Prime Minister branded "a disgrace” as he emails Civil Servants about job cuts

Boris Johnson has issued a statement to civil servants trying to justify the threat to their jobs.

Earlier in May the prime minister announced 91,000 job cuts across the civil service, returning it to 2016 staffing levels. Secretaries of state have been asked to prepare plans for job cuts across their departments by 30 June.Today’s message from Boris Johnson, emailed to civil servants and published on departmental intranets, starts by thanking civil servants and encourages them to “reflect with pride on everything you have achieved over these last few years.”

He says “Britain’s civil servants have been at the forefront of an historic national effort, remarkable even by the highest standards of public service that have defined this world-leading institution for generations. “With your support, we got Brexit done and unlocked the deadlock in Parliament that had paralysed our country for too long. We came through the worst pandemic for a century, delivering the furlough scheme that protected so many livelihoods, and the testing and vaccines that allowed us to retain one of the most open economies and societies anywhere across our continent.” He goes on to claim that this was only possible because of taking on thousands of extra staff, saying that the civil service has grown by over 20% since 2016, but then says that from now on “we no longer require the State to have the same colossal presence in people’s lives. And rolling back the State in turn means we will also need fewer civil servants.” He says, “as many families and businesses now look at how to reduce their costs in a period of higher global inflation, it is right that we do the same.”

At a meeting with the Cabinet Office this morning PCS general secretary Mark Serwotka demanded a meeting with Boris Johnson. Mark said: “This government always manages to find money to pay millions of pounds of taxpayers’ money to its millionaire friends or buy bottles of Champagne for Downing Street parties but never for its hard-working staff members. “The prime minister thanks civil servants in one sentence, tells them their jobs are at risk in the next. He is a disgrace and we call on him to stand down immediately for the good of the country. “His plans to cut 91,000 civil service jobs must be abandoned and extra staff recruited as soon as possible to help deliver the vital services relied upon by so many.”

Join the TUC march in London on 18 June to show the government that We Demand Better.

Not yet a PCS member? Join today for greater protection at work.

Government sets cuts plan deadline as PCS votes for concerted campaign

Hours after PCS conference voted unanimously to campaign against government plans to axe 91,000 civil service jobs, 30 June has been revealed as the deadline for secretaries of state to report back on their department's cuts plans.

The proposals will be reviewed by the chancellor, chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, the minister for government efficiency and the Cabinet secretary, and overseen by the 'efficiency and value for money committee'. The final decisions on the 3-year mass job cuts plans are expected in the autumn. On the final day of PCS conference today, delegates unanimously affirmed our commitment to fight these devastating cuts with a concerted campaign including possible strike action.

PCS Conference agrees to industrial action ballot

PCS conference meeting in Brighton this week has agreed overwhelmingly to hold an industrial action ballot later in the year to fight the government's attacks on pay, pensions and redundancy pay and to oppose the job cuts agenda. We had people representing all parts of our membership across the civil service and public sector who took part in a passionate debate about the cost-of-living crisis. Many members reading this email cannot afford to put the heating on, worry about feeding their families, and are now even more worried about being one of 91,000 civil servants servants who will lose their jobs if the government gets away with its job cuts agenda.

We will have a ballot of members in September to fight for a decent pay rise. We want:

• a 10% pay rise to match the current rate of inflation

• to get you the money back that you are being robbed of every single month from your pension

• to stop the government's disgraceful 33% cut in your redundancy terms.

The overwhelming conclusion of our reps representing you was that enough is enough and we now have to stand up and be counted. We need members to vote in massive numbers for industrial action to force the government to listen. We know how hard it is for people to vote for industrial action, but the alternative is that all the government wants to do will happen and we will all be worse off in the long run.

Mark Serwotka - PCS General Secretary

91,000 Civil Service Job Cuts

Without warning or consultation, the government announced this morning that it plans to cut 1 in 5 civil service jobs over the next 3 years.

Boris Johnson and his government have made this announcement having spent the last few weeks denigrating you and your colleagues. Whether they are telling us passports are taking too long to be issued, or it’s delays with driving licences they always blame you, our hard-working members, for delays that are caused by there not being enough trained staff across the civil service. We have made it clear today, and will when we meet the Cabinet Office next week, that we are not just complaining about this announcement but that we oppose it.

Watch our video responding to the plans

The answer to the problems we have in our public services is not cutting 91,000 jobs but investing in staff, paying people more, training them better and recruiting more people to assist in the delivery of frontline services. Your union will do all we can to campaign against these job losses and for more resources across the civil service. Next week our national executive will meet and the following week our annual conference meets in Brighton and we will debate the cost-of-living crisis, the attack on your pensions and this appalling announcement that 1 in 5 jobs must go.

We know you deserve job better and have worked tirelessly during the pandemic. And we are determined to do all we can to not just fight for decent pay but to oppose these job cuts and fight for more staff. Fight the cuts and demand fair pay at the TUC march and rally in London on 18 June.

Mark Serwotka - PCS General Secretary

Pay 2022

As the government refuses to give you the pay rise you deserve, pay back the pensions money you are owed and plans to cut your redundancy terms, PCS has told them we are formally in dispute.

Consultative Ballot

You voted in record numbers in the consultative ballot to support our national pay claim of 10% and to get the 2% you have overpaid towards your pension refunded and backdated to April 2019. 98% of members endorsed that claim and 81% indicated they would be prepared to take industrial action if the government didn’t listen.

We have argued your case as you kept the country running during the pandemic and now face the single biggest drop in living standards since records began. Unfortunately, the government refuses to listen and intends to make cuts to the civil service redundancy scheme.

It's not a coincidence that they want to make these cuts at a time when Jacob Rees-Mogg is calling for more than 65,000 jobs to be lost in the civil service.

We cannot let this stand and we need to organise a campaign using the mandate that you have given us to put pressure on the government.

Watch the latest campaign video

Campaign Video - Mark Serwotka

Your elected leaders met this week to make important decisions and agreed to formally register a dispute with the government and your employer over your right to:

• a 10% pay rise

• get money you have overpaid into your pension back; and

• have no cuts to your redundancy pay.

We must now make the case to move towards a statutory ballot for strike action across large parts of PCS membership to put pressure on the government.

Next month at our annual conference, we are asking delegates to endorse our strategy and move towards an industrial action ballot in early autumn, following a summer of consultation with members and reps over which areas should be balloted.

We are also urging you and your family and friends to help put pressure on the government by attending the TUC’s national demonstration in London on 18 June and calling for a cost-of-living pay rise for all workers.

It’s important that you get involved and tell us what you think.

And if we’re going to be successful we also need you and your colleagues to urge anyone you know you isn’t a member to join PCS.

If we stick together we can win.

Mark Serwotka - PCS General Secretary

Pay 2022

The government has sent you an insulting message about your pay by announcing a pay offer of 2% for the coming financial year. A 2% pay rise in reality means at least a 6% reduction in your living standards. That comes after 10 years of real-terms pay cuts and at a time when we have a bigger cost-of-living crisis than we have had since records began.

You have delivered frontline services throughout the Covid pandemic and are now trying to continue to deliver those services as we move into a new phase. We cannot accept this action from the government because we know how worried you are about the future. So now we have to take action. We have to turn the consultative ballot vote, in which members told us why they need a 10% pay rise just to keep their heads above water, into a campaign which can force the government to think again.

Watch the latest pay update

Over the next 2 weeks, your national leadership will meet and analyse the ballot result in detail. Now we have to decide what to do and when to do it. And we will be consulting you over the coming weeks and months. When we met Heather Wheeler, the parliamentary secretary for the Cabinet Office, this week she not only offered us no comfort on pay, she also indicated that the government will try again to cut your redundancy pay by up to 33%, a move that we successfully blocked in the High Court in 2016.

Let’s be angry and determined and do everything we can to get more people into PCS.

We cannot leave this unchallenged. You deserve better and we are determined to ensure you get better.

