“OVERWORKED, burnt out and underpaid” college teachers, lecturers and staff have been staging strike action this week.

Truro and Penwith College staff, who are part of the University and College Union (UCU), staged pickets from 8am to 10am on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday (January 14 to 16) outside the main college site at Truro as well as at the Penwith campus.

The UCU New Deal for Further Education (FE) is a national union campaign calling for major improvements in further education staff pay, workload and working conditions. Its core demands include pay parity with schoolteachers, a national workload agreement and a binding national bargaining framework.

Those taking part in the strike action say that further education staff have faced years of low pay and rising pressures.

Truro & Penwith College is one of the further education colleges actively involved in the industrial action. Pay is set to increase by two per cent at the college against an Association of Colleges (AOC) recommendation of four per cent.

A union representative said workloads of academic staff are unmanageable due to a scheme of mass redundancies last year, after the college led a £4.2 million deficit budget.

Truro maths teacher Harriet Somers said: “This is my third year here. I’m actually head of further maths, which involves a lot of extra responsibility and work. Some weeks I’m working up to 80 hours a week and my pay is £1,000 more than a newly qualified teacher.”

She said she felt “very, very bitter” about that, adding: “I totally support this strike. We’re all overworked, burnt out and totally underpaid.”

Science lead Lawrence Moores added: “The main reason I’m here today is because, unlike other public sector workers, we’ve been offered two per cent – most other public sector workers have had about five per cent in the last couple of years.

“It’s not enough – we’re already way behind other education workers in higher education secondary and primary. It’s about time the Truro College management gave us an improvement on our pay that reflects the increase in the cost of living over the last few years.”

A spokesperson for the college said: “Truro and Penwith College has made staff, students, parents and carers aware of national strike action taking place across the further education sector this week.

“Some staff at Truro and Penwith College, who are UCU members, have chosen to take part in this action. The strike action is centred around staff pay, workload and terms and conditions of employment.

“Our priority throughout is the wellbeing and education of our students. While some lessons or activities may be disrupted, we are working hard to minimise the impact and will keep students informed directly of any changes.

“All planned external exams will continue to be held and any changes to controlled assessments will be communicated to the affected students directly.

“We respect the right of staff to take lawful industrial action and also recognise the sector-wide funding challenges facing further education. The college continues to lobby government, alongside other FE providers, for long-term investment in the sector so it can continue to transform lives.”