SCHOOL support staff lost more than £2.2 billion in wages last year thanks to “cruel” term-time-only contracts, according to GMB research.

While teachers are paid a salary for the entire year, teaching assistants, catering staff, caretakers and administration staff are only paid for 44 weeks and can’t claim benefits during the school holidays.

GMB national officer Stacey Booth said: “Hard-up school support staff are being discriminated against by these term-time-only contracts.

“They miss out on more than £4,000 each — every single year.

“The teachers they work with don’t have to put up with it, nor do the council workers they are lumped together with for wages.”

School support staff wages would increase by up to £4,094 every year if they were paid for the full 52 weeks of the year, according to the GMB, with around 800,000 on term-time-only contracts.

Unison, Unite and GMB have called for school and council workers to get a pay rise of at least £3,000 or 10 per cent for 2026/27, whichever is greater, as well as a minimum hourly rate of £15.

School support staff currently negotiate pay and conditions with the National Joint Council (NJC), the same as council workers who are also paid for 12 months of the year.

Ms Booth added: “For the first time in years, school support staff pay bosses will meet with us to discuss wages.

“On behalf of GMB’s 100,000 school support staff members, we will demand they get the wages they deserve.”