PAY CAMPAIGN RESPONSES: page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17

I am concerned for myself but mainly for the young teachers saddled with massive debts. The proposed performance management system will just put more strain on middle managers charged with saying "no, you can't have your performance-related pay." A campaign by the union could change all that. ­ DM, West Sussex

I am a 2nd year trainee teacher, this time next year I will be looking for jobs. I may not be able to live and pay my loan back without keeping my current part time job. If we as a profession aren’t worthy of a decent salary then I don't know what this country is coming to. - MN, Durham

It seems to me, as a teacher’s partner, that what you need to do is boycott the teaching of all MPs’ children while continuing to teach all the other pupils as usual. I predict you would get what you deserve in terms of pay etc within a month. Good Luck. - TP, no address

It's no good the Government saying 'Education, education, education' and then slapping us with a pay cut whilst ensuring they have pay rises above inflation. When are teachers going to stop whinging about this and actually do something? We need action and we need it now! - GF, Birmingham

As an NQT I feel disheartened at the Government’s attitude towards teachers pay. I have tried to forecast where I will be in 5 years and I don’t feel that my financial position will improve enough for me to stay in the job. It’s a shame, because I like teaching, but I have to pay bills like everyone else. - AA, St Helens

Come on Labour, come on Alan, come on the STRB..... Give us what we're worth and reap the rewards. Increased levels of motivation and feelings of security and self-worth would mean that the country gets back ten-fold the cost of giving an above inflation pay rise! It's got to make sense. - SD, Hartlepool

The amount of blood, sweat and tears that all teachers put into meeting Government demands are simply not reflected in pay. If I calculated the amount of hours I spend both working in school and at home, the pay would work out at way, WAY below minimum wage. "Those who can, teach." WHAT A JOKE!! NG, Staffordshire

I find it frustrating that most teachers are paid twice, if not three times as much as most support staff whilst we have the same sorts of living costs. It's the whole industry that needs overhauling - not only teachers. - CN, Kent

Working in a special needs school, I face the prospect of moving further away in order to buy a home. The students will suffer as tiredness and stress take over. - JW, Wandsworth

I support higher pay for teachers but remember that the rest of us who work in schools (TAs, bursars, office staff) have had a 2% rise for 2 years. 'Affordability' didn't stop MPs awarding themselves rises did it... Support us too! - LA, Surrey

We are to blame for putting up with long hours and poor pay. We are all dedicated to our pupils and afraid of the impact industrial action will have on our careers and our pupils. Those in power know this and take advantage of us, no other professional would put up with these conditions. - NS, Liverpool

Our mortgage payments have increased by 30% in the past year. This leads to a stressful time from the middle of the month onwards, on top of the stress from the teaching workload. Our home is not a particularly happy one during those weeks. - NF, Cambridgeshire

I left the private sector to join the teaching profession because I wanted to do something rewarding and because the pay in teaching seemed to have improved under Labour. Three years on and I feel I am almost being forced back to my old job in the private sector. Please help me stay in the job I love! Pay in line with inflation - is that too much to ask for? - JM, Wandsworth

It's not just teachers who have been offered a pay offer less than inflation - all school support staff have too. Unison and the GMB refused to present the 2% pay offer to their members, saying it was "insulting and demeaning" and "not good enough to consult on". We are still waiting for news of a further offer. Maybe teaching and support staff unions will work together for the common cause. - Paul, East Sussex

I'm starting as an NQT in September - I wanted to be able to move away to a new area but have had to resort to staying at home because even renting is not economically viable, let alone the thought of getting a house! MJ, Solihull

Every day my anxiety level increases, servicing large debts from training) and facing ever increasing costs. I eat at most once a day, often as remuneration for undertaking lunch-time duties at school. It is a little wonder education is on the ropes if teachers abuse themselves by malnourishing their bodies. - AA, Buckinghamshire

We just simply deserve the right to be paid a wage that will reflect the incredible job we all do, a wage that enables us to have a life in the small amount of time we are not planning, marking, writing reports.......need I go on. - SW, Essex

I took an £8000 pay drop from the private sector to become a teacher. I love my job but as an NQT I am seriously struggling with the low pay. Living in north London I can only just afford my rent and bills and any form of luxury is a no-no! We do not receive pay equivalent to the time and effort we put in! - KW, Hertfordshire

I am starting to notice the gradual erosion in pay now. As a father of 3 children, with a wife who only works part-time, last summer I had to take on holiday work to top up my pay and will probably have to do the same again this year. Six weeks off is now six weeks for extra work, not to refresh myself for the new year in September - JB, Sefton

Although I didn't enter the profession for money I (as well as my partner and family) cannot believe the amount we are paid for the massive amount of time and effort we put in. - Vikki, Northants

I am a science teacher with 25 years experience. As a result of TLRs, I stand to lose £5768 from December 2008. My son is about to start in a graduate career with a £22,000 salary rising to £30,000 on completion of his 1st year. I will be on £32,000 - so much for 25 years in the profession!!! - IN, East Sussex

I grew up in London and love working in Southwark. I don't know how I will be able to afford a two bedroom flat here for me and my child. - JB, Southwark

I am on M3 and a single mother of 3 – I have had to resort to credit cards and I am now heavily indebted. I don't feel happy and am thinking of leaving London if that will help. The government really needs to do something about it. - FBB, Hackney

Going into my 4th year and moving back home from London to Bracknell Forest, I am taking a £6000 pay cut. - CM, Bracknell Forest

I am approaching the end of my NQT year and I am a single mother of two and find it extremely difficult to live. There needs to be much more of a pay incentive for us newer teachers to stay in the profession. We work extremely hard to do our job well - why shouldn't we be paid accordingly. - JE, London

I have nearly finished my first year of teaching and I have to live with my parents. This makes me mad, as my friends are all single mums who had a baby when they were young and they all have a house. I decide to work hard, go to Uni and get a job and I cannot get anything! - KH, North Yorkshire

I went overseas to work for 3 years and since I came back to the UK last year, I have really noticed how low morale is amongst teachers at the moment - the workload, even with PPA time, still grows, eating into work/life balance. - KL, Hammersmith & Fulham

What kind of country is this where firstly teachers have to pay to train themselves and then are given a salary that doesn't enable them to buy a home and isn't even in line with inflation? SR, Birmingham

As a professional educator I am effectively being snubbed by the government. The country would be in a bit of a mess if we all changed professions together! Things need to improve for us or the teacher shortage will be a teacher void. - DW, Doncaster

The Lincolnshire Echo published the following statistics. An NQT on £19,500 would get a mortgage of £66,000 from most lenders. If (a big if with student debt) they had a £10,000 deposit, they would be looking for a house at £76,000. Only two houses in the paper fitted the bill - a one bed bungalow in a village outside Lincoln and a two bed house in a social deprivation area in the city! - AWG, Lincolnshire

Last year I split up from the father of my children. I love my job but I am now constantly counting the pennies, struggling to make ends meet. I have raided my kids savings and spent most of this morning on the phone to collection agencies. - CL, Gateshead

The financial gamble I took to enter a career in teaching is proving to have been a dangerous risk. I responded to the Government’s plea for new teachers but now I feel I have been let down. - DA, Trafford