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08 May 2012  Regional pay: Treasury’s case flawed –Jane Hutt

 The Welsh Government has today published new evidence on regional and local market pay that will be submitted to the Treasury and to the Pay Review Bodies. 

The evidence, by the Welsh Government’s Chief Economist, shows that the arguments put forward by the UK Government are flawed and are far from the full picture.

 Finance Minister Jane Hutt said: “The evidence we are publishing shows that the widespread opposition to regional public sector pay is very well founded. The Treasury’s submission is full of assertions made without any solid basis in the evidence.

 “Contrary to what the Treasury states, there is no good case for thinking that the gap between public and private sector pay is larger in Wales than in other parts of the UK. We also can not see any evidence that “excessive” public sector pay has been “crowding out” private sector employment in Wales.

“In fact, since devolution and until the recent recession, Wales has been outperforming the UK in terms of its private sector jobs growth – this is completely at odds with the Treasury view.

 “It is also clear that a number of important factors have simply been ignored in the Treasury’s analysis, and that once these are factored in, there is no clear evidence that a persistent pay differential exists across the public sector as a whole.

 “In fact, if there is a public sector pay differential, it is found primarily amongst lower paid workers, and lower paid women in particular. I make no apology for the steps that we have taken in Wales to address poverty and to tackle the gender pay gap. It would be completely unfair to single out these groups of public sector workers for severe reductions or freezing of pay.

 “Attempts by the UK Government to engineer reductions in public sector pay in Wales would be particularly harmful in present circumstances. Any reductions in pay will lead to lower levels of spending and hence are most likely to result in knock-on effects for the Welsh economy and a loss of jobs.

 “A policy of regional or local market facing public sector pay would be economically damaging and socially divisive for Wales. Driving down pay in our most disadvantaged communities at a time of economic stress and exacerbating pay gaps between men and women, would be bad for Wales and harmful to the UK as a whole.

 ”I trust the UK Government will look at our evidence and not proceed further down this path.”

 Notes:  The Welsh Government’s evidence can be found here:  

http://wales.gov.uk/about/aboutresearch/regionalpay

 

 

24th April Pensions Negotiations LATEST NEWS

 

LV= Frizzell is offering each UNISON member a pair of free tickets to the county game of their choice

 

Latest HAPPY LIVING ARTICLE on...the Big Fat Facts from Julie Davies, Communities First, Well Being and Health Project Development Officer ....Read it here

 

 

Information regarding the impact of changes to the tax credit system for low-paid families

 

 EQUAL PAY WITH COSMOPOLITAN
Karen Jennings, Assistant General Secretary of UNISON is calling on UNISON members to back women’s magazine Cosmopolitan’s call for the Government to make equal pay auditing compulsory. Karen Jennings,
said: ‘Cosmopolitan has  set up an e-petition and with the power of the union behind it, we want to hit the target of 100,000 signatures as quickly as possible.’

UNISON has campaigned long and hard for fairness and equality for women. It is a sad fact that 40 years in from the Equal Pay Act, we still have a battle on our hands, with women still earning 17% less than men.
We want employers to be transparent about how theypay their workers and to undertake full equal pay audits, so they can address any pay inequality that exists and to ensure  women are not being  targeted unfairly for redundancy.
Sign up today:
www.cosmopolitan.co.uk/equalpay

 

     GOVERNMENT IS STILL LOOKING AT LGPS PROPOSALS
The joint LGA - Trade Union Project Team which is negotiating over the LGPS from 2014 submitted outline proposals on 13 February to DCLG and the Treasury. Unfortunately, the government has not yet come back to us with a response to them and so there is nothing to report on the negotiations in this circular. UNISON is extremely disappointed at this and have made very strong representations to government over the unnecessary delay in our timetable. Our timetable is carefully detailed in the documents underpinning the negotiations at www.lgps.org.uk.

The joint proposals are currently being considered by officials working for the Chief Secretary to the Treasury – Danny Alexander and Eric Pickles, Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government. Actuaries from the Government Actuaries Department (GAD) are also costing them in order to establish the implications for LGPS members and employers. The Project Team met with officials from both government departments on 7 March in order to clarify aspects of our proposals and we are now waiting to hear back from the government. In the meantime we will carry on discussions on other aspects of the scheme.

We had hoped to start consultation with members in the near future. Once we have final proposals to put to you, there will be Regional presentations before the five LGPS Service Groups also meet to be briefed and to make their recommendation to you.

 

 


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 Have you made your will? Thompsons provide a simple and easy service which is FREE to members.

 

  

 

 

 New !! ..... Basic Skills Awareness e-learning module .... New !!  

The UNISON WULF projects are working to support Basic Skills in the workplace, and are pleased to launch the new e-learning website, hosted by Learning Pool.

Good English and maths skills are becoming ever more important at work, with changing job roles and the introduction of new technology. If someone lacks confidence in their skills they may find it hard to take on new tasks or apply for promotion.

This new e-learning module "Basic Skills Awareness" can help you and your colleagues to identify problems and support individuals in the workplace. The course only takes about 25 mins to complete and covers issues including Dyslexia, Health & Safety implications and improving the readability of information. Further information click HERE

 Unison welfare   This is an important message for any members or dependants who are struggling with their bills and day to day running costs .
Don't worry help is just a phone call away !
If you know anybody whom may need advice or just someone to talk to about  their concerns.
  Please contact the UNISON office and ask for Mark Fisher welfare officer on 01639 860106  or 07971255130.
This is a confidential service and will not be discussed with your employer.

 

  •  Are you interested in how Unison works?
  • Would you like to get more involved?
  • Do you want to fight for equality and fairness?

If you have answered yes to any of the above please contact your Education Coordinator, Neelo Farr, who can discuss training needs to enable you to fight for fairness. Please see the education pages to see the type of training offered.

      

Unison members have a right to be represented if asked to attend a meeting regarding sickness, it is strongly recommended that your take in representation. This can be your workplace rep or a Unison Officer. Remember to ask for help as soon as you are called for a meeting, this gives your representative time to prepare. If you are unsure give the Unison Office a ring.  

  

  

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Last edited on Saturday 19 May 2012