TEACHERS at a south Essex sixthform college are taking strike action over pay reductions.

Staff at Seevic College, in Runnymede Chase, Thundersley, are furious after changes to their job descriptions saw approximately 20 teachers’ pay reduced, some by up to £10,000 per year.

But the college, which also has a campus in Basildon, said the restructuring is essential to safeguard future funding ahead of expected funding cuts from central government.

Members of the National Union of Teachers are refusing to work today, but the college says lessons will go ahead as normal.

Jerry Glazier, general secretary of the union’s Essex division, said: “I know there’s increased anxiety about the financial situation, but this restructuring wasn’t supposed to be about saving money.

“The amount of money the college will save isn’t huge, but it will make a big difference to these teachers at a time when the cost of living is increasing.”

The new financial package is due to begin in September. A ll staff will lose at least £1,000, with the maximum loss set to be more than £10,000.

Sarah Wright, principal and chief executive of Seevic College, said: “In the current economic climate, many colleges need to restructure and review how they operate to ensure effectiveness of outcomes for students and the proper use of public money.

“It is sometimes essential for hard, but fair decisions to be taken to protect the quality of experience for students, our funding and, therefore, the jobs of our staff.”

Seevic has offered to pay the affected staff an intermediate wage next year to reduce the effects of the cut.

However, the National Union of Teachers wants staff to retain their current pay for three years, which is what happens at secondary schools.

Mr Glazier added: “It’s an inadequate amount of money and it’s not good management technique when you have a significant amount of disaffected staff.” The union is planning two further strike days in September, if the college continues to go ahead with the pay cuts.

Seevic College offers a range of higher education courses, including A-levels and vocational programmes for teenagers aged 16 to 19, as well as some adult classes.

The college has assured pupils and parents that all lessons will go ahead as normal on Wednesday.

Mrs Wright added: “No student will be disadvantaged by this action. The vast majority of staff are working normally and the college overall is operating as usual.”