Local Government Pay Dispute 2024: Analysis and Comparison
"Learn about the 2024 pay claim by council and school workers in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. Explore the offer from employers, the gap between claim and offer, and the background to the dispute amid the cost-of-living crisis and disparities in pay. Stay informed on the latest developments and discussions regarding the NJC pay dispute." (Total characters: 292)
Download Presentation
Please find below an Image/Link to download the presentation.
The content on the website is provided AS IS for your information and personal use only. It may not be sold, licensed, or shared on other websites without obtaining consent from the author. If you encounter any issues during the download, it is possible that the publisher has removed the file from their server.
You are allowed to download the files provided on this website for personal or commercial use, subject to the condition that they are used lawfully. All files are the property of their respective owners.
The content on the website is provided AS IS for your information and personal use only. It may not be sold, licensed, or shared on other websites without obtaining consent from the author.
E N D
Presentation Transcript
Balloting for action NJC Pay 2024 For council and school workers In England, Wales and Northern Ireland
Our 2024-25 NJC pay claim: An increase of 3,000 or 10%* on all pay points *whichever is greater In addition: 15 per hour minimum, no later than 2026 Reviews of equalities pay gaps Two-hour reduction in the working week Additional day of annual leave
How does the employers offer compare with our claim? What we asked for What we ve been offered 3,000 or 10% on all pay points 1,290 on all pay points 15 an hour minimum rate by 2026 No 15 an hour minimum rate by 2026 Reviews of equalities pay gaps Offer of pay gap data discussions Two-hour reduction of working week No shorter working week Additional day of annual leave No extra day of leave
What is the pay offer worth? This table shows the value of the offer measured against our pay claim, using selected pay points Your current pay The employers offer Our claim: 3k or 10% (whichever is greater) What s the gap between claim & offer? 2024 Annual 2024 Hourly Percentage Increase SCP 2023 Annual 2023 Hourly Offer 2 22,366.47 11.59 1,290.00 23,656.47 12.26 5.77% 25,366.47 - 1,710.00 5 23,499.96 12.18 1,290.00 24,789.96 12.85 5.49% 26,499.96 - 1,710.00 10 25,545.14 13.24 1,290.00 26,835.14 13.91 5.05% 28,545.14 - 1,710.00 20 30,295.84 15.70 1,290.00 31,585.84 16.37 4.26% 33,325.42 - 1,739.58 30 38,223.19 19.81 1,290.00 39,513.19 20.48 3.37% 42,045.51 - 2,532.32 43 51,514.79 26.70 1,290.00 52,804.79 27.37 2.50% 56,666.27 - 3,861.48
Background to our claim The cost-of-living crisis is pushing members into debt Staff have lost 25% from the value of their pay since 2010 Local government pay is still among the lowest in the public sector NJC pay has not kept up with the foundation living wage (currently 12 per hour) More than 9 in 10 councils are experiencing recruitment and retention problems A gender pay gap exists in local government - this may extend to other areas (including ethnicity and disability)
The cost-of-living crisis Rapid inflation pushed up prices faster than wages The impact of this is permanent even while inflation falls The cost of food, travel, rents and mortgages all overtook NJC pay in 2023-24 The cost of living has risen by almost 60% since 2010 while NJC pay has risen by less than half that (27%) The TUC has warned of a debt time bomb in 2024 1 in 5 UK households have less than 100 spare each month
Across the pay spine Staff across the whole pay spine are losing out: 2009/10 Annual 12,489 14,733 15,444 16,440 16,830 26,276 28,636 31,754 30,011 38,961 2022/23 Annual 20,258 20,812 21,189 21,968 21,968 32,020 34,723 38,296 36,298 46,549 Value of pay lost since 2010* -7.4% -14.3% -19.5% -23.7% -23.7% -30.4% -30.8% -31.1% -30.9% -31.8% Occupation Cleaner Customer Services Officer Refuse And Recycling Collector Library Assistant Teaching Assistant (Level 2) Librarian Environmental Health Officer Access to Housing Officer Social Worker Children s Residential Manager *When measured against RPI/the cost of living
Pay timescale 2024 The NJC pay claim was submitted on 29 Feb 2024 The employers responded with their offer on 16 May UNISON s NJC committee held a digital consultation of members in June/early July Members voted overwhelming to reject the offer In July, UNISON s NJC committee decided to ballot members asking you to take industrial action (strike action) over pay The ballot is taking place in September and October
The Ballot Most council and school workers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland* will be balloted The ballot will ask one question: Do you wish to take strike action over pay? (Yes/No) By law, we need a turnout of at least 50%, otherwise no action can take place This is a disaggregated ballot so a 50% threshold is needed in each employer to take strike action in that employer. *In Northern Ireland council workers are being balloted alongside council and school workers in England and Wales. School support staff in Northern Ireland will be balloted on a later timetable. The ballot threshold does not apply in Northern Ireland.
The ballot: Dates The ballot opens on 4 September and papers will be posted out from that day Look out for your purple envelope which contains your ballot paper and remember to post it back as soon as possible Your completed ballot must be returned by post (a freepost envelope is provided) and received by 16 October 2024 If you haven't received your ballot paper by 17 September you can request a replacement
The ballot hotline The UNISON ballot hotline is open from Tuesday 17 September and closes at midday on 9 October Call the hotline on 0800 0 857 857 if you haven't received your ballot paper by 17 September You can also request a replacement paper by logging onto MyUNISON: unison.org.uk/my-unison
Join the pay ballot campaign Get colleagues involved if they aren t already in UNISON, they can join online (it takes five minutes) and then they'll get a vote: join.unison.org.uk New members joining by 3 October will get a vote Talk to friends and colleagues - use the online resources to promote the campaign: unison.org.uk/lgpay Share our branded graphics and videos on social media Download or print materials for workplaces, such as leaflets and posters at unison.org.uk/lgpay
Join the pay ballot campaign Do you have a UNISON contact or rep in your workplace? If not, now is a great time to become a UNISON contact point. Ask your branch about becoming a pay campaign contact (RMS code 109). This means you'll be kept up to date on the pay campaign and can keep your colleagues informed about the latest news.
Keep the campaign going: Check out UNISON's online pay calculator. You can use this to see what your salary would be if the claim has been met in full. You can share this on your social media and show your colleagues. You can email your councillors to ask them to support better pay for their staff. And finally, email your MP calling for better funding for local government for wages and services All of these are on the website: unison.org.uk/lgpay in the "Supporting better pay" box
Having your say is important The most important thing is to make sure that each and every member in the ballot uses their vote. Make sure you and all the members who you work with post their vote back in the freepost envelop to arrive by 16 October. To be sure your vote is counted post it back today! Remember, you can contact UNISON's ballot hotline if you haven't got your ballot pack.
What happens next? The ballot closes on 16 October. When the results are all received UNISON's NJC committee will meet to consider the outcome. Branches will be kept informed. In the meantime keep working to build the campaign and get the vote out. Check in at: unison.org.uk/lgpay Any questions: contact your branch or njcpay2024@unison.co.uk
