Conservative proposals to freeze public sector pay-what do we think??

[MavisEnderby]

Good idea or not?

Not all private sector workers are smug, but those who believe that public sector workers have a cushy number with high pay and pensions are sadly misguided. (And I have never worked in the public sector myself, just seen it at close quarters.)

Though to be fair Edam some jobs are easier than others.
When I was a lawyer I can tell you it was much, much easier working for the CPS or an LA than in private practice. And the benefits of pension and more holiday etc were very nice indeed.

That said, I much prefered privare practice. More fun. More energy.

It is more likely to actually save money than their "everyone needs to work until they're 66" plan. Not sure how many people aged 65 are still working (age-discrimination anyone??) but surely what it means is just more people on income support / JSA until they can draw their pension?

I think it's a good idea
Spending cuts have to be made

The Tory proposal I don't entirely understand even if I try to imagine what I'd think if I was a Tory is the proposal to ditch all Labour's Welfare to Work schemes and replace them with a Tory version which might not be that different. I'm not actually saying that the schemes they want to get rid of are great, but how much money will they spend just to change the branding.

I'm currently doing a PGCE, so will effectively enter on a pay freeze, but since I'm obviously not earning yet, it won't affect me as such. Although if inflation rises significantly, it will make me worse off in real terms than I expected to be/was led to believe I would be (assuming I get a job).

DP would be affected on his massive 21k salary. I say would, because it's about 90% certain he's going to be made redundant. Although that will not come into effect until after the recently-imposed 'new' redundancy deal, which is obviously far less than the old package.

I'm not against the pay freeze as long as it's carefully and fairly implemented, but it does piss me off that all public sector workers are tarred with the same 'unproductive, long holidays, loads of benefits' brush. For many, I suspect the majority, that simply isn't the case.

not agranny, I don't know what you are on about. All your examples sound absolutely fair enough and I have never had more than that in the charitable, HE or public sector.

Many of your examples are inconsequential.

And yes, many people of my parents' generation who were public sector retired early with good packages but that will most certainly not be happening for anyone ever again. Let's move on.

I'd love to know what your fantastic training courses in schools were like. In my experience they are held in shoddy drafty buildings and the kitchen staff are instructed to make a plate of bog standard sandwiches, some soup and biscuits.

Nice enough but nothing like the training courses/conferences I went on in the charitable and HE sectors.

Public/private - public (Army officer)

Salary - 45k-ish

Experience - ten years

Level of Qualifications - Postgraduate

Levels of risk and stress faced - currently serving in Afghanistan ergo very high. He's working 17-18hr days seven days a week with no days off (other than fourteen days R&R in the middle of the tour).

Yes there are perks - the subsidised housing (that's falling to bits and is in dire need of upgrading and refurbishment), six weeks leave a year (which is impossible to cram in if you work the way he does esp as there's a culture of not taking leave) and the pension is second to none.

I don't know if we'd be affected by a pay freeze but I'm of the opinion that the cuts have to come from somewhere and high-ranking public sector workers might be one place to start.

Fairly sure the proposals of either party dont include the armed forces.

It has to depend on the employment and pay of the public sector worker whether this is a good idea

I remember (pre minimum wage) working as a temp AA at VAT for @ £6000 a year and not being able to afford to live home (I would guess that rate was roughly comparable with minimum wage now)

Placing those on that lowest rate of earnings in the same category as the much- hated council leaders (and I do think that s what this panders to) is unfair. Electricity and food cost the same whetehr you're on £6.50 or £65 an hour, it's just that the laytter is mroe flexible.

I'd be happier to see a proposal for the top 50% perhaps but I think it will badly ahrm some at the bottom levels- and these after all are people working and who have a right to at least the basics of life which are ahrd enough for them to afford as it is.

Dh ahs lost his private sector job so I suppose I could sit ehre and at anyone with a job, but I don't want to see anyone suffer, why would I?

I might support an axing of extra hoplidays; half day Christmas shopping and for Maundy Thursday (to be usually added together last week in December) WTF was that all about anyway?

Oh I;ve also temped

If you want good provisions and snacks try the charity sector

private firms and public sector however were usually of the bad- coffee- nowt - else type

jcscot ,

I heard that the operational bonus would be doubled and that the conservatives will not freeze the pay of the forces.

I am on a public sector pay scale and while I don't relish the prospect of a pay freeze, I fully recongise that the country is going down the pan (it always does at the end of a Labour innings) and we all have to take the hit proportionally. I don't see why the 'poor' should be immune, tbh. We are all in this together

My DH is in the private sector and he has had well below inflation increases for the last 3 years, and a massive pay cut when you consider bonuses/options.

Welcome to the real world.

when you consider bonuses - those things you don't get in the public sector? How does that make sense, then?

But people do get bonuses in the public sector

TPA article

There is also a nice graph of public sector pay vs private for the last decade

I cant say im to chuffed about it as a public sector emplyee - pensions have already been changed so not that good a perk anymore and ive just gone through job evaluation and dropped 2 grades , have also just got my annual pay rise which is 75p per week for me - seriously! given the same council has hiked up council tax, nursery fees have hiked up etc... it makes for nto many happy bunnies in the public sector our way so this will just make them even more miserable as sin.

Bonuses are just part of your salary, and are linked to the your, or your team's, performance. Most people who are on this kind of salary scale have an expectation of a certain amount, but that amount may go up or down. At the moment, the amount is going down. It means an effective paycut. It's not like an unexpected gift when you get your bonus or stock options.

If you look at job ads for many jobs, they will often quote the salary + a bonus. It's like a waitress having her wages, and then tips on top of that (the only difference is that the 'tip' comes from the employer/shareholders).

I think a salary plus bonus is a good salary structure as it rewards good performance and makes you accountable. Obviously the proportion of salary-to-bonus is dependent upon the industry that you are in.

I work in recruitment and without exception, every single one of my private sector clients has made redundancies or drastic pay cuts. I had to take a 10% pay cut this January as did DP and I know lots of people who have had cuts like this, or worse.

So no, I can't feel too sorry for a freeze. Oh and recession or no recession, many people don't even get an annual pay rise as standard so as far as I can see it is just putting the public and private sectors on an equal footing.

The tpa - yes, nice is the word

Overtime should be done away with. I agree with that. There are huge abuses of overtime in the public sector.

I had heard about the doubling of the op bonus (excellent idea, btw) but I wasn't sure whether or not senior Forces personnel would part of the pay freeze.

Still think it's a good idea, though.

Pointy hat you do realise that not everyone in the private sector gets bonuses don't you.
The private sector isn't just banks it includes lots of self employed and small firms. DH has worked in the past for very large firms employing 1000s to the small firm he is with now which as less than 20 staff. The only thing he has every received apart from his salary are the afore mentioned diaries and calendars which I'm glad you agree are inconsequential.

Wicked we are all in this together

but

working costs a certain amount;I now in the past I took ocasional sickies becuase I couldn't afford the bus fayre due to wahges.

So there has to be a minimum level of income surely?

Anwyay surely a pay freeze is meaningless if minimum wage rises with inflation at any point- won't they have to comply anyway?

Or is that the realthing- a freezeon minimum wage?

Not that we even amke that LOL (self employed) but I do wonder

Only bonus I ever got was our oick of undelivered past their dates british rail sxrnies LOl