If the Environment Agency can offer 2% so can the Local Government Association

UNISON members in the Environment Agency are being recommended to accept a 2% pay increase, as reported in a joint bulletin;.

“At a special meeting of the National Negotiating Group held on 7 July 2009 negotiations of the terms of this year’s pay settlement resumed. At the end of the session the management team presented their final offer including some significant improvements secured by the trade unions during the negotiations.
The key elements are as follows:
A 2% increase to all pay scales and allowances.
An increase to standby allowance from £87.15 to £120 per week. (37.7% increase)
A new Disturbance Allowance that provides additional travel assistance for three years.”

In the mean time the Local Government pay negotiations in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are going nowhere fast, as reported in the latest bulletin;

“There has still been no response from the LGA to the proposals arising from the talks held on 21 May. In light of this, a meeting of the Joint NJC Trade Union Side has been arranged for 16 July to discuss the next steps. The UNISON NJC Committee will have a short meeting beforehand. Our understanding is that the four political groupings on the LGA have failed to reach agreement between themselves on our proposals.”

Most local authorities have set aside enough in their budgets for the current year to afford a settlement at the level being recommended to members employed by the Environment Agency (which is still below the level of the Government’s favoured measure of inflation the Consumer Prices Index in April), yet the Tory controlled employers are unwilling at present to increase an offer of 0.5%

Holding down the pay of low paid local government workers will worsen the effects of the current recession by restraining spending power in local communities – so much for the “recession support for Councils” from the Local Government Association!