Plaid Cymru AMs have today called for the pay of further education college principals in Wales to be frozen after it was revealed they earn up to £152,000 a year.
The principals at Coleg Llandrillo, whose main campus is at Rhos-On-Sea, and Deeside College at Connah’s Quay, earn more than £152,000 – higher than the Prime Minister and First Minister – and twice as much as the lowest paid FE principal.
Figures from the Statistics Office show, for example, that 60 per cent of workers in Clwyd West, which includes Rhos-On-Sea, earn £23,468 or less while in Alyn and Deeside the figures are £23,080 – six times less than the principals of the colleges.
Leanne Wood, who represents South Wales Central, obtained the figures using the Freedom of Information Act having previously sought details of the pay of high earners at Welsh universities.
Ms Wood said: “At a time when some colleges are contemplating cutting courses and laying off staff because of Westminster budget cuts, the pay of high earners must be looked at..
“There is a case for the salaries of the highest earners to be frozen, or even reduced in exceptional circumstances. We should not be prepared to contemplate a situation where those at the bottom make greater sacrifices than those at the top.
“There is a huge difference between salaries at further education colleges and it seems to me that the pay levels do not necessarily relate to the number of students or staff numbers.”
Nerys Evans AM, Plaid’s Education Spokesperson, added: “In these difficult economic times, it is only right that we are fully aware of where public money is being spent. The high number of high earners within the education sector does raise questions about whether scarce public funds are being spent in our classrooms and lecture halls. It also raises serious questions about the accountability of our further education colleges. There is a severe lack of political accountability at the moment. The current situation is insufficient and unsustainable and must be looked at.”
