’s Sector Group Executive has voted to consult members with a recommendation to reject the offer.

UCEA is now in the process of arranging meetings under the New JNCHES dispute resolution procedure, whereby both parties (UCEA and TU’s) will come together to try to reach a collective agreement on the pay award for this year. The intention is that the meetings associated with this process  will take place over August but this will be confirmed once they have received confirmation from all trade union officers.

As a consequence, UCEA have now confirmed that it will not be possible for member organisations, including our university, to implement a pay uplift from 1 August 2024. 

In the meantime, the 2023 JNCHES pay spine will remain the same but all eligible colleagues will still receive their pay spine increment increase from 1 August 2024.

We will provide another update when there are any further developments.