Public and Commercial Services Union

The 2008 VO pay offer key details

• All minima and maxima increased
• Pay remit is worth 3.99%
• General rate 2% for all pay bands
• Progression rate between 2% & 4% for all pay bands below maxima
• 2008 pay guarantees honoured 27 PBs 7&6 benefit at a cost of £46K
• Uplift toward 2009 pay guarantees for all pay bands. The estimated cost of this element (700 people to max next year) was £2.7M This uplift to 45.75% of the gap to max mitigates next years cost
• Uplift toward 2010 pay guarantees for pay bands 4 to 7. The estimated cost of this element (500 people to max in 2010) was £1.9M This uplift to 20% of the gap to max mitigates future pay costs
• Special circs offices R&R allowance increased for pay bands 3 to 7 from £1150 to £1200 p/a
• All PB 3 (London) R&R allowance increased from £500 to £750 p/a
• All PB 3 (outside London) to receive a new R&R allowance of £250 p/a
• Underpin for PB 4 to 7 of £500
• Underpin for PB 3 to 1 of 2.5%

Comparison of Pay Claim/ Pay Offer

• Pay remits under Treasury Guidance go up to 4.5%. The VO’s remit needed to be above this level to begin to deal with VO low pay
• Our claim was for General rate pay increases of 6% in addition to the Progression costs, to start the catch up process
• 2008 pay guarantees have been honoured in full and our claim met, albeit at modest cost.
• Uplift toward 2009 pay guarantees for all pay bands. Structural problems in the VO pay system led to this being a necessary part of the offer
• Uplift toward 2010 pay guarantees for PB 4 to 7 Specific structural problems in the VO pay system at these grades led to this being a necessary part of the offer
• Special circs offices. This modest increase of £50 p/a is supposed to aid recruitment and retention in these offices
• All PB 3 (London) The 50% increase is supposed to aid recruitment and retention
• All PB 3 (outside London) This new allowance targeted at one pay band only is supposed to aid recruitment and retention
• Underpin for PB 4 to 7 of £500 in offer. Our claim sought a cash sum of £850 to benefit the lower paid
• Underpin for PB 3 to 1 of 2.5%. The offer includes a % underpin to the benefit the higher paid

Government Pay Policy

 The inadequacy of the VOA pay offer, and indeed all civil service pay offers this year, flows from the Government’s policy of limiting public sector pay increases to well below the rate of inflation – with an absolute limit of 2% on basic pay increases in 2008.

By any measure the pay increases on offer do not meet even the basic requirement of cost of living increases for all:

• Inflation as measured by the Retail Price Index (RPI) continues to rise and currently stands at 5%
• The Consumer Prices Index (CPI), the Government’s preferred inflation measure, is running at 4.4%
• Retail costs, including basics such as food, gas, electricity, travel and fuel, continue to spiral upwards
• PCS members are in effect being asked to take in real terms a pay cut and inflation might increase further.

PCS rejects the Government’s claim that public sector wage restraint is essential to control inflation – PCS members are the victims of high inflation, they do not cause it.

PCS National Pay Campaign

Pay is now the primary focus of the union’s National Campaign, which has the following fundamental objectives:

• To secure changes to the Treasury Remit Guidance, to allow consolidated increases to basic pay that at least match RPI.
• Civil Service pay coherence
• The decoupling of progression costs from general pay increases
• Scrapping any link between pay and performance
• Preservation of the Civil Service Compensation Scheme

PCS is seeking national solutions on pay, and meetings with the Cabinet Office, Treasury and Ministers are taking place. PCS want a negotiated solution. Nevertheless plans are being put in place for a national industrial action ballot on pay in the Autumn across our whole Civil Service and public sector membership. These plans will link to action by other public sector unions whenever practical

PCS action across our membership has already achieved success on pensions, and job security. We must build on this to take forward the pay aspirations of all our members. Support and join the PCS National Pay Campaign

VO Pay Negotiations

Members will know that earlier this year your VOAC did everything possible to deliver an improved 2007 pay offer.

They had separate meetings with both the VO Chief Executive Andrew Hudson and the VO Treasury Minister Jane Kennedy. They also sought access to arbitration but it was denied.

VO members voted overwhelmingly to reject the 2007 pay offer, but VO management imposed it, totally ignoring their staff. This is why VO members have been in dispute over pay ever since.

The VOAC have always thought that members expected them to explore every opportunity to deliver better pay.

At a meeting about the VO 2008 pay remit the VO minister Jane Kennedy made it crystal clear to top VO management that the remit had to be below 4%

It is now therefore the VOAC view that to seek further meetings with either Senior Civil Servants or Government Ministers to try to improve the VO pay offer would be to no avail.

VOAC Commentary on the pay offer

On the good side

• Compared with other pay remits this year 3.99% is pretty good.
• 2008 pay guarantees honoured
• Uplifts toward 2009/2010 pay guarantees demonstrate good intentions of VO
• Reasonable distribution of available money

On the bad side

• Severe structural problems with VO pay system and no clear path for potential pay reform.
• Not enough money in the remit, VO can afford to pay and had huge under-spend last year.
• VO performance pay element, Particularly significant contribution (PSC) statistics indicate difficult issues concerning discrimination
• Mark time pay. There is a reduction from 150 people in 2007 to 73 now. They are all PCS grades and will not receive a pay rise.
• The VOAC is opposed to a new narrowly focussed allowance for all PB3s in a year when money is scarce. Albeit some PCS members benefit (it might have been only for surveyors)
• Failure to capitalise on HMRC pay discussions. They still pay much more than the VO at most grades even though they are not the top payers in the Civil Service.
• Needed to have VO pay in a much better position before The Rent Service join the VO in April 2009
• VOAC believe that the Change programme in the VO has left PCS members feeling vulnerable.
• This pay offer embeds that feeling and members deserve FAIR PAY
• This pay offer does not meet the VOAC’s objectives regarding
• Inflation
• Progression
• Pay coherence with HMRC

Pay offer headlines

• Retail Prices Index = 5%
• 77% of members get below 5%
• Consumer price Index = 4.4%
• 75% of members get below 4.4%
• So really a pay cut for at least 75% of members

VO Pay Consultative meetings

The VOAC has agreed that they will attend members’ consultative meetings in every Valuation Office during the pay ballot period.

VO Pay Ballot recommendation

The VOAC recommendation is clear and unanimous and is endorsed by the Group Executive Committee.

• Members should vote to reject the 2008 VO pay offer VOTE NO

2008 VO Pay ballot Timetable

w/c Mon 8th September
• PCS VO Pay Ballot opens in every office

Tuesday 30th September
• PCS Office Pay Ballot closes (voting papers from ballot box sent to PCS HQ)

Monday 6th October
• Last date for receipt of ballot papers from offices

Tuesday 7th October
• Ballot papers counted and result declared to members and VO management