This year’s pay rise for civil servants has pipped the national average, according to new research.
The government this week confirmed a pay rise of 5% for both delegated-grade civil servants and senior civil servants.
This is three percentage points higher than current inflation but lower than rises for some other public sector workers such as armed forces staff, who will receive 6%, and NHS workers and teachers, who are getting 5.5%.
However, analysis of 227 pay awards from 1 April to 30 June 2024, published by pay research firm Incomes Data Research, covering over 1.9 million employees in total across the economy, found the average bump in pay was 4.6%. Inflation is currently 2%.
Some senior civil servants could get as much as 6.4%, after the Cabinet Office approved the Senior Salaries Review Body’s recommendation for pay band minima rises in the SCS.
The SSRB recommendations suggested that pay band minimas at SCS 1,2 and 3 should rise by £1,000 and that the 5% should be added afterwards.
The government's decision to approve these recommendations means minimum salaries in the SCS will rise as follows:
- SCS pay band 1: £75,000 to £76,000
- SCS pay band 2: £97,000 to £98,000
- SCS pay band 3: £127,000 to £128,000
By CSW’s calculations, this means officials on the pay band minima will get a 6.4% rise at SCS1 level, a 6% increase at SCS2, and a 5.9% uplift at SCS3. The pay band minima and 5% increase would see an official at the SCS1 minima go from a salary of £75,000 to £79,800.
The SSRB recommended the uplift to SCS pay minimums after civil service unions, the FDA and Prospect, raised concerns in evidence to the body about overlap between Grade 6 and SCS pay.
Some 23% of Grade 6s earn over the SCS1 pay band minima, although many high-earning Grade 6s are in the same department as high-earning SCS officials, so in practice the overlap is smaller.
On average, currently 4% of Grade 6s earn more than an SCS1 in the same department. “This is both a disincentive to promotion, and demoralising for the SCS1s involved,” the SSRB said.
The SSRB report said this can result both in officials earning more than their managers and junior staff leapfrogging more experienced SCS in salary when they are promoted to SCS roles and receive a 10% pay rise, the SSRB’s report, published this week, said.
“In discussion groups we heard about the discontent this can cause,” the SSRB said.
The SSRB recommended the 5% pay rise due to concerns about recruitment and retention.
It said it has found “a further continuation of the problems we have seen with the SCS over many years, including difficulties attracting sufficient high-quality applicants, high levels of churn and the lack of a simple pay-progression system”.
"Until there is an effective strategy which addresses the shortcomings in SCS leadership and management these issues will not be resolved," the pay review body said.
Until then, it said the recommended pay increase and minima rise will "help respond" to the concerns raised.
For officials below the SCS, the 5% increase is the maximum overall average pay awards departments can make.
This means individual civil servants may receive a higher or lower award, as it is for departments to decide how to target their pay award based on their own workforce and business needs. The pay remit guidance sets out that departments will have to consider addressing pay anomalies, tackling recruitment and retention challenges, and addressing addressing pay compression due to National Living Wage increases, along with budgetary pressures.