Yours sincerely,

Mark Serwotka - General Secretary

Fran Heathcote - President

Vote YES in the PCS National Ballot

From 14 February to 21 March 2022, we are running a national consultative ballot of our public sector members in our campaign to raise pay, pensions and living standards to ask what action they would be prepared to take in support.

Our members’ pay has been frozen and capped and their living standards have fallen by around 20% in the last decade. The average PCS member is £2,300 a year worse off since 2011. And the government has also acted unlawfully yet refuses to refund the money our members have overpaid for pension contributions; they are £500 a year worse off on average. We have therefore lodged our pay claim for 2022 and called for negotiations to begin immediately. If the government is not prepared to act to tackle the cost-of-living crisis for its own workers, then we must look at what action members are prepared to take. We are therefore running a national ballot for all our public sector members from 14 February to 21 March.

This is not a strike ballot. It will ask members what action they would be prepared to take. A statutory industrial action ballot might follow later.

When the digital ballot paper arrives in your inbox, it’s really important you vote yes to the 2 questions:

Do you agree with the union’s demands on pay and pensions?

• Are you prepared to take industrial action, if the government, the Treasury and our employer don’t listen?

Our national claim calls for:

1) Cost of living rises

For 2022, in addition to progress on coherence of pay scales, we are also seeking a cost-of-living rise of 10%.

2) London weighting

On top of the national salary points that we are seeking to negotiate, we are seeking a London weighting payment, incorporated into consolidated pay, of at least £5,000 per annum, with no detriment to any worker currently entitled to more than that.

3) A Living Wage

Underpinning all elements of our claim for 2022, we are seeking a living wage of £15 an hour.

4) Annual leave

We are seeking improvements in annual leave provision to at least 35 days per year on entry; with no detriment to any worker currently entitled to more than that.

5) Working week

We believe that the time is right to consider what the future world of work might look like and how workers might benefit from new technology and from more flexible ways of working. We are therefore seeking a significant reduction in the working week with no loss of pay.

6) Pay coherence

PCS has a long-standing objective of securing a return to national bargaining on pay and terms and conditions covering all workers in the civil service and its related areas.

Get involved

We need members to:

• Check their PCS personal details are correct on PCS Digital so we can keep them informed about the campaign

• Use the PCS pensions robbery calculator and share the results with their MP

• Go to their union branch meeting

• Get active in PCS

• Vote in the ballot when they receive their digital paper, for those who we hold a personal email address, or by post for those we don’t.

Focus on the cost-of-living crisis

We look at the cost-of-living crisis, how it is affecting members and how PCS is campaigning to increase pay, pensions and living standards, starting with our consultative ballot from 14 February to 21 March.

The UK is in a cost-of-living crisis with millions of people not knowing how they will make ends meet, feed themselves, heat their homes and pay their bills.

The Guardian has reported that UK households have suffered the sharpest fall in the amount of cash they have available to spend for almost eight years, amid a worsening cost of living crisis driven by high inflation and rising energy bills.

And a report from the Royal Society for Arts underlined that young adults were among the hardest hit by the cost-of-living crisis. It warned that the damage to their finances from inflation, student debt, and rising taxes risked creating a new “generation precariat”.

Many PCS members, the government's own workers, are feeling this crisis acutely following years of wage stagnation and being forced to overpay into their pensions:

• Their pay has been frozen and capped, and their living standards have fallen by around 20% in real terms in the last decade. The average PCS member is worse off by £2,300 a year since 2011.

• Inflation is running at 5.4% (CPI) and is predicted to rise even higher in 2022.

• The energy price cap rise in April will mean energy bills could go up by 50%.

• National Insurance contributions will rise in April – for a member on £20,000 it will increase from around £1200 – £1330 a year – up 10%.

• The government acted unlawfully yet refuses to refund the money you have overpaid for pension contributions – members are £500 a year worse off on average.

Campaigning to raise pay, pensions and living standards

PCS is campaigning to raise the pay, pensions and living standards of all our members, many of whom are facing stark choices of what to do without as energy and food bills rocket but their wages do not keep up.

Running out of money weeks before payday and struggling to pay bills and feed their families are some of the heart-rending experiences of the crisis PCS members have shared with us.

Young member Michael, who works for the Information Commissioner’s Office, says he typically runs out of money in the week of payday.

He says he is “terrified of what an increase in bills and food expenses means because I can’t reduce any other costs anywhere.”

“I’ve already experienced a massive spike in bills for energy and have started reducing power use as much as I can, I turn off the microwave when it isn’t in use and never leave anything plugged in just in case it makes any difference,” he said.

“I’ve reduced the amount I spend on food so that I only eat two meals a day. I’m very stressed about it constantly in all honesty, it’s caused arguments with friends and loved ones because my fuse is so short due to it.”

DWP member Rachel often has weeks where she wonders how she and her husband can afford to buy food and fears that the NI increase will leave them unable to pay their bills.

“For our family currently, we run out of money very easily, my money comes in and goes straight back out again, my partner’s money mostly comes in and out again, but then we have to budget for things like food shopping,” she said.

Inflation at 30-year high

Inflation is running at a 30-year high of 5.4% (Consumer Prices Index) and ia expected to rise even higher. But as food writer and campaigner Jack Monroe highlighted in a Twitter thread viewed by more than 15 million people, the inflation figure hides an even starker reality. Many people are struggling to get by with inflation on many basic ingredients running well into double and even triple digits in the past 12 months.

Among the examples Jack cited of increases hitting the poorest and most vulnerable were:

• A 344% price increase on the cheapest rice, up from 45p a kilo to £1 for 500g.

• A 141% price increase on the cheapest pasta, up from 29p for 500g to 70p

• Baked beans: were 22p, now 32p. A 45% price increase year on year.

Fuel poverty affecting millions

The energy price cap rise in April could see energy bills go up by 50%, leaving, as campaign group Fuel Poverty Action (FPA) says in a blog for PCS: “Millions of households in the UK frozen in the grip of fuel poverty – unable to heat their homes and afford their energy bills.”

Around 10,000 people a year on average die as a result of fuel poverty.

FPA says fuel poverty is the result of deep-seated inequalities in our society, with poor, slum-like housing conditions rampant, the energy sector privatised and deregulated against the interests of workers and communities. And continued cuts to investment in energy efficiency measures and cheap renewable technologies.

They are calling for a Windfall Tax on fossil fuel companies to invest in urgent financial relief, demanding that they do not continue to profit off the backs of the poorest in society who are already having to choose between heating and eating.

Find out more, including how you can get involved in the campaign, by reading the blog.

Pensions robbery

On top of pay restraint, decades-high inflation and hikes in energy bills and National Insurance, since 2019, PCS members have been overpaying for their civil service pension by on average £500 a year because the government should have reduced employee contributions after it was found that the cost of the scheme had been overestimated. But they are refusing and scandalously trying to pass on the cost to members themselves.

So far more than 25,000 PCS members have worked out how much they have lost by using our PCS pensions loss calculator. The average loss per month is around £53. Simply enter your gross annual salary into the calculator and it will show you how much you have overpaid.

At a time when the cost of living is rising sharply, PCS members cannot afford to make these overpayments.

Members have shared their calculations and told us how they could be spending the extra money they are paying into their pensions.

Roberta told us that she used our calculator to work out that she is overpaying by £45 a month. She said: “I have a large credit card debt which I am slowly paying off but that £45 would go a long way to paying it off quicker.”

Another member said that in nearly 40 years of working in the civil service this is the worst she has ever seen in terms of people trying to cope with rising energy, fuel costs and the cost of living. She is overpaying into her pension by £31 a month.

She said: “We are having to pay out more and are now just working to keep a roof over our heads and food and warmth but having to decide which we can afford each month. Having that extra pension money back will help but we need an increase with our pay, too.”

We have also created an e-action so members can share what they have lost with their MP.

Support the PCS campaign and ballot

To support our campaign to raise pay, pensions and living standards we are balloting all public sector members from 14 February to 21 March to ask what action they would be prepared to take in support of our 2022 pay claim of:

• A cost-of-living rise of 10%.

• A living wage of £15 an hour.

