># Pay cap on highest council earners may be unlawful, claim civic chiefs
>Kieran Andrews
>Wednesday October 19 2022, 12.01am BST, The Times
>A pay deal that halted bin strikes and averted industrial action in Scotland’s schools has been put at risk after council bosses warned a salary cap on the highest earners may be unlawful.
>Cosla, the umbrella body for local authorities, raised the prospect of legal action after a limit was set on public sector workers earning more than £60,000 during pay talks with SNP ministers.
>The intervention by Katie Hagmann, Cosla’s resources spokeswoman, and an SNP councillor, provoked fury from trade unions who wanted pay deals weighted to benefit the lowest earners.
>“Cosla bosses are on the brink of blowing this,” a source said. “Their credibility is hanging by a thread in the eyes of our members, and this could have profound consequences not only for workforce morale and service delivery, but also future pay negotiations too.” In a letter to John Swinney, the deputy first minister, that was sent just 12 days after the pay deal had been agreed following a protracted late-night summit with Nicola Sturgeon, Hagmann is understood to have highlighted legal advice which questioned the legitimacy of the salary cap on higher earners.
>Swinney gave the council delegate short shrift in his response, which has been seen by The Times.
>“Not only do I consider a cap on pay increases for higher earners to be legitimate, but at a time of acute financial pressure, directing limited resources to those on lower incomes is also the right thing to do,” he said.
>“Given this, and the importance placed on ensuring a cap was in place to reach an agreement with our trade union colleagues, I am unwilling to reconsider the inclusion of a cap at £60,000.”
>He also emphasised contradictions in her position arguing that Cosla had agreed a £80,000 cap in its 2018-19 deal which drew no legal challenge.
>The council pay deal is still to be formally signed off.
>Keir Greenaway, the GMB’s Scotland senior organiser, said that Cosla’s “intransigence” was “jeopardising” the agreement which was believed to include a permanent commitment to pay social workers’ fees to regulators and an additional day off.
>“It is deeply concerning that Cosla’s hierarchy are now trying to row back on these elements, and even more so that it seems they have also asked the Scottish government about the possibility of lifting the pay cap on the highest earners,” he added.
>Giving more money to the lowest earners was key to securing the support of the unions and halting the bin strikes that left rubbish piled up in the streets of Edinburgh during the capital’s festivals. Initially council workers were offered a 2 per cent pay increase but, after nationwide strike action that resulted in waste accumulating in the centre of other major cities including Glasgow, they secured a deal that saw people earning less than £39,000 increase their wages by at least £1,925; a 5 per cent hike for those earning between £39,000 to £60,000; and a maximum uplift of £3,000 for those earning above £60,000.
>Hagmann sent her letter to Swinney on September 14, while it was being considered by union members. Talks between the unions — Unison, Unite and the GMB — broke up on Monday without resolution.
>A spokesman for Cosla said: “There was categorically not a request to change the deal. However, in the interests of Cosla’s members, there was a need to ensure we fully understood the expectations of the Scottish government so we shared with them legitimate concerns.”
“How come the poors are getting help that’s unfair if we dont get more than them then the poors cant have anything” is what this basically boils down to
Our chief executive said no more payouts for staff leaving, some council exec then got like 1.7 million, then accepted another job in the council, turns out when he said no more leaving packages he meant for the plebs, not the higher ups…
3 comments
># Pay cap on highest council earners may be unlawful, claim civic chiefs
>Kieran Andrews
>Wednesday October 19 2022, 12.01am BST, The Times
>A pay deal that halted bin strikes and averted industrial action in Scotland’s schools has been put at risk after council bosses warned a salary cap on the highest earners may be unlawful.
>Cosla, the umbrella body for local authorities, raised the prospect of legal action after a limit was set on public sector workers earning more than £60,000 during pay talks with SNP ministers.
>The intervention by Katie Hagmann, Cosla’s resources spokeswoman, and an SNP councillor, provoked fury from trade unions who wanted pay deals weighted to benefit the lowest earners.
>“Cosla bosses are on the brink of blowing this,” a source said. “Their credibility is hanging by a thread in the eyes of our members, and this could have profound consequences not only for workforce morale and service delivery, but also future pay negotiations too.” In a letter to John Swinney, the deputy first minister, that was sent just 12 days after the pay deal had been agreed following a protracted late-night summit with Nicola Sturgeon, Hagmann is understood to have highlighted legal advice which questioned the legitimacy of the salary cap on higher earners.
>Swinney gave the council delegate short shrift in his response, which has been seen by The Times.
>“Not only do I consider a cap on pay increases for higher earners to be legitimate, but at a time of acute financial pressure, directing limited resources to those on lower incomes is also the right thing to do,” he said.
>“Given this, and the importance placed on ensuring a cap was in place to reach an agreement with our trade union colleagues, I am unwilling to reconsider the inclusion of a cap at £60,000.”
>He also emphasised contradictions in her position arguing that Cosla had agreed a £80,000 cap in its 2018-19 deal which drew no legal challenge.
>The council pay deal is still to be formally signed off.
>Keir Greenaway, the GMB’s Scotland senior organiser, said that Cosla’s “intransigence” was “jeopardising” the agreement which was believed to include a permanent commitment to pay social workers’ fees to regulators and an additional day off.
>“It is deeply concerning that Cosla’s hierarchy are now trying to row back on these elements, and even more so that it seems they have also asked the Scottish government about the possibility of lifting the pay cap on the highest earners,” he added.
>Giving more money to the lowest earners was key to securing the support of the unions and halting the bin strikes that left rubbish piled up in the streets of Edinburgh during the capital’s festivals. Initially council workers were offered a 2 per cent pay increase but, after nationwide strike action that resulted in waste accumulating in the centre of other major cities including Glasgow, they secured a deal that saw people earning less than £39,000 increase their wages by at least £1,925; a 5 per cent hike for those earning between £39,000 to £60,000; and a maximum uplift of £3,000 for those earning above £60,000.
>Hagmann sent her letter to Swinney on September 14, while it was being considered by union members. Talks between the unions — Unison, Unite and the GMB — broke up on Monday without resolution.
>A spokesman for Cosla said: “There was categorically not a request to change the deal. However, in the interests of Cosla’s members, there was a need to ensure we fully understood the expectations of the Scottish government so we shared with them legitimate concerns.”
“How come the poors are getting help that’s unfair if we dont get more than them then the poors cant have anything” is what this basically boils down to
Our chief executive said no more payouts for staff leaving, some council exec then got like 1.7 million, then accepted another job in the council, turns out when he said no more leaving packages he meant for the plebs, not the higher ups…