As hundreds of public servants prepare to lobby their MPs today as part of the TUCís ëStand up for Public Servicesí campaign, a YouGov poll shows wide public backing for union calls for public sector wages to keep up with the cost of living and with wage rises in the private sector.
Nine out of ten adults (ninety per cent) agree that ìwhen working out the cost of living faced by people who work, the Government should include the cost of housing and energy billsî. Yet ministers say that public sector wage negotiations should be based on the Consumer Prices Index ñ a measure of inflation that excludes housing. Only three per cent disagree.
Seventy-nine per cent agree that ìthe Government should ensure that the pay of public servants (such as teachers, NHS staff and civil servants) keeps up with the cost of living including housing and energy bills.î Only seven per cent disagree. But the Government has a two per cent target for public sector pay, well below the current increase in the cost of living (the Retail Prices Index), which is currently 4.2%.
Sixty-eight per cent agree that ìit is unfair if public servants (such as teachers, NHS staff and civil servants) regularly get pay increases lower than those in private companies.î Thirteen per cent disagree. Public sector pay settlements are currently running at an average of 2.7%, while private sector pay is increasing by 4%.
TUC General Secretary Brendan Barber said: ìThis poll shows very wide public support for the fair pay principles at the heart of union campaigning. Voters think that public sector pay should keep up with the cost of living, and that this should include housing. Nor do they want public sector pay to fall behind private sector pay.î
At lunchtime today, teachers, health workers, prison officers, civil servants, childcare workers and firefighters will be taking part in a rally at Methodist Central Hall, Westminster and then lobbying MPs over their unionsí calls for public sector wages to keep up with the cost of living.
The public servants will tell MPs that the Governmentís pay policy means that public sector workers are facing cuts in their standard of living, that many members of the public service workforce are those who can least afford a below-inflation pay rise and as a result are struggling to make ends meet.
To illustrate the growing gap between the pay of workers across the public sector and the rising cost of living, the TUC asked a number of public servants to input their monthly spending commitments into the ONS personal inflation calculator www.statistics.gov.uk/pic/
All the public sector workers, including teachers, a refuse collector, a physiotherapist, a Health and Safety Executive inspector, an archaeologist, and a coastguard found their personal inflation levels were higher than the RPI measure of inflation, with the percentage levels ranging from 4.6 to 6.4 per cent. The workers who calculated their own personal rate of inflation include:
Anna Brooman is a 27-year-old English teacher who works at Filton High School in Bristol. Teachers in England have been offered 2.45 per cent this year (as part of a three-year pay deal), yet Anna's personal inflation rate (having completed the calculator on the ONS website) is currently 5.1 per cent. She owns her own home but says she was only able to get on the property ladder because her parents were able to help out. Anna is on a low fixed-rate mortgage but is already worrying about what will happen when her mortgage deal ends next August. She drives to work and although she has a small, fuel-efficient car, says it is costing almost 10 more to fill up than before. Anna says that after paying her bills, she is left with just 100 a month to live on, and is having to use her credit cards to make ends meet. Anna recently received a 'Golden Hello' payment of 4,000, having completed her first year of teaching in a shortage subject. She had intended to use this money to start to pay off her student debt but the growing pressure on her finances has meant she has had to use it to supplement her income. The sum of Anna's credit card debts, overdraft and student loan is a whopping 22,000 and she resents the fact that she now has to pay back her student loan at a higher rate of interest (4.8 per cent) than her current pay offer. Anna says she loves the school where she works but is looking at other teaching jobs, because she needs the extra cash a promotion would bring. She is also marking GCSE exam papers, as this will bring in a much-needed 1,000. Anna says that the Government's desire to keep public sector pay down is having a damaging effect on morale in the school, and as a result a growing number of her colleagues, particularly those who are newly qualified, are thinking about leaving teaching to take up higher paid jobs in the private sector.
Sadie Watson, 34, is a senior archaeologist working for the Museum of Londonís field archaeology service and is currently on a dig in the City of London uncovering aspects of Roman and medieval London. On an annual salary of 21,000, Sadie still earns too little to begin making repayments on her 3,000 student loan. A single mum, Sadie and her five-year-old daughter live in rented accommodation in South London and, after paying her rent, childcare, energy and food costs, Sadie is left with around 80 a month. She doesnít own a car and cycles to work to keep costs down. Sadie hasnít had a proper holiday in years and has given up any hope of ever owning her own home. The 2007 pay settlement gave staff a two per cent pay rise (plus a one-off 1.5 per cent lump sum), and is well below Sadieís current personal inflation rate of 5.2 per cent. Sadie says that morale amongst her colleagues is low, and several of her colleagues have left to find better-paid jobs in the private sector where pay increases for archaeologists are four to five per cent. Others have simply given up on archaeology altogether. Sadie says that last yearís pay deal was the last straw for Museum staff who are today (9 June) reluctantly embarking on a one day strike in protest at the growing gap between their pay and the rising cost of living.
Steve Trainer, 49, is married and lives just outside Blackpool with his wife, who works in the NHS. He has two grown-up children. Steve has worked as a refuse collector for Flyde Borough Council in St Anneís, Lancashire, for five years. His basic salary is 15,000 but Steve tops this up to 21,000 a year by doing overtime and taking part in a monthly on-call rota. Steve and his wife have noticed petrol, energy and food prices rocketing, and recently received a gas bill of 500. Despite his low wages, Steveís personal inflation rate for April 2008 is 4.9 per cent. The only way that Steve could pay the bill was by asking his landlord to give him a fortnightís grace with his rent and by borrowing money from his family. Steve rents a bungalow with his wife as they have given up on buying a property. With their salaries they have been offered a 90k mortgage but this would not buy them anything in the area ñ they would have to move 20-30 miles away, change jobs, leave their family, and would struggle to raise the funds for a deposit. Affording holidays is also a real luxury and they only manage a weekend away a year around their anniversary. They very rarely socialise as their joint monthly disposable income after food and bills is just 40. They have been to the pub twice in the last three years, on both occasions for family functions. Steve doesnít want to leave his job as he enjoys it, but he is looking at taking a second job to ease the financial pressures. He says many of his colleagues have taken second jobs ñ citing one friend who finishes work on a Friday and goes straight to a 13-hour shift as a night manager at a hotel. As a result workplace morale is at rock bottom. When Steve was younger, he says his work was a well-respected trade, it paid well, was secure and there was a waiting list for jobs. But now no one wants to do it because of the low wages, which are increasing at a much slower rate than the cost of living. Steve is worried about the future and gets very stressed, saying that money problems are having a detrimental impact on his marriage. He knows colleagues and friends whose marriages have broken up because of money troubles.
Voters back fair pay for public servants
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