WORKSHOP technical support staff at South West College claim they are being “discriminated against” over pay and suggest management have offered “no answers” to their concerns.
A number of allegations around pay at the college which has a campus in Enniskillen were made in a letter to this newspaper this week sent on behalf of support staff. 
The letter writer, who has asked to remain anonymous, suggested that the organisation has set its pay grade for workshop technical support staff at ‘band three’ “while all the other further education colleges have set their pay grades at a grade four for the exact same job role.” A claim disputed by the college.
“For several years the technical support team and I have received no justified answer,” said the letter writer. “We have been told by management that we need extra responsibilities to receive an upgrade in pay yet every year we have to take on extra duties and have become responsible for extra workshops and areas with hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of machinery and equipment. Somehow management can get away with saying these extra duties do not inflict in the pay scale.”
The letter writer also claimed that support staff “are being pressured into covering classes while lecturers attend meetings, or help out because lecturing staff are not qualified in these areas. No extra pay is received by the support staff for these duties.”
“No matter what management say we believe that they are totally unjustified with the pay scale. We are at least entitled to be on the same pay grade as technical support staff in other further education colleges.”
“It is for this reason that the South West College technical support staff are seeking help from outside bodies because we certainly aren’t getting any support or help from within our organisation and feel we are being discriminated against,” said the letter writer, adding that a copy of the letter had been sent to “several media outlets and governing bodies.”
The claims were put to the management of South West College by The Impartial Reporter.
In a statement yesterday (Wednesday) Chief Executive Malachy McAleer said: “South West College Workshop Technician pay grades are reflective of those across Northern Ireland colleges.”
“South West College has a strong culture of engagement with staff, particularly through trade union forums. A culture of open discussions is encouraged and there is a strong and award-winning Workforce Development Programme. Engagement with this Workforce Development Programme provides opportunities for staff to upskill, hence facilitating enhanced job opportunities and progression up pay scales,” he said. 
Mr. McAleer said this process has been discussed with trade unions “and will be central to workforce development over incoming years as technology impacts on all roles.”
Addressing other claims by the letter writer, he added: “It is the custom and practice to use part-time lecturers to cover classes in the event of full-time staff being otherwise engaged. Part-time lecturers are interviewed to establish their suitability and ensure they have the necessary qualifications and experience to be retained on a part-time lecturer list. Part-time lecturers are paid at regionally agreed rates.”