• An annual leave allowance of at least 35 days a year on entry.

• A significant reduction in the working week with no loss of pay.

• A London Weighting payment of £5,000 a year, with no detriment to anyone currently entitled to more than that.

• A return to national civil service bargaining on pay and terms and conditions.

• An immediate cut in pension contributions of 2% backdated to 2019.

This is a consultative ballot to test members’ strength of feeling. A big yes vote will send a powerful message to government ministers and individual employers. The bigger the yes vote the stronger the union’s position will be in talks with ministers.

If members vote yes, we may hold a full statutory ballot on industrial action.

In preparation for the ballot, we need members to:

• Use the PCS pensions robbery calculator and share the results with their MP

• Go to their union branch meeting

• Get active in PCS

• Vote in the ballot when they receive their paper.

CS lodges national pay claim ahead of national ballot - 14 February to 21 March

Throughout the Covid crisis, the government has rightly heaped praise on workers in the civil service and its related areas as heroes in recognition of their delivery of essential public services in extremely difficult circumstances.

The government has also signalled its intention to build back better and create a high wage civil service. Even within the public sector our members have been the poor relations of pay policy. If the government is sincere in what it says, then action needs to replace rhetoric. We have therefore lodged our pay claim for 2022 and called for negotiations to begin immediately. If the government is not prepared to act to tackle the cost-of-living crisis for its own workers, then we must look at what action members are prepared to take. We are therefore running a national ballot for all our public sector members from 14 February to 21 March.

This is not a strike ballot. It will ask members what action they would be prepared to take. A statutory industrial action ballot might follow later.

Our national claim calls for:

1) Cost of living rises

For 2022, in addition to progress on coherence of pay scales, we are also seeking a cost of living rise of 10%.

2) London weighting

On top of the national salary points that we are seeking to negotiate, we are seeking a London weighting payment, incorporated into consolidated pay, of at least £5,000 per annum, with no detriment to any worker currently entitled to more than that.

3) A Living Wage

Underpinning all elements of our claim for 2022, we are seeking a living wage of £15 an hour.

4) Annual leave

We are seeking improvements in annual leave provision to at least 35 days per year on entry; with no detriment to any worker currently entitled to more than that.

5) Working week

We believe that the time is right to consider what the future world of work might look like and how workers might benefit from new technology and from more flexible ways of working. We are therefore seeking a significant reduction in the working week with no loss of pay.

6) Pay coherence

PCS has a long-standing objective of securing a return to national bargaining on pay and terms and conditions covering all workers in the civil service and its related areas.

In preparation for the ballot, we need members to:

• Check their PCS personal details are correct on PCS Digital

• Use the PCS pensions robbery calculator and share the results with their MP

• Go to their union branch meeting

• Get active in PCS

• Vote in the ballot when they receive their paper.

Pensions

Taken from PCS People Issue 3 2021

Legal action to defend members’ rights and benefits

The government is still withholding money that is owed to civil service pension scheme members. A cut in employee contributions that’s now worth more than £1,000 for many should have been brought in nearly three years ago.

With every passing day members are losing badly-needed cash. Meanwhile the government wants to rip up the rules so it would never be obliged to pass benefits on to scheme members in this way again (known as ‘cost-sharing’ provisions). It is also being slow on the application of the remedy process brought about by the McCloud judgment on age discrimination, which could be detrimental to some of our members. These pensions are not ‘gold-plated’ as some suggest – they have been paid for. Here is the latest on PCS action to defend your pension rights:

Legal challenge to ripping up of cost-sharing deal

PCS and other unions have launched legal action to challenge the government’s attempt to ensure scheme members can no longer benefit from favourable valuationsof the pension scheme. We are pursuing a judicial review along with the FBU, POA, GMB and Unite. The government is doing this to try to ensure members bear the cost of a legal case that they lost in 2018, called the McCloud judgment. In that case, the Court of Appeal ruled that there was unlawful age discrimination in the way changes to public sector pensions were made in 2015. There is now a remedy plan for the members affected. When it made those pensions changes, the government added ‘cost-sharing’ provisions which were supposed to be in place for 25 years. It meant four-yearly valuations would inform any need to vary the relative costs for employers and scheme members. The 2018 valuation showed the costs of the scheme were lower than predicted, and employees’ contributions were therefore to be reduced by 2% and some benefits improved. But the McCloud case was used as an excuse to block this process, and the whole cost-sharing mechanism has now effectively been ripped up at the whim of the Treasury.

It is a fundamental principle that our members should not bear the cost of the legal remedy, when the fault for the discrimination lies solely with the government.

McCloud: concerns over remedy plan gap

Civil Service Pensions is writing to scheme members affected by the McCloud judgment remedy plan. If you joined the pension scheme after 31 March 2012, you are not affected. The 2015 pensions changes meant most members moved into the new Alpha scheme. But the transition plan allowed some older workers to remain in their original scheme, depending on their age. The court found this to be discriminatory. As a result, those members who were in the 2015 full protection group will have their pension switched to Alpha on 1 April 2022. Alpha has the best rate of accrual but a later Normal Pension Age. It means that for some members the potential increase in benefits could be outweighed by the partial reduction made if you retire early. After the McCloud case it was decided that scheme members in the ‘remedy group’ will be able to choose – at the point of retirement – whether to have their service between 1 April 2015 and 31 March 2022 calculated under Alpha rules or the rules of their legacy pension. Members should not need to take any action for the remedy to be applied – but we have learned that plans to provide detailed information to support this choice will not be available until late 2023. PCS is concerned that in cases where our members are already receiving pension benefits that come wholly or partly from Alpha, this delay forces them to wait too long for their pensions to be rectified. This might be members who have retired, or were/are seeking to retire, for ill health or other reasons. If you think that could be you, PCS would like to talk to you. We will seek to protect members who have retired before the default remedy process is fully in place. Members who believe their pension may be incorrect due to the McCloud judgement should first talk to their local PCS rep.

COVID-19: Staying strong at DVLA

This article appears in PCS People Issue 2, 2021

DVLA strikers gain massive UK-wide support as they defend their safety and wellbeing with sustained strikes that our general secretary calls “some of the most important industrial action that we’ve had in PCS’s history”.

PCS members at the DVLA in Swansea have stayed united and resolved with sustained strike action over several weeks since April, as they continue to stand up for Covid health and safety in their workplaces. As PCS People went to press, members were taking part in a three-day walkout in early July, while the employer persisted in bringing hundreds of staff back on site as infection rates rose. Their action has become a symbol of union members defending their rights during the pandemic crisis, winning support from trade unionists, media, and politicians, especially the six local Labour MPs.

DVLA’s Swansea sites have been among the worst workplaces for infections in the UK, with mass outbreaks and a woeful response from an employer who has insisted in mass attendance at work and failed to keep staff safe. More than 30 days of all-member and targeted action have been held in the face of attempts to threaten and intimidate the PCS branch chair, and outrageous behaviour by senior management who in June reneged on an agreement negotiated with the union that could have ended the dispute. That deal was almost certainly pulled at the 11th hour by transport secretary Grant Shapps in an unprecedented move – a claim he has refused to answer.

Despite these despicable tactics, the well-supported strike is having an impact:

• Huge backlogs are building up at the DVLA, for example with nearly 250,000 pieces of post backed up in the Drivers Medical section.

• The delays are heaping pressure on Tory ministers; there have been desperate attempt to provide a service by outsourcing work members normally do.

• The dispute was raised at Prime Minister’s Questions by Labour MP Christina Rees.

• The Cabinet Office is raising questions with the Department for Transport about the way this dispute is being handled.

• Donations to the DVLA strike fund have exceeded £43,000 as the union vows to back the members with strike pay “all the way” while everything is done to bring the dispute to a satisfactory resolution.

• The branch has recruited more than 800 new members, now making it the biggest in PCS.

• DVLA activists are being asked to speak at events and rallies all over the UK.

