- Conference
- 2006 Local Government Service Group Conference
- Date
- 9 June 2006
- Decision
- Carried
This conference condemns the announcement by the Chancellor, Gordon Brown, that public sector pay rises will be capped at 2% over the next three years and his call for more local and regional flexibility in pay bargaining.
Conference notes that:
1)Inflation is currently running at 2.6%
2)Recruitment and retention problems in local government are running high across the UK
3)Council spending on agency workers and consultants is increasing
4)So-called ‘savings’ from efficiency reviews in local government are far exceeding target levels, leading to cuts in staff and essential services
5)Comprehensive Performance Assessment results show that most councils are performing well or improving
6)Local government pay has fallen behind the rest of the public and private sectors in recent years
7)There is still a gender pay gap of 42% between the majority of local government employees who are part time women workers and full time male employees
8)National agreements within local government across the UK already allow for local flexibility in grades and pay
Conference therefore calls on the Service Group Executive to:
a)Make the Chancellor aware of the above
b)Seek future pay settlements which reflect the vital contribution our members make to local services and communities
c)Ensure that future pay claims address the pay deficit between local government, the rest of the public sector and the private sector
d)Increase our demands for funding to address the gender pay gap