Fury After Civil Service Pay Rises Capped At 3 Amid Surging Inflation Civil Service

In a written statement released Thursday, Cabinet Secretary Heather Wheeler said public sector employers “will be free to pay average wages of up to 2%” plus an extra percentage point in some cases to “Target specific priorities in their workforce and remuneration strategies.” Chancellor Rishi Sunak lifted the public sector wage freeze last fall, but the new limit for civil servants suggests the Treasury Department remains reluctant to relax its wallet. On the contrary, the latest official data showed that the average wage in the whole economy was growing at an annual rate of 4.8%. Mark Serwotka, general secretary of the Association of Public and Commercial Services (PCS), said the offer was in fact a wage cut due to rising inflation and said he could take labor action. “The government’s failure to recognize the cost-of-living crisis is a disgrace and shows utter contempt for our hard-working members during the pandemic. PCS will now discuss an industrial response to this outrage.” Garry Graham, deputy general secretary of the Prospect union, said: “With inflation soaring, national insurance rising and energy prices skyrocketing, this 2-3% remittance guidance means another amputation of wage cuts. in real terms civil servants. “Once again the government is using the salaries of civil servants as political football and trying to balance the books by punishing the people who have offered so much through the twin challenges of Brexit and Covid.” Dave Penman, secretary general of the FDA, a union of senior civil servants, said: years helping the country through emergency health and financial situations. “Ministers run with their fingers in their ears trying to pretend it’s a job as usual.” Sunak was widely criticized after last spring’s statement that it had failed to do more to help protect workers from explosive inflation, which is projected to peak at 8%. He told the BBC on Thursday that he did not mind being unpopular because he was doing the right thing for the economy. “The hardest part of this job is not being able to do what people would like you to do because we are already borrowing quite large sums of money and I do not think it would make sense to borrow much more. “In fact, it risks exacerbating the problem when inflation and interest rates go up.” “Some of these things are difficult. Certainly not popular. “But they are responsible and they will help us in the long run and I am not going to deviate from that just for a short-term gain in popularity.” Civil servants’ remuneration guidance covers parts of Whitehall, as well as services and government agencies. Paul Johnson, director of the Institute for Financial Studies, suggested that with civil servants’ salaries already hit by a decade of real pay cuts, the government was “testing the limits of employee patience and the labor market”. The lowest paid civil servants will benefit from the increase in the national living wage, which increases by 6.6% to 9.50 pounds per hour from April 1. Meanwhile, analysis by the Health Foundation showed that rising inflation meant that NHS staff saw an average pay cut of 45 845 between 2021-22 and would see their income shrink further in 2022-23. Staff lost at least 45 845 on average, although for some it was as much as 1.6 1,690, because their pay rise by 3% was higher than inflation, as measured by the consumer price index, which reached 5, 5% in February. They were awarded 3% last summer when inflation was 1.6%. They are facing an even bigger drop in real incomes in 2022-23, because while their ministers offered 3% again, the Bank of England has predicted that inflation will rise to 8% soon. “NHS staff are already overwhelmed by money worries when they are at work and providing vital care. “These figures show why,” said Sarah Gorton, chief health officer at Unison. “Health workers need a pay rise that will help them absorb the impressive increases. “Otherwise they will leave for better paid work, which will be a disaster for patients.” Patricia Marquis, director of the Royal College of Nursing in England, said: “This analysis is shocking and will raise even more concerns among our members about the rising cost of living. “Experts are telling the government that this is likely to lead to NHS staff losses, and we know that thousands of nursing staff are feeling close to quitting. “Patients are the ones who pay the price for the government’s myopia.”

title: “Fury After Civil Service Pay Rises Capped At 3 Amid Surging Inflation Civil Service " ShowToc: true date: “2022-12-13” author: “Kirby Hogan”

In a written statement released Thursday, Cabinet Secretary Heather Wheeler said public sector employers “will be free to pay average wages of up to 2%” plus an extra percentage point in some cases to “Target specific priorities in their workforce and remuneration strategies.” Chancellor Rishi Sunak lifted the public sector wage freeze last fall, but the new limit for civil servants suggests the Treasury Department remains reluctant to relax its wallet. On the contrary, the latest official data showed that the average wage in the whole economy was growing at an annual rate of 4.8%. Mark Serwotka, general secretary of the Association of Public and Commercial Services (PCS), said the offer was in fact a wage cut due to rising inflation and said he could take labor action. “The government’s failure to recognize the cost-of-living crisis is a disgrace and shows utter contempt for our hard-working members during the pandemic. PCS will now discuss an industrial response to this outrage.” Garry Graham, deputy general secretary of the Prospect union, said: “With inflation soaring, national insurance rising and energy prices skyrocketing, this 2-3% remittance guidance means another amputation of wage cuts. in real terms civil servants. “Once again the government is using the salaries of civil servants as political football and trying to balance the books by punishing the people who have offered so much through the twin challenges of Brexit and Covid.” Dave Penman, secretary general of the FDA, a union of senior civil servants, said: years helping the country through emergency health and financial situations. “Ministers run with their fingers in their ears trying to pretend it’s a job as usual.” Sunak was widely criticized after last spring’s statement that it had failed to do more to help protect workers from explosive inflation, which is projected to peak at 8%. He told the BBC on Thursday that he did not mind being unpopular because he was doing the right thing for the economy. “The hardest part of this job is not being able to do what people would like you to do because we are already borrowing quite large sums of money and I do not think it would make sense to borrow much more. “In fact, it risks exacerbating the problem when inflation and interest rates go up.” “Some of these things are difficult. Certainly not popular. “But they are responsible and they will help us in the long run and I am not going to deviate from that just for a short-term gain in popularity.” Civil servants’ remuneration guidance covers parts of Whitehall, as well as services and government agencies. Paul Johnson, director of the Institute for Financial Studies, suggested that with civil servants’ salaries already hit by a decade of real pay cuts, the government was “testing the limits of employee patience and the labor market”. The lowest paid civil servants will benefit from the increase in the national living wage, which increases by 6.6% to 9.50 pounds per hour from April 1. Meanwhile, analysis by the Health Foundation showed that rising inflation meant that NHS staff saw an average pay cut of 45 845 between 2021-22 and would see their income shrink further in 2022-23. Staff lost at least 45 845 on average, although for some it was as much as 1.6 1,690, because their pay rise by 3% was higher than inflation, as measured by the consumer price index, which reached 5, 5% in February. They were awarded 3% last summer when inflation was 1.6%. They are facing an even bigger drop in real incomes in 2022-23, because while their ministers offered 3% again, the Bank of England has predicted that inflation will rise to 8% soon. “NHS staff are already overwhelmed by money worries when they are at work and providing vital care. “These figures show why,” said Sarah Gorton, chief health officer at Unison. “Health workers need a pay rise that will help them absorb the impressive increases. “Otherwise they will leave for better paid work, which will be a disaster for patients.” Patricia Marquis, director of the Royal College of Nursing in England, said: “This analysis is shocking and will raise even more concerns among our members about the rising cost of living. “Experts are telling the government that this is likely to lead to NHS staff losses, and we know that thousands of nursing staff are feeling close to quitting. “Patients are the ones who pay the price for the government’s myopia.”