In a message to DVLA members, PCS president Fran Heathcote said: “Keep going; I know this is tough. Nobody thought this would be resolved quickly and it has been a long haul, but stay strong, and stay united.” DVLA’s decision to outsource some of the work normally done by the strikers is a breath-taking act of hypocrisy, given their insistence throughout the crisis that certain work can only be done on site. In spite of the union’s demand to pause the return to work, rapid increases in positive Covid cases in Swansea Bay, rising positive cases on site and a pause to the easing of restrictions, the DVLA recently pressed on with its plans to bring 450 more staff in.

In a video message PCS general secretary Mark Serwotka also addressed the “victimisation, threats and intimidation” currently being faced by branch chair Sarah Evans. “I’m pleased to say that your union is not going to put up with either management behaving this way in refusing to settle the dispute, or them doing nothing to protect one of their employees, our rep.” He congratulated the strikers on their stance: “It’s a big well done because you have been taking part in some of the most important industrial action that we’ve had in PCS’s 20-year history.” Mark said members were defending their basic rights to safety at work and could not give in to the employer’s tactics.

PCS condemns the end of COVID-19 restrictions

PCS believes Boris Johnson’s decision to end Covid restrictions in England on 19 July is wrong and we have made a series of demands to the Cabinet Office with the aim of ensuring staff and workplaces are safe.

Given the rising numbers of cases caused by the Delta variant of the various and because the vaccination programme is incomplete we believe it is premature to end restrictions. At a meeting with the Cabinet Office yesterday we made the following demands:

• National law and guidance in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland must be followed

• There must be no arbitrary targets or dates for staff to return to workplaces

• Departments and agencies must consult the unions in advance of any plan for staff possibly returning to the workplace

• Social distancing must remain in place; face coverings should be used in communal areas and in any setting they are currently being used; existing screens should remain in place

• Proper ventilation is vital in buildings and unions must be reassured on this before any return to the workplace

• Vulnerable employees, including those not vaccinated, should remain working at home unless on the balance of risk it would be better for them to return to the workplace

• Risk assessments, both individual and collective, should include travel to work and must be undertaken in advance of staff returning to the workplace

• That in multi-occupied buildings/sites, health and safety arrangements must be put into place to ensure that unions are properly consulted at a building/site wide level as to all aspects of health and safety regarding a return to the workplace.

We are expecting more information from BEIS and the UK Government next week about the effects of easing Covid restrictions and we will publish further guidance. There is a meeting of senior lay officials next week to take stock of the situation and agree necessary actions to protect members.

Pay 2021

Restore fair and equal pay for all

PCS members have made an immense contribution during the pandemic and the government has acknowledged that some of our members are key workers. During these incredibly challenging circumstances, our members have been working tirelessly to keep the country going and keeping people safe.

We have made clear to the Cabinet Office that the range of issues confronting us, particularly in planning for a post-pandemic world, cannot be dealt with in isolation or through delegation. We think that proper central planning will be required if the UK is to recover and in prime minister Boris Johnson’s words “build back better”; and that proper collective bargaining is needed to facilitate this. Significant pay increases for UK government workers should play a major part in creating a path to economic recovery.

Yet our members have been hit by a pay freeze for the next 12 months. Despite some public sector workers being exempt from the freeze, the Treasury has made it clear that the pay remit for the civil service is 0%.

Huge collective effort

Since 2010, the value of civil service pay has fallen by between 8.8% (CPI) and 15.2% (RPI) and the average civil servant is now £2,110 worse off a year.

We have been clear that this pay injustice must come to an end. The route back to normality will be a long one and the virus still represents a major threat to people’s health and livelihoods. That’s why the government must do more to protect our members in both the public and private sector.

Our national executive has agreed a national pay claim for 2021 which seeks a cost of living rise of 10%, and a number of sectoral pay claims complement it, including in DWP, DfT, Home Office, MOJ and MOD.

Our campaigning

We launched our petition in July, which stated that during the pandemic government workers have delivered vital public services and kept our country safe and secure. After 10 years in which the real value of civil service pay has fallen, many face hardship. That’s why we called on the government to start to restore the real value of government workers’ pay with a 10% increase in 2020.

Regrettably the government announed it is freezing public sector pay for the coming year.

Our petition smashed through the 100,000 mark and was therefore debated by MPs on 14 December, many of whom said PCS members deserve fair pay and respect for their tremendous work during the coronavirus pandemic MPs.

The PCS petition and parliamentary pay debate are only the start of a vibrant campaign mobilising tens of thousands of public sector workers calling for fair pay, with payday activities planned for the first 3 paydays of 2021, as well as a virtual lobby of parliament in early March and ongoing discussions with other public sector unions, including teachers, firefighters and local government workers, about a coordinated campaign.

We also want to hear from members how they've delivered during lockdown, email editor@pcs.org.uk

PCS Pay mythbusters

PCS has been publishing a series of articles busting some myths around public sector pay as part of our national pay campaign.

Number 1 - no return to austerity - we look at the government’s claim that there will be no return to the austerity of a decade ago.

Number 2 - public sector wage increases are still better than the private sector - we look at the often cited claim that wage increases in the public sector are still better than in the private sector.

Number 3 - the country can't afford a pay rise at the moment - we look at the claim that the country can’t afford a pay rise at the moment and our members and other key public sector workers should be happy to have a job.

Number 4 - the government is making difficult decisions in the UK's best interests and we all have to make sacrifices - we look at the claim that the government is making difficult decisions in the country’s best interests and we all have to make sacrifices at the moment.

Number 5 - civil servants have always earned good wages - we look at the misconception that civil servants have always earned good wages, in the fifth in a series of myth-busting articles as part of the PCS pay campaign.

Pay 2021 and Pensions

Pay

The government recently announced that pay for the civil service and related bodies will be frozen at 0% this year. The Treasury guidance, which covers pay for civil servants, public sector workers in non-departmental public bodies and other arm’s-length bodies over the next 12 months, has recently been published, confirming that your pay will be frozen at 0%.

The average civil servant is already £2,100 worse off each year following a decade of pay restraint.

Pensions

To add insult to injury, the government has deliberately avoided you gaining a 2% reduction in your pension contributions, despite being told to do so by the Scheme Advisory Board, which further reduces your take home pay.

PCS members like you have made an enormous contribution during the pandemic, processing millions of benefit claims, administering job retention schemes, keeping courts open, ensuring ports and airports are Covid secure. PCS is campaigning for a fair pay rise for all of our members, working with other public sector unions, MPs and decision-makers. To win the pay rise that you and your families deserve we need as many members as possible to help with the campaign.

Thanks for your support

Mark Serwotka - General Secretary

PCS lands 'crushing' legal victory on redundancy payment cap for our members

The Government intends to revoke legislation which capped redundancy payments for public sector workers.

In November 2020, the government imposed legislative regulations setting a cap of £95,000 on redundancy payments in the public sector. PCS, along with other unions, lodged proceedings with the High Court in order to get the legislation quashed. A High Court hearing was set for March this year.

In what marks a further crushing legal victory for PCS over the government on behalf of our members, the government has now confirmed that they intend to revoke the legislation. The Treasury has issued directions that disapply the cap until the regulations have been revoked.

PCS general secretary Mark Serwotka said: "The government's decision to revoke the regulations is a humiliating climbdown. Having already suffered the ignominy of being defeated by PCS in the High Court in 2017 following a previous attempt to cut our members redundancy payments, it is time for the government to stop its high-handed interference with our members legal entitlements and terms and conditions. PCS will continue to fight to defend members interests, both legally and industrially.”

Pensions

The McCloud Judgement - Government gives response to public service pensions consultation

The government has announced its response to the consultation on the remedy proposal for age discrimination in the transition to pension changes to which PCS contributed in October. A statement today by chief secretary to the Treasury Steve Barclay confirmed that eligible scheme members will be able to choose, at the point their pension becomes payable, whether they wish to receive benefits from their legacy scheme or benefits equivalent to those that would have been available under the Alpha scheme in relation to their service between 1 April 2015 and 31 March 2022. In the meantime eligible members will be deemed to have been members of their legacy schemes for any period of service between those dates.

