Civil service salary

[TansyZels]

I’ve seen a role within the Civil Service which looks pretty good, but need a bit of clarity around salary to work out if it would be worth me considering a move into the CS.

If a salary is advertised as £36k-£41k, does that mean that any new starter will start on £36k and there will be annual increments until they reach £41k in, say, five years? Or is this something that needs to be discussed at job offer and whatever salary you start on is then fixed until you move on? So you could start on £36k and still be earning £36k five years later, or you could go straight in on £41k?

I have been a SAHM for years and have been back in the world of work for quite a short time so am still working out how things work.

You’d be on the bottom of that on starting. Its non-negotiable. It’s telling you that people in that pay grade are paid sums in that range.

Depending on the department there may be progression but it will likely have a long tail and could take years to get to it the top.

Actually, it is negotiable - I came in on the top of the pay scale in my current role, having dropped from SEO to HEO, but even then still a £10k paycut.

It's always negotiable these days.

However, many departments have also done away with automatic annual increments - instead they use the annual pay review to increase the minimum salary and not move the ones nearer the top, so there's less of a gap in the pay band. So I get a max 1% increase a year much of the time as I'm maxed out. Others may get more.

Incorrect @KnightonShiningArmour
It's a salary range and you will start where they think you stand depending on previous knowledge and experience , ability and how desperate they are to have you

If you are a brand newbie and wish to progress you will likely start at the bottom and then yes it should be annually incremental as long as you pass any probationary period and achieve goals set

It can often be slightly negotiable

I think the starting salary will depend on your experience!

When thinking about if it's worth it consider the value of the pension you will get as well.

The top pay in the band is non negotiable, and the vast majority of people will start on the lower amount. It is technically possible for them to offer above that but its the exception rather than the rule.

It’s almost always the minimum of the advertised range, unless you can evidence a higher current salary, eg copy of payslip, then sometimes it will be matched.

There are few ‘increments’ now so even with great performance reviews you could be on near to the bottom end for a while.

When I was in civil service they took age into account for the pay range!! So an age 25 hotshot with loads of relevant experience would be started on lower pay than a 40 year old who was crap at the job.

I found it a very strange place and left after a couple of yrs.

Dependa which part of civil service.some are changing now and only offering bottom of the salary band to new starters as existing staff are frustrated and leaving due to new starters who need training being paid more than experienced staff.

Sometimes it is based on performance at interview, but probably best to plan for lowest and if you can get higher it is a bonus

The salary is not based on ability, experience or how much the recruiting manager wants you: if you request a salary above the minimum of the range you will be asked to evidence your current pay. If you refuse to provide this or are on a lower salary you could still try to make a case for more pay, but it’d be an uphill battle!

The details in iob ads often state that pay will be the minimum of the range.

I’m in local government at the moment so there are automatic annual increments until you reach the top of your band. If the CS doesn’t operate the same way, I could end up being on less money in two years if I moved into the CS and annual increments aren’t automatic.

If there are no automatic annual increments and they would want all new starters to begin on the lowest salary, why do they bother saying £36-41k? Surely it would make more sense to say £36k and leave it at that?

@TansyZels

I’m in local government at the moment so there are automatic annual increments until you reach the top of your band. If the CS doesn’t operate the same way, I could end up being on less money in two years if I moved into the CS and annual increments aren’t automatic.

That's how it was in the CS department I last worked in, unless it was a level transfer post but it's been a few years so things may have changed and may depend on which area of civil service.

But they don't ask everyone to start at the bottom
Lots of us have told you that , you would need to discuss it with them for clarification

@Civilservant

The salary is not based on ability, experience or how much the recruiting manager wants you: if you request a salary above the minimum of the range you will be asked to evidence your current pay. If you refuse to provide this or are on a lower salary you could still try to make a case for more pay, but it’d be an uphill battle!

The details in iob ads often state that pay will be the minimum of the range.

Not true , sorry

I've recently joined the CS after 20 years in private sector. I was offered a salary that was at the top of the range they advertised - but I know that this means in order to get a pay rise I will need to be promoted and it's quite a big step to the next level - really from a technical role to a managerial role. So a least a couple of years away as I get the impression it's more about who you know than what you know.

There are other benefits though - pension is way better and also they are very definite that I only work my salaried hours, so none of the unpaid hours I did for my previous employer. I'm still getting used to the new environment but I think it's going to work out ok.

HR will offer you the bottom of the range in my experience. It can be negotiable but it depends on the Department and whether they have struggled to recruit.

We no longer have increments and annual progression but when the pay freeze is finished they tend to give a 1-2% pay rise and then that becomes the bottom of the band. So the bands slowly get smaller.

If you get an offer then you can ask about salary negotiation.

It's the bottom with annual increments unless they really really want / need you.

coldfeetmama True for the department I work in. They’re different employers, perhaps others have different HR policies.

Thanks, everyone. The general gist seems to be a scenario where it wouldn’t be worth me spending time applying, etc. Not at this point anyway. I think I might just stay where I am for now and build up more experience before applying for any CS jobs. Thanks for taking the time to reply.

I’ve been in the CS 20 years. My pension is predicted at £9k per annum with a £27k lump sum.

I’m at the top of the HEO grade in HMRC on London weighting and earned about £38.5k last year.

Not exactly riches.

@TansyZels be careful, as I think several posters have confused increments with an annual pay award.

The CS removed incremental progression years ago. The current pay guidance www.gov.uk/government/publications/civil-service-pay-remit-guidance-2022-to-2023/civil-service-pay-remit-guidance-2022-to-2023
states:

Departments should have removed automatic progression pay based on time-served from their workforces and it should not be reintroduced. Any progression pay still in place in core departments or their ALBs not agreed through business case approvals will be in breach of government policy and must be notified to the Cabinet Office and HM Treasury immediately. Going forward, departments should ensure that pay arrangements they put in place do not involve automatic time-served progression pay, or create an entitlement for employees to receive automatic increments.