Call for £3,000 increase on a 35-hour week basis
The unions of the Scottish Joint Council (SJC—Unite, Unison and GMB) submitted their pay claim to COSLA on 17 January.
Download the full 2022 pay claim or read on for a summary.
The claim is for:
- A settlement that runs for the period 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023.
- A £3,000 flat rate increase to all spinal column points based on a 35 hour working week.
- An underpinning minimum rate of pay of £12 per hour.
- The payment of SSSC fees for all by 1st April 2022 and completion of the review, established as part of our 2021 settlement, of all other professional fees incurred by members in the course of their employment by March 2023.
- Early completion of the review, established as part of our 2021 settlement, on how we achieve a no detriment reduction in the working week.
- Agreement to change the national calculator for the normal working week to 35 hours.
- An agreement that in future all allowances are automatically uprated in line with October inflation rates.
- Agreement of home/hybrid working guidance that provides appropriate recompense for expenses incurred as a result of home/hybrid working.
- A review of the job evaluation scores for roles that have changed during the period of the pandemic and/or have new additional qualification requirements.
- No less than parity with other local government bargaining groups.
- Early commencement of negotiations with a clear expectation of settlement implementation by 1 April review date.
Reasoning behind the claim
The RPI rate, at the time of writing, is sitting at 7.1%.
Substantial increases in the cost of living over recent years which have significantly reduced the value of staff wage.
Appropriate reward is needed to sustain the morale of staff in their crucial role of delivering high quality services.
Appropriate reward is needed for the increased workload and stress placed on staff against a background of unprecedented changes in working practices and demands placed on them during the Covid pandemic.
Falling value of pay
Despite the employer’s commitment to the Scottish Local Government Living Wage our members have not been immune to the squeeze in living standards brought about by years of austerity and below inflation pay increases.
The table below demonstrates the major fall in living standards suffered by staff over recent years.
| Rise in cost of living, measured by RPI April figures | Pay award % | |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 5.3 | 0.65 |
| 2011 | 5.2 | 0 |
| 2012 | 3.5 | 0 |
| 2013 | 2.9 | 1 |
| 2014 | 2.5 | 1 |
| 2015 | 0.9 | 1.5 |
| 2016 | 1.3 | 1 |
| 2017 | 3.5 | 1 |
| 2018 | 3.4 | 3.5 |
| 2019 | 3 | 3 |
| 2020 | 1.5 | 3 |
| 2021 | 2.9 | 2.86 (average—the award was differeniated) |