UNIVERSITY Campus Suffolk (UCS) pays its staff some of the lowest wages in the UK, the Evening Star can reveal.

UNIVERSITY Campus Suffolk (UCS) pays its staff some of the lowest wages in the UK, the Evening Star can reveal.

Employees at the newly-established centre for higher education receive more than �12,000 less than the average UK salary for full-time members of academic staff, according to figures from the Times Higher Education (THE).

Despite not appearing on the list, UCS has confirmed the average salary of a full-time member of staff is �32,816.

This is well below the UK average of �44,914 during 2007-8 and would have placed the college 162 of 166 UK higher education establishments on the latest league table.

A spokeswoman for UCS said: “UCS does not appear in all listings as we are not a university in our own right.

“We are structured differently to a traditional university.

“The joint university status means that we are often included into the statistics provided by the Universities of East Anglia and Essex.”

The same figures also revealed the salaries paid to university chiefs across the country.

Currently, the UCS head, Professor Bob Anderson, earns �135,000 annually.

This would rank him 138 of 156 on the THE league table although this sum is much lower than the average 2007-8 UK vice-chancellor salary of �193,970.

However, a spokeswoman confirmed this was due to USC's joint status.

“UCS does not have a vice-chancellor,” she said.

“Professor Bob Goodwin holds the title of Pro-Vice-Chancellor and Chief Executive.”

In contrast, the vice-chancellor of the University of East Anglia, Professor Bill Macmillan took home �213,000 in 2007-8, an increase of 8.7 per cent from the previous year, while his counterpart at the University of Essex, Professor Colin Riordan drew a salary of �186,000, an increase of 3.9 per cent.

They rank 51 and 91 respectively on the league table of 156 university vice-chancellors.

But an industry leader claims these wages will not continue rising.

“With a very different outlook ahead, we would not expect to see this trend continue," said Jocelyn Prudence, chief executive of the Universities and Colleges Employers Association (Ucea).

“Stability and sustainability of institutions remain of paramount importance during this time of economic uncertainty.”

n. Do you think UCS should earn as much as other universities? Write to Your Letters, Evening Star, 30 Lower Brook Street, Ipswich, IP4 1AN or email eveningstarletters@eveningstar.co.uk