The Treasury also confirmed that it will:

• Still interfere with the last pension valuation by insisting that the costs of its discrimination will be borne by our members. This means that the victims of the unlawful act are also expected to pay for putting it right.

More details here: Civil Service World

Contributions - 2% Reduction

The Treasury has also confirmed that it will:

• Pursue a revised valuation process but members will not know whether any reduction in their contributions will result until it is completed.

This means that members continue to be denied a minimum of 2% reduction in their contributions, which should have been backdated to April 2019.

PCS General Secretary Mark Serwotka said: “The government must implement the remedy without further delay but it cannot be right that they insist on setting aside the reductions to the employee contribution arising from the 2016 scheme valuation to offset the cost of losing in court. We will protect our members from any further manipulation of the cost cap mechanism and further legal action may be necessary.”

Festive Season Message

As we approach the festive season, even though most of us aren't getting to celebrate in the usual way, we want to say thank you to all of our reps and members for their fantastic efforts over the last year.

PCS - National

The last 12 months has been a year we could never have predicted.

PCS members have worked tirelessly to deliver vital services, often in new and different ways, throughout the pandemic. We have faced some huge challenges, and we have adapted our communications and digital strategies, and reached out to members and activists. It has been great to see more members join, and others get more involved in PCS, as a result.

The parliamentary debate on public sector pay on Monday, which took place as a result of our government pay petition going over the 100,000-signature mark, and then our Facebook Live event straight afterwards, showed that our members are very angry about the way that they are being treated by this government on a range of issues. Although the parliamentary debate was frustrating, as government ministers didn't turn up to attempt to defend their pay freeze, we also heard some fantastic speeches in support of our members and the important jobs they do. We need to build on that support in the new year and develop a co-ordinated campaign in defence of our members, being clear about what we want to see put in place, not just what we don't.

We know that the period ahead will be tough, and that the government are planning further detrimental changes on a number of fronts, but we also know that we are strong when we stick together. We have been successful in making many gains for members on a range of issues over the last 12 months.

So we hope you enjoy some rest and recuperation over the festive period, either with family or, for those that cannot see their loved ones this year, you get to relax and take some well-deserved time off. Thanks for everything you do, and on behalf of the whole of PCS, here's to a brighter 2021. Let's come back refreshed, ready to face the challenges ahead.

Best Wishes

Mark Serwotka (General Secretary) & Fran Heathcote (President)

PCS Defence Sector Group (DSg)

Taken from Defender - Issue 4/20 (December 2020)

2020, a year that has presented the defence sector group in PCS with considerable challenges but also opportunities to organise.

The headline has been the terrible toll that Covid-19 has taken on the UK and our condolences go out to all the people who have experienced loss because of the pandemic. The group executive committee and reps have worked hard to keep all our members safe at work, be they in the private or public sector. We have ensured that as many people as possible have stayed safe at home working, making sure people have got the equipment they needed to do this, and that travel was kept to a minimum. Only people who cannot do their work from home should be in the workplace.

The helpful messages from MOD senior management were not always matched by actions on the ground; less than effective managers tried to force people into the workplace, unable to trust their teams to work efficiently from home.

This was reported to us by members and reps, demonstrating again that this local level of our union is the most vital. Our union has been able to organise around keeping staff safe both at home and on sites, showing how important and relevant trade unions are in every workplace. Policies agreed by our negotiators at departmental level are not always implemented correctly by commanding officers or heads of establishment, leaving our local reps and members, who are our eyes and ears on the ground, to provide that first line of challenge. That is why it is important to ask all staff in your workplace to join PCS, and for all members to play as active a role as possible in our union to make it as strong as it can be in every workplace.

There was depressing news from central government too, when Chancellor Rishi Sunak (whose wife we learn is wealthier than the queen) announced a further public sector pay freeze while the prime minister ‘let off’ home secretary Priti Patel after she was found to have bullied civil servants in the Home Office.

This sends a devastating signal to staff in our department who suffer bullying and harassment and our union will be taking up both these issues further in the new year.

News of the pay freeze has brought back questions around the rejection of the 2019 multi-year deal by the trade unions. Our union was clear at the time that the deal was funded by detrimental changes to pay and allowances that we were not willing to concede. There is little to be gained from re-running that debate, other than to acknowledge that both management and unions have accepted that there were lessons to be learned from the failure in negotiations.

Season’s greetings from the full timers in the DSg office; we wish you a peaceful and healthy new year.

Justin Thomas (Group Secretary)

As 2020 draws to a close, it is time to reflect on the achievements of members, activists, and PCS staff over the last horrific year.

No-one could have predicted at the beginning of the year how much our lives would have changed by this point, as we have battled to control the devastating effects of a global pandemic. Nearly two million people in the UK have tested positive for Covid-19, tens of thousands have died, and tens of thousands more have been left to suffer the long-term effects of a condition known as ‘long-Covid’ that are often worse than Covid-19 itself. Communities have been in and out of lockdown, with serious impacts on whole sectors of the economy.

While facilities have been made available to allow significant numbers of staff to work effectively from home, many others have been required to attend their normal place of work throughout the crisis.

Throughout this time our union has been working with MOD management and with the Cabinet Office to develop strong protocols and policies to deal effectively with the pandemic.

We have developed with Civilian HR a list of frequently asked questions that address a range of personnel related issues (now up to version 67). The departmental joint health and safety committee has developed 27 Defence Advice Notes that explain and articulate Covid-19 policy in a defence context. And locally, our reps have been working with site managements to ensure the potential impact of Covid-19 is mitigated and controlled in every workplace, through risk assessments and safe schemes of work.

The welcome news of multiple vaccines against Covid-19 does not lesson that activity, as current restrictions and safeguards are likely to be needed at least until the summer. But it may mean we have light at the end of the tunnel if we continue to do the right things for a while longer. Of course, normal business has continued during this period and our reps have got used to dealing with their day-to-day activities remotely. Many of these changes are likely to stay with us for the future, as working from home becomes more of an option for staff.

Thanks therefore go to all those across the group who have worked incredibly hard across the last year and have met every challenge put before them. If you would like to join us in 2021, just ask.

Here’s to a better 2021!

Chris Dando (Group President)

Pay 2021: MPs debate PCS Pay Petition

PCS members deserve fair pay and respect for their tremendous work during the coronavirus pandemic MPs told a parliamentary debate secured by our pay petition gaining more than 100,000 signatures.

The debate on our petition Give government workers a fair pay rise focused on our demands for a real and fair pay rise for government workers, many of whom have been classed as key workers during the pandemic. The debate comes after the comprehensive spending review in which the chancellor confirmed a public sector wide ‘pay pause’ which in real terms equates to a pay cut for our members following years of pay freezes.

The debate was oversubscribed, however only 11 backbench MPs were permitted to make speeches.

Opening the debate in Westminster Hall yesterday (14), Labour MP, and member of the petitions committee, Tonia Antoniazzi highlighted previous pay freezes and increased workloads. She reminded Kemi Badenoch, the minister responding, that while the government claim a pay freeze is in fairness to the tax payer, PCS members are taxpayers, too, and they deserve fair pay and respect.

MPs’ contributions focused on the anger felt across the public sector in general, but the priority was the treatment of civil servants, PCS members who have ensured the machinery of government has continued throughout the pandemic. MPs drew attention to reports which show that a well-paid public sector has a hugely positive impact on GDP and spends and supports the private sector.

Former shadow chancellor John McDonnell highlighted the risks members took attending offices throughout the pandemic, putting their lives on the line in DWP offices and job centres, border force and courts. He said that after 10 years of pay freezes and cuts “We have an epidemic of in-work poverty, affecting 4 million people.”

In her response, with over 15 minutes left on the clock, the minister refused to answer any questions or accept any interventions, which MPs labelled as symptomatic of the contempt with which the government treats its own workers.

PCS will continue to work closely with the parliamentary group to ensure the issue of civil service pay remains on the parliamentary agenda, with work in the new year likely to focus on targeted lobbying to ensure full scrutiny of the government’s decisions.

