Issue - meetings

This report provides Members with a variety of options in considering of a pay award for employees for 2023/24 within the funding envelope specified at the last meeting of General Purposes Committee on 25 January.

Careful consideration was given to a number of options for an employee pay award for 2023/24 within a ‘funding envelope’ of £584k.  At the meeting of General Purposes on 25 January 2023, Members had supported the principle of a 5% pay award but asked for a range of options to be assessed and presented for further consideration. 

Concern was expressed that staff on the lowest wage were least resilient to the current cost of living crisis.  However, it was also recognised that staff on a medium/higher wage could equally be impacted by the cost of living. 

Councillor D Lettington proposed, seconded by Councillor A Clark that a different percentage be applied to each grade and that the lowest grade receive the highest percentage. 

Concern was expressed that the proposal could be divisive amongst staff with some feeling undervalued, could impact negatively on the retention and recruitment of staff and lead to longer term destabilisation of the grading/banding structure.

Following a formal vote this proposal was rejected.

Councillor Davis, seconded by Councillor Keers proposed a 5% pay award for all staff from 1 April 2023, with a retrospective pay award backdated to 1 January 2023 for all staff on pay scales 1-6 (as set out in Option 2 of the report).

It was reported that this option would result in a currently unbudgeted one off cost to the Council of £50,000 which could be met from the General Revenue Reserve in 2022/23 subject to approval from the Council.

On the grounds that this proposal would provide additional pay to staff on lower grades, whilst still ensuring that a 5% pay award applied to all posts and seemed fair and equitable to all staff, Members voted in favour of Option 2.

RESOLVED:  That

(1)             a 5% pay award for all staff from 1 April 2023 with a retrospective pay award backdated to 1 January 2023 for staff on pay scales 1-6 be approved.

RECOMMENDED:  That

(2)             the one-off cost of backdating the pay award to scales 1-6 of £50k be met from the Borough Council’s General Revenue Reserve in 2022/23 be commended to Council for endorsement.

*Referred to Council

This report requests Members to consider a pay award of 5% for employees for 2023/24

The report of the Chief Executive requested that Members consider a pay award of 5% for employees for 2023/24.  Members noted that Council employees had a term in their contracts which read ‘Salaries will be revised on 1 April each year by an amount determined by the Authority having regard to movements in the Retail Price Index, comparative pay settlements and prevailing economic conditions’ and the Council therefore determined its own pay awards and was not tied into the national process of collective bargaining.  The impact of a 5% pay award in the Council’s salary scales was attached at Annex 1 of the report and UNISON’s pay claim for 2023/24 at Annex 2.

The Chair proposed and it was seconded that Council Procedure Rule No 10.11 be suspended, to allow representatives of UNISON to address the Committee on behalf of its members, during which concern was raised in respect of the increase in cost of living, in particular the impact on those staff on lower salaries.

During discussion, it was noted that if Members were minded to agree a 12% pay award, the additional costs would have a significant impact on the Medium-Term Financial Strategy.  Members considered a redistribution of the total amount based on 5%, so those on a lower pay scale were awarded a higher percentage increase in their pay.  Attention was brought to the impact that this would have on the stability of the pay structure, recruitment and retention. 

In addition to the pay award, it was proposed to increase the leave entitlement for all staff by one day with effect from 1 April 2023.

RESOLVED: That

1)          the financial provision in the 2023/24 Estimates and Medium-Term Financial Strategy for the pay award be capped at the equivalent of a 5% pay award; 

2)          a range of options to be presented to an extraordinary meeting of the General Purposes Committee, that take into account those factors raised by Members; and

3)          an increase of one day to the annual leave entitlements of all Officers as detailed in section 1.6 of the report from 1 April 2023, be agreed.