PUBLIC SECTOR
IDS publishes annual state-of-play for public sector, 2003
The public sector pay picture has been transformed in the last two years, with a focus on market rates for the job, equal pay and job evaluation, according to a major new report by Incomes Data Services.
The government's pay "modernisation" programme is continuing to move forward across the public sector, but the pace of reform has varied. While some groups have completed negotiations on a radical overhaul of reward practices, others are only at the starting point.
What you will find in this report
The 268-page report, the tenth in an annual series, offers an unrivalled resource for managers, trade unions and policy makers in the public sector, providing fascinating insights into recent pay developments, as well as valuable benchmarking data.
Written by a team of pay analysts with an impressive mastery of the subject, the study is supported by detailed research into recent government reward initiatives and an in-depth analysis of prospects for 2003.
IDS assesses the progress to date on talks for a new pay system in the NHS and examines the state of play in negotiations on "single status" in local government. It also looks at the move to team bonuses and clearly defined progression in central government.
The report is packed with details of current pay structures of the main employee groups - from health care assistants to social workers and from midwives to high court judges.
Common themes of pay modernisation in the public sector, discerned by IDS
| Key findings of IDS public sector research |
| Performance pay The emphasis on merit pay is "receding" across large parts of the civil service. Agencies and departments are looking for simpler and faster progression to a market rate for the job and to replace discriminatory pay systems. "High performance is now more likely to be rewarded by non-consolidated bonus payments," says IDS. |
| Equal pay Equal pay is at the heart of many of the changes across the public sector. Equal pay and job evaluation are at the core of the pay reforms scheduled for the NHS and is behind proposals for the implementation of single status in local government. It is central to the ongoing changes in the civil service, higher education and will be one of the key issues to be addressed by the recently-launched local government pay commission. |
| Pay progression There has been a move to shorter pay bands or scales - either by raising the minimums or by reducing the time taken to progress up the scale - aimed at delivering equal pay across the public sector. "Performance-based salary progression is being sidelined across much of the public sector," says IDS. In a number of civil service departments and agencies IDS researchers found the re-introduction of fixed pay points and automatic progression for all satisfactory performers. Some organisations have sought to make progression systems much more transparent, to give staff greater predictability of what their future salary levels will be, assuming their performance is satisfactory. Says IDS: "Effectively this has meant a severing of the link between basic salary and individual performance, which was the touchstone of civil service pay systems through the latter half of the 1990s." |
| Job evaluation Far from dying out, new job evaluation schemes are providing the foundation for major changes to pay structures in the NHS and local government designed to address equal pay and single-status issues. Both the higher and further education sectors have also developed job evaluation schemes recently. |
Want to know more?
Title: Pay in the Public Services 2002/03, published by Incomes Data Services.
Methodology: The report is based on information compiled by IDS researchers through their regular contacts with senior managers and trade union officials in the public and "not-for-profit" sectors.
Availability: Contact customer services at IDS in London, tel: 020 7250 3434, or email: ids@incomesdata.co.uk. For more information about this report and a contents list, jump to www.incomesdata.co.uk/report/pps.htm
Incomes Data Services is an independent research organisation providing information and analysis on pay and conditions, pensions, employment law and personnel policy and practice in the UK and the rest of Europe. Find out more at www.incomesdata.co.uk