Watch the debate online

Read the Hansard transcript here: Financial Reward For Government Workers And Key Workers

Pay 2021

Our parliamentary petition for fair pay for civil servants now has over 100,000 signatures. Thanks to your support there will now be a debate on your pay in parliament on Monday, 14th December.

Send a letter to your MP

We are now asking all our members to sign an open letter to their MP, asking them to attend the debate and speak up on behalf of you, your family and your work colleagues.

All you need to do is fill in THIS FORM and enter your name and membership number, which is at the top of this email. We’ll take care of the rest by adding your name and checking your address before sending the open letter to your MP. We’ll let you know what response we get from them.

Complete the form no later than Wednesday 9th December to ensure that your name is added. The more names we add to the letter, the greater the pressure we can put on parliament to listen to us.

Make sure to share this link in your branches as widely as possible, and if there are non-members in your workplace who share our demands for fair pay, ask them to add their name to the letter as well, using this non-members form.

If you would like to get more involved in the union where you work speak to your PCS Branch rep or contact organising@pcs.org.uk and we will be in touch.

Thanks for your support

Mark Serwotka - PCS General Secretary

Fran Heathcote - PCS National President

Pay 2021

The chancellor Rishi Sunak has announced a pay freeze for public sector workers, this is an outrageous act by the government. The government that encouraged the public to clap key workers like you is now rewarding you and your colleagues with a pay freeze.

For you and all PCS members this is devastating news. The work that you have done over the last nine months has helped change people’s lives. You and hundreds of thousands of people like you have made a difference, delivering public services either in workplaces or from home right throughout the pandemic.

This is an unfair and unjust move which comes after a decade of pay restraint where many PCS members have had pay rises ranging from 0% to 1%. I’m urging you to sign and share the PCS pay petition, if you haven’t done so already. We’re very close now to the 100,000 signatures we need to force a debate in parliament. If you have signed then please urge your colleagues, friends and family to sign it, too.

You and your colleagues deserve a pay rise and to get the economy back on its feet we need pay rises that will enable you to spend in the economy. PCS called for a meeting on pay of all public sector workers at the TUC, which will take place on 7 December, because this is an issue for people in so many different parts of society. Look out for further updates on this issue, and if you want to get more involved in the campaign for fair pay, please email organising@pcs.org.uk

Mark Serwotka - PCS General Secretary

Pay 2021

Chancellor Rishi Sunak is expected to announce a public sector pay freeze next week, which is a grave insult to you and millions of hard-working government workers for your dedication which has kept vital services running during the pandemic.

It is therefore crucial that you and all PCS members and supporters show your disgust at the plans by signing the petition for fair pay for UK government workers and force MPs to debate the issue in parliament. The petition has been signed by more than 75,000 people and once it reaches 100,000 it must be considered for parliamentary debate.

As once again it is UK government workers like you, who have suffered a 20% real-terms pay cut because of pay freezes and caps over the past decade, who have to pay for a crisis.

Private companies have been allowed to secure lucrative Covid contracts to the tune of £17 billion, yet ministers are not prepared to reward you, their own staff for all the incredible work you have done this year.

If the chancellor fails to pay public sector workers properly, we would anticipate widespread anger across the sector, which means industrial action cannot be ruled out.

The chancellor shows a strange sense of priority that on the day that the Tax Justice Network has produced a damning report about the scale of global tax avoidance that he is seeking to save billions from the wages of public sector workers, rather than clamping down on tax dodging corporations.

Mark Serwotka - PCS General Secretary

Sign the Petition

Click the link below and you will be taken straight to the petition website where you can add your name to support the campaign:

Give government workers a fair pay rise

The coronavirus pandemic has shown government workers at their best. We have been rightly praised by politicians for keeping the country running. This is what we do, year in year out. But fine words don’t pay the bills. After a ten year pay squeeze, enough is enough. It’s time the government treated us with respect, recognised our contribution, and gave us a pay rise to restore the real value of our pay.

Already 82,521 people have signed the petition (21 November 2020)

When 10,000 people signed the petition the government had to respond. If 100,000 sign, there must be a parliamentary debate. In signing the petition you are building the campaign for fair pay. The petition is just the start of a campaign we are determined to win.

It’s time for fair pay for government workers, it’s time for action.

COVID-19: The advice from PCS is clear

Work from home if you can

Shield if you are extremely clinically vulnerable

• Use the escalation route to report health and safety breaches

The UK Prime minister has said “The single most important action we can all take, in fighting coronavirus, is to stay at home, to protect the NHS and save lives.”

Mark Serwotka notes that the government guidance is clear – if you can work from home, you must do so. PCS called for the Cabinet Office to issue that as clear direction to all Civil Service departments; given the critical nature of the situation, it is illogical that the measures announced are not accompanied by a direction to direct managers to clear workplaces of all non-essential staff. As England enters lockdown 2.0 it is worth noting that all the other three nations have their particular restrictions in place. See all coronavirus guidance on GOV.UK See specific guidance for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland

PCS has sought assurances that Staff in the civil service and its related areas who are over 60, or clinically vulnerable / clinically extremely vulnerable, must not attend the workplace and instead must work from home staff will be placed on paid special leave if there is no way that they can work from home. Government guidance is paramount and is on the .Gov website and states "You are strongly advised to work from home. If you cannot work from home, you should not attend work for this period of restrictions." All members and Reps are urged to ensure that this instruction is followed. Reps working in the civil service should use the MoD FAQ's that are agreed with the Union prior to issue and also the Defence Advice Notes and the Defence Information Notes. DAN 15 and 19 are particularly relevant as is DAN 25 and the CIRI individual risk assessment tool. If anyone is forced to return to the workplace then this CIRI tool must be used to assess them, anyone who is extremely vulnerable should be at home working or on special leave.

DSg notes that financial protections for contractors providing services to government projects have ended, contractors are telling their staff that self-isolation will be paid only at statutory sick pay rates (£95.85 a week) and that Covid-related sick pay will be the same. Of course, not all staff are eligible for SSP so the decision not to extend this contractor relief means some staff face the prospect of no pay if they self-isolate or take Covid-related sick pay.

By ending contractor relief, the civil service is essentially forcing sick people into work and this in turn will increase transmission and completely destroy the lockdown purpose. Companies providing agency workers have also been told those workers who self-isolate/take Covid-related sick leave will also be on SSP – if they are eligible. PCS are calling upon the Cabinet Office to ensure that agency staff are paid full wages if they self-isolate or take Covid-related sick leave.

There have been many changes in the workplace since March 2020, many have assisted our members working lives greatly, some have not. The best changes must be retained, the worst must continue to be challenged. The focus on Health and Safety and Trade Union organisation in the workplace provides an ideal means to recruit new members and build PCS. We have worked hard as a Union to keep people safe and employed across the last 8 months and this shows how effective Unions can be; we must take the opportunity to increase our numbers and influence on the employer.

Yours in Unity

Justin Thomas - PCS Group Sec DSg

Civil Service Compensation Scheme (CSCS)

Discussions to take place with Cabinet Office over redundancy payments

The government's £95,000 cap on redundancy payments across the public services is due to start from 4 November. PCS has pressed the Cabinet Office for consultation in relation to the implementation of the government’s £95,000 cap on redundancy payments across the public services.

The Restriction of Public Sector Exit Payments Regulations 2020 were signed by the Minister in mid-October and come into force 21 days on 4 November 2020. However, the Cabinet Office has accepted that there must be consultation with unions in the civil service prior to implementation.

PCS has been in contact with the Cabinet Office about the impact these regulations will have on civil service members who currently face redundancy, many of whom are in HMRC. We expect a letter next week and formal consultation to follow. PCS is pressing for implementation of the full compensation terms in the 2010 Civil Service Compensation Scheme and we want to clarify the position urgently. Further communications will follow once talks have started.

Pay 2020 - MoD Main Pay Offer

Taken from Defender - Issue 3/20 (October 2020)

In 2020, PCS submitted a national pay claim in the civil service for a 10% increase on all pay. The intention was to partially compensate for the incredible loss of take-home pay over the last 10 years.

Pay Petition

We have an ongoing pay campaign to address the pay in the civil service. We want all our members and families and friends to sign the pay petition as part of that campaign. The petition is open until next January. We would like to get 100,000 signatures by the opening of parliament in November 2020. See the link below.

MoD Main Pay 2020

Pay 2020 was certainly easier to resolve than the previous year. Despite this being the case, it was not straightforward and the PCS pay demand of 10% increase in basic pay across the board was not met. As a result of the Covid-19 situation the PCS NEC suspended the pay claim and commuted it into a basic demand for the immediate payment of the maximum 2.5% across the civil service. This was the upper limit of the Treasury pay remit guidance. As a result, the pay increase in MOD has followed the Treasury guidance after strong lobbying by the united trade union side in MOD who readily adopted the interim PCS position on pay 2020.

There was a sticking point around the amounts that were to be paid to those at the top of the ranges. PCS agrees that pay ranges should be tightened and narrower moving as many people as possible to the top of the scale and rate for the job; we do not agree that this should be achieved by holding back pay for those at the maxes. Everyone deserves a pay rise and that should be at the very least in line with inflation, PCS expects much more and you deserve it, too.

The best and final offer was been issued to the trade unions in MOD in August 2020. PCS understands that as an employer MOD has done all that they can to deliver the 2020 pay rise to our members in line with the Treasury remit guidance. We have discussed this offer with MOD in full and frank exchanges. The outcome that PCS have achieved provides a great example of why people should join trade unions, we have worked with the employer on your behalf to get the best possible outcome within the constraints placed upon us by Covid and finances. The unions in MOD have worked hard to keep you safe since March, to maintain jobs and business continuity and deliver pay at a reasonable level this year.

MoD Statement

MOD issued a statement as follows based on the responses of the trade unions: ‘MOD has confirmed that its final offer, worth an average consolidated pay award of 2.5%, will be implemented in September payroll backdated to 1 August 2020. The full offer for industrial and non-industrial staff, outlines the detail of the award and the reforms that are included in the 2020 civilian pay award.

• Grade pay range maximums will be increased by 1%. Staff on the current maximum will be moved to the new maximum.

• Staff on the minimum and below the current maximum will receive an uplift in their pay of 2.7% unless this takes you above the new maximum. If this is the case, staff will be placed on the new maximum.

• Grade pay range minimums will then vary in value by how much they will increase. Current staff will typically receive a higher value pay award, which will move them above their grade minima. For example, a Band D National employee who is currently paid the salary minimum of £25,967 will receive a consolidated award of 2.7% to £26,669. This is more than the new Band D National minimum, which will increase to £26,350.

• If you fall below the new minimum after the adjustment as set out in the offer, you will be moved onto the new minimum.

• All staff will receive a non-consolidated award calculated as the difference between their consolidated percentage uplift and 3% of their 31 July 2020 basic salary. This pay award is an important step in modernising the civilian pay system and sits alongside our work to expand the current employee benefits package, including the launch of a new benefits portal and the introduction of a cycle to work scheme.’

PCS stance

Therefore the PCS position on pay in MOD was that we do not accept and in fact we reject the pay offer for 2020, as it does not meet the full extent of our pay claim; however we will take no action to oppose the implementation of this offer as an interim payment towards our stated aim of getting every member a 10% pay rise in 2020. It is difficult to maintain a balance in difficult times with Covid-19 and the associated job losses, yet we understand that civil servants are undervalued and do need a significant above inflation pay rise to make up for the very low pay rises across the last decade.

Campaign continues - Sign the Pay Petition

This campaign continues and we rely on your membership and support to win. Sign the pay petition and encourage friends and family to sign, too.

We have launched a government petition for a fair pay rise for UK government workers and it is vital that we get this up to 100,000 signatures, so that there must be a parliamentary debate. In signing the petition you are building the campaign for fair pay. The petition is just the start of a campaign we are determined to win. The petition reads:

Give government workers a fair pay rise

During the pandemic government workers have delivered vital public services and kept our country safe and secure. After ten years in which the real value of civil service pay has fallen, many face hardship. The Government must start to restore the real value of their pay with a 10% increase in 2020.

Government workers are UK civil servants, those working for NDPBs and on outsourced government contracts. Civil service pay has fallen in value by up to 20% over 10 years. Civil servants have been overpaying pension contributions. Government pay policy for 2020 restricts increases to 1.5-2.5%. Government workers have delivered the Job Retention scheme, kept our courts running and our borders secure. It’s time to recognise their contribution and restore the real value of their pay.

Already 60,177 people have signed the petition (28 October 2020)

When 10,000 people signed the petition the government had to respond. If 100,000 sign, there must be a parliamentary debate. In signing the petition you are building the campaign for fair pay. The petition is just the start of a campaign we are determined to win.

Sign the Petition

Click the link below and you will be taken straight to the petition website where you can add your name to support the campaign:

Give government workers a fair pay rise

The coronavirus pandemic has shown government workers at their best. We have been rightly praised by politicians for keeping the country running. This is what we do, year in year out. But fine words don’t pay the bills. After a ten year pay squeeze, enough is enough. It’s time the government treated us with respect, recognised our contribution, and gave us a pay rise to restore the real value of our pay.

It’s time for fair pay for government workers, it’s time for action.

Coronavirus, Black Communities & Black Lives Matter

The Public and Commercial Services union (PCS) is extremely proud of its diverse membership and we have been at the forefront of campaigns against racism and fascism. The coronavirus health pandemic and the Black Lives Matter (BLM) protests have exposed grotesque levels of racism and inequality.

Before all the government reports and statistics were released, those of us who are black knew we were disproportionately dying from and contracting coronavirus. All around us members of our community were dying. For some, it was the painful experience of losing someone close, and most of us have experienced someone we know who has died. There have now been reports published by the Office for National Statistics and Public Health England that reveal black people are more than four times more likely than white people of the same age to die from coronavirus. We are most at risk due to socio-economic issues, including discrimination, injustice and poverty. We are more likely to be employed in precarious jobs and be on the front line as key workers without adequate protection or safety, including personal protective equipment (PPE). This is a problem that everyone at PCS has been acutely aware of when it comes to the impact on cleaners, security guards and catering staff, who are, again, disproportionately black, women and migrants.

Outsourced workers have played a pivotal role in keeping the country going during the pandemic but their pay and terms and conditions do not fairly reflect this. There has been much said about black workers dying because of health conditions – this is a negative narrative which seeks to blame black people for dying and which stereotypes black people as being the problem. Many of the health conditions black people may experience are linked to historical discrimination and injustice over decades and can be further compounded by barriers to accessing health services. We have just gone through a decade of austerity and cuts that have impacted disproportionately on black workers, service users and communities. In 2010 we founded Black Activists Rising Against Cuts (BARAC) UK and never imagined that, after a decade of fighting relentless cuts, discrimination and injustice, we would be marking its 10th anniversary.

During the coronavirus pandemic, we saw yet another black man murdered by the police in the USA, played out on screens around the world. For many of our community watching, this was triggering and not everyone was able to watch the hugely traumatising video. The death of George Floyd saw black and white communities take to the streets to express their anger, in the USA initially, and then globally. The BLM protests have also meant that the legacies of colonialism and enslavements are being debated again. This includes the symbols of those legacies in the form of statues, place names and more, which glorify the abuse, torture and murder of our ancestors. Here in the UK, we have heard some ask why people here are demonstrating after the death of George Floyd. Those who ask this question fail to recognise the many deaths at the hands of the state and other racist murders here in the UK that have angered the black community. PCS has a proud history of supporting family justice campaigns by offering practical and moral support. These include Stephen Lawrence, Jay Abatan, Mark Duggan, Sean Rigg and Sarah Reed, among others.

