Pay offer that reflects current financial climate says WLGA
06 May 2009
Responding to the views expressed by the Trade Unions over the National pay offer of 0.5% for council workers for 2009-10, Steve Thomas, WLGA Chief Executive said:
“We accept that this is a tough offer but it is all that can be afforded amid this exceptionally tough economic climate.
There probably isn’t a single person across Wales that hasn’t in some way or another been affected by the economic downturn. During 2008-09, 700 redundancies were made across Welsh local government and a further 2000 are possible over the next two years.
The Assembly’s budget is dramatically reducing over the next period with a consequent knock on impact for councils. In this climate the choices are about seeking to protect employment and maintaining services. Councils do not want to lay off staff. To the contrary, they understand the financial pressures that people are under and want to safeguard as many people’s jobs as possible. This pay offer has been set within the context of employment protection and affordability.
Many people understand the pressures facing the public sector and are not expecting major salary increases, particularly when the rate of inflation is so low. We urge the Unions to accept the offer on the table and avoid the worst case scenario of industrial action.”
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