A DEAL has been struck between NATFHE, the lecturers’ union, and a London college to prevent the sacking of nearly 600 part-timer lecturers.
Greenwich Community College had threatened 597 lecturers with redundancy if negotiations over terms and conditions broke down.
The intention was to replace them with staff employed by an agency, such as Education Lecturing Services.
But a planned strike has been called off after the college ffered a new package and pledged to continue to employ part-timers - 85 per cent of its staff - directly.
The package includes new banded rates of hourly pay and a bigger salary for a recognised teaching qualification.
Malcolm Wicks the lifelong learning minister, recently questioned in the Commons about the use of agency lecturers, said he had been “very disturbed by reports about the treatment of staff by some agencies”.
