Public sector pay rises could be capped at 5% to tame inflation, sources say
- Sources said that pay review bodies will recommend settlements of 3% to 5%
- The proposed settlements are far below the forecast level of inflation
- The plans put ministers on a collision course with the big public sector unions
- These unions have warned of an autumn of industrial action
Millions of public sector workers face a real terms pay cut today as ministers try to get a grip on inflation.
Whitehall sources said that pay review bodies covering doctors, nurses, soldiers, the police and a string of other professions will recommend settlements of three to five per cent.
The proposed settlements are far below the forecast level of inflation, which is expected to peak at 11 per cent this autumn.
The plans put ministers on a collision course with the big public sector unions, which have warned of an autumn of industrial action.
Whitehall sources said that pay review bodies covering doctors, nurses, soldiers, the police and a string of other professions will recommend settlements of three to five per cent
Only newly qualified teachers are expected to get a more significant rise as part of Tory manifesto plans to raise starting salaries to £30,000 by the time of the next election.
A Whitehall source acknowledged the pay settlements would be tough for many, but said it was essential the Government gets inflation under control.
‘The pay review bodies are independent, but they have to consider what is affordable,’ the source said.
‘You will see most of the settlements come in at around the range of three to five per cent. It is going to be tough for people. But we have to manage things responsibly, and the alternative – letting inflation get out of control – is even more damaging to people’s incomes in the long term.’
The plans put ministers on a collision course with the big public sector unions, which have warned of an autumn of industrial action
Today’s pay reviews will cover doctors and dentists, nurses, teachers, prison officers, members of the armed forces, judges and senior civil servants.
Pat Cullen, general secretary of the Royal College of Nursing, which is seeking a 16 per cent rise, said: ‘There are tens of thousands of vacant nurse jobs and unfair treatment will push more out of the profession.’
She said nurses would ‘consider industrial action if ministers do not move’.
Separately, a three-day strike due to start tomorrow by Royal Mail managers belonging to the Unite union has been called off. The union’s 2,400 Royal Mail members accepted proposals on jobs, pay and conditions in a ballot by almost two to one. However, Unite said that the dispute was not over.
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