The backdrop to all of this is decades of institutional and systemic racism. Black communities are now living in an environment that is seeing the rise of the far-right, as well as continued everyday racism, micro-aggressions, discrimination in the labour market including recruitment, appraisal, promotion and progression and also in education and public service provision. We cannot forget the unjust, inhumane and horrendous treatment of the Windrush generation and their descendants. Disgracefully, that injustice continues; the vast majority of those affected have not been compensated for having their lives torn apart, with some made destitute or homeless and others who have died with no compensation and no justice. This is why black people, especially the young, are angry and have taken to the streets. The truth is our children’s generation should not have to go out and fight racism when we have spent a lifetime doing this already – as did our parents before us, many of whom arrived on British shores from the Caribbean, Asian and African continents and were greeted by disgusting racist chants and signs.

Institutions and businesses are now declaring in mission statements and messages to customers that black lives matter, but words are empty if they are not followed up by actions that eradicate racism. We have called on our employers to overhaul discriminatory HR policies and to acknowledge and address the legacies of slavery and colonialism that allow institutional racism to thrive. Some believe the time we are in is a turning point for race relations, but it can only be one if we are all accountable and we all take action. This involves supporting young people who are campaigning for change. Trade unions and the labour movement must also address barriers, discrimination and under-representation in our own movement, and ensure that we put the pressure needed on employers, institutions and the government. White people are needed as allies to support and bring solidarity to the struggle, but they must not control or lead the discourse on what happens and how it happens.

Our movement must recognise that black people are going through pain and trauma right now and their voices must be heard first and foremost. While black people must be allowed to lead our movements against racism, there is much our white comrades can do to support us. When racism is witnessed it needs to be called out – the person on the receiving end should not have that battle alone. White comrades can and should speak out. Silence in the face of racism and fascism empowers and emboldens those with abhorrent views. Black lives matter not just when one of us dies because of a racist attack – black lives matter every day.

Declaring that you are anti-racist is not enough; you must support race equality and give practical, not just symbolic, solidarity.

Note: We use the term black in the political sense to encompass those who are from the African and Asian diasporas.

ZITA HOLBOURNE (National Vice- president of PCS)

MOHAMMED SHAFIQ (Chair of the PCS National Black Members Committee)

This article comes from the Trade Union Co-ordinating Group booklet - Trade unions fighting racism and the far-right (Building solidarity in workplaces). The Trade Union Co-ordinating Group (TUCG) brings together an alliance of UK trade unions (including PCS) and co-ordinates campaigning activities in parliament and beyond. Find the booklet (including this article) at this link: Trade Unions fighting racism and the far right

Government increase pressure to return to the workplace

BBC Politics: Coronavirus: Civil servants 'must get back to offices quickly'

Some highlights from the above article:

• The government has urged Whitehall bosses to "move quickly" to get more staff back into the office.

• But unions have described the government's attitude as outdated. They say most civil servants should expect to keep working from home until the end of the year and that they fear an increased risk of catching coronavirus when back with colleagues.

• The government says it wants 80% of civil servants to be able to attend their usual workplace at least once a week by the end of September.

• Encouraging civil servants back into the office could be seen as leading by example, perhaps showing how a system might work for other employers.

• Dave Penman (FDA Union) commented that it was "quite clear" that "this is really about virtual signalling to the private sector that has already moved on".

• Mark Serwotka, general secretary of the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS), said he was prepared to consider industrial action "as a last resort" if workers' health and safety were "put at risk".

See also:

PCS Defence Sector Group: Unsafe workplace returns resisted by PCS in defence

PCS Defence Sector Group: Defence Advice Note 21 (DAN 21)

Major changes on home working announced – talks next week

PCS has told the Cabinet Office we are not prepared to accept attempts to force more civil servants back into work without detailed assurances about how their safety will be ensured if they have to return to their workplace.

The head of the civil service Alex Chisholm has written to all permanent secretaries this week to say that after Boris Johnson’s speech to the nation urging people back into work the civil service needed to see an acceleration of people returning to work. We told the Cabinet Office in a meeting yesterday that this was completely unacceptable. That demand is not based on our members’ health and safety, or on helping our economy, it is based entirely on political pressure being exerted by some MPs who are demanding that the civil service is used as an example to get everybody back to work. People should only go back to work when it is safe to do so. Everyone’s health and safety must be the top priority. We told the Cabinet Office that we weren’t prepared to accept this and they agreed to a meeting next week to start looking at the type of things that can be done to ensure that everyone can be safe. Further talks will take place next week.

Clear advice

Our advice to members is clear, if you are working from home and you get approached by anyone in your department asking you to now go back to work, don’t just accept that’s what you have to do.

Contact your local rep or our coronavirus response centre, or email responseteam@pcs.org.uk where we will be able to advise you about your options.

We are determined, having come so far in this pandemic and having done so well to deliver public services, that we do not throw away members’ safety because of the demands of politicians.

We will issue more advice next week and you can get more guidance and support, and get your questions answered, at our Facebook live event at 7pm on Thursday (30). Email your question to editor@pcs.org.uk

Good news about pensions for many PCS members

The government has accepted that it needs to put right the unlawful changes to pensions in 2015. PCS supported the action taken by the FBU to show that the changes to pensions made in 2015 were illegal. The FBU won the court case and the government has now accepted that it needs to put right what it did unlawfully in 2015.

A fantastic victory for trade unions proving the importance and value of being a union member

This is good news for many PCS members. The schemes that people were forced to go into in 2015 have been found to be unlawful and effectively the government must now put people back to the position they were in before that date. For people who had a retirement age of 60 and a final salary pension option, that option will now be given back to them. But for those who actually benefited from the changes to the scheme in 2015, you will have the option to stay in your current scheme. This means that our members will get the best option, whichever position they are in.

Refusing to pay the cost

The government now says that it will do a fresh valuation of the pension scheme, despite the existing public sector valuation done several years ago that shows that members had been overpaying by a minimum of 2% of their salaries. Effectively the government is trying to pass the cost of their unlawful actions onto us rather than bear it itself. Inevitably, the money members will get back will go down, and may disappear altogether.

This is neither fair nor just and we refuse to accept it. We will take legal action and are talking to our lawyers to discuss our next steps. We will not accept that the government’s illegality should be paid for by PCS members.

Last week the government announced that it is holding a public consultation which closes on 11 October in advance of new legislation to amend the rules of pension schemes in the public services and published the consultation document Public service pension schemes: changes to the transitional arrangements to the 2015 schemes.

Find out more and read our Q&A.

Tackling domestic abuse during COVID-19 lockdown

One of the alarming consequences of the coronavirus crisis is a surge in domestic violence, we look at what help and support there is for people suffering domestic abuse.

The UK’s largest domestic abuse charity, Refuge, reported a 700% increase in calls to its helpline in a single day, while a separate helpline for perpetrators of domestic abuse seeking help to change their behaviour received 25% more calls after the start of the Covid-19 lockdown. While the focus of this article is on violence against women as the most prevalent form of domestic abuse, the information provided is also relevant to other forms of domestic abuse and specialist contact information for organisations that support men as victims is also included.

Who can help?

If you are currently experiencing – or have experienced – domestic abuse and coercive control you may feel even more isolated and frightened than usual and more at risk – perhaps you are unable to reach out for help. There are many organisation offering advice and support during this very frightening time. The police have confirmed that any restrictions currently in place due to Covid-19 must come second to keeping yourself, and your children, safe. If the risk is so great you need to leave your house and you are able to leave – then do so. Find a safe place. Call 999.

If you can’t speak try to make a noise, like coughing, and then tap ‘55’ on the keypad. The police will know you need help, and will ask you to follow their instructions.

The information and guidance from Refuge, Victim Support and other organisations is clear – you should do what you need to, in order to stay as safe as possible in your situation. You will be the expert in this relationship.

If you are already in touch with an organisation – contact them.

Practical advice

• Keep your mobile charged and at hand

• Develop a “code word” with someone you trust so they know you are OK/need help

• Identify a safe room in your home where you can lock yourself in

• Keep important documents for you, and your children, in a safe place

• If using the internet to search for help – clear your search history

• If you can – use the shopping / exercise time to reach out for help

• Keep in touch with family and friends – use of visual apps like WhatsApp and Zoom – are a good way of checