How aggression and disrespect during pay talks damaged Scottish education – and how we found a better way
After years of turbulence, Scotland’s colleges may finally have turned a corner
It has been just over a decade since national collective bargaining was introduced in Scotland’s colleges. During that time, staff pay has risen steadily, supported by accelerated implementation of the annual real living wage increase. There have also been important improvements in working conditions, including a Scotland-wide menopause policy and, in 2025, a disciplinary policy.
Such progress is essential if colleges are to attract and retain the professional talent that underpins a world-class learning experience. It also advances fair work principles.
Yet the journey has not always been smooth. Pay and conditions talks have frequently stalled in dispute and deadlock, often leading to industrial unrest. The result? Disruption to learning – sometimes at the most critical points in the academic calendar.
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‘Frequent acrimonious exchanges’
Strathesk Resolutions, commissioned in 2021 by the Scottish Government to review collective bargaining across the sector, was candid in its findings. Its 2022 report noted that “frequent acrimonious exchanges during negotiations” had tested the “enthusiasm and staying power” of employer and trade union negotiators, attributing some of this to personality clashes and ideological divides.
While the report highlighted a range of issues, the erosion of trust caused by aggression and disrespect in talks has been particularly damaging – contributing to what Strathesk called a “cycle of negative expectation”. That cycle anticipates breakdowns in negotiations, industrial action ballots, probable strikes and, ultimately, settlements requiring government intervention.
Strathesk’s report prompted improvement action but also made clear that employers and trade unions alike needed to do more.
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Further joint work followed, driven by personnel and structural change within Unison – the largest union for college professional services staff – and by the then head of national bargaining at College Employers Scotland.
With former further education minister Graeme Dey helping to bring the parties together, that work has now delivered a revised National Recognition and Procedures Agreement (NRPA), resetting the framework for negotiations in the college sector. This marks the first reform of collective bargaining arrangements since their introduction and establishes a clear ambition: to support positive, constructive industrial relations for years to come.
Respect and openness
Central to the reset is the explicit inclusion of Scotland’s Nine Principles of Public Life, strengthening the NRPA through values like respect, objectivity, and openness. Alongside structural refinements, this change will help to enhance behaviours, improve evidence use, and rebuild trust.
Beyond their respective obligations to staff and members, employers and trade unions share a duty to work together for the benefit of learners – particularly as colleges strive to be the skills engines supporting economic growth. Minimising risks to continuity and excellence in education is paramount, which is why the NRPA now makes student success a core objective for all involved in driving this change of culture.
Encouragingly – and even before the new arrangements formally take effect on March 1 – there has been a significant improvement in industrial relations. More constructive partnership working, greater collaboration and a determination to seek agreement rather than conflict have helped lay firmer foundations.
After years of turbulence, Scotland’s colleges may finally have turned a corner. If reforms deliver as intended, the focus can move away from stalemate and strikes and back to what matters most: high-quality teaching and learning for every student.
Callum Chomczuk is the director of College Employers Scotland
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