THIS old man is not turning in his grave. He is, however, very concerned at the attempts of the Darlington College management to reduce the wages of lecturing staff.

These wages and terms and conditions did not come lightly: they took many hours of serious negotiations to achieve.

The wages were based upon the reduction of holiday from 12 weeks to seven and a change in teaching hours.

The college got longer opening weeks and longer teaching hours, both of which resulted overall in a reduction of staff. It also allowed for the transfer of some professional teaching posts to be covered by less qualified personnel, again reducing overall costs.

What it did not cover was senior staff being paid a ten per cent pay award while the majority of staff got one per cent, and that was based upon achieving a two per cent saving in operating cost.

So, this old man is appalled at the suggestion that wages should be cut because staff at another institution get lower wages.

One problem is that the current staff, including those who manage the institution, have little or no idea of what was given up to achieve the current wage structures.

Remember, the principal’s salary at about the level of the Prime Minister will result in an annual pension greater than very many college staff earn as a standard salary.

Richard Armstrong, former college staff member, Darlington