Staff say they have tried to negotiate with the senior management at the college
Staff from two teaching unions are on strike at a Warwickshire college over accusations of "management bullying".
The one-day strike at Nuneaton's King Edward VI college comes after eight teachers were put on capability procedures after last year's A levels.
Staff are objecting to the way their performance is being judged on student performance alone.
Principal Dr Esther Maughan said the best interests of students is at the "heart of every decision".
It is joint strike action between the National Association of Schoolmasters Union of Women Teachers (NASUWT) and the National Union of Teachers (NUT).
Around 20 people are on the picket line outside the school on King Edward road, with around 19 NASUWT and 12 NUT members on strike.
Lessons are not affected as students are not currently in attendance at the college.
John Downs, NASUWT representative and chaplain of the college, said staff morale is "depressed to the lowest level" he has seen in the 26 years he has worked there.
He said: "The principal implemented a policy she calls capability and she's using a data set only of student performance to judge staff performance.
'Financial pressures'
"She takes no regard for their own expertise, their lesson observations, their track record, none of which is taken into account.
"She put nine members of staff on capability in February and the only way to get off it is to raise student achievement."
In a statement, Dr Maughan said: "Colleges, along with the rest of the public sector, are subject to extraordinary financial pressures. Despite this, we are intent on being a good employer and maintaining the conditions of service and salaries of all staff at nationally negotiated levels.
"We value the professionalism and hard work of all of our staff, but for all of us the focus remains on placing the best interests of our students at the heart of every decision we make."
- Published13 January 2012
- Published13 January 2012
