Pay related issues
Information and guidance on pay related matters for non-teaching staff including how decisions on pay are reached.
Pay and conditions for non-teaching staff
The vast majority of non-teaching staff in the education sector are employed by the Education Authority (with the exception of staff in Voluntary Grammar and Grant Maintained Integrated schools who are employed by the individual schools’ Board of Governors).
Decisions on pay and terms and conditions for non-teaching staff are considered by the Joint Negotiating Council (JNC) for the Education Authority which is made up of both management and union representatives. Agreements are issued via JNC Circulars which can be found at:
Agreements generally ensure continued parity with the National Joint Council (NJC) terms and conditions of service to ensure staff are not disadvantaged compared to mainland GB colleagues.
EA Pay & Grading Review
The Pay & Grading Review for support staff in Northern Ireland aims to address issues with the current grading structure and improve the recruitment & retention of employees. This Review is separate from the annual pay award for support staff. The vast majority of support staff (over 95%) have a contractual entitlement to national pay awards as agreed by the National Joint Council (NJC).
Following the successful conclusion of negotiations, a proposed agreement was developed with the support staff unions. GMB, NIPSA, Unite the Union and UNISON have confirmed their acceptance of the Pay and Grading Agreement on 13 September 2024, following consultation with their membership.
We are now proceeding to implement the agreement, with the EA payroll aiming to process stage 1 of the settlement in advance of the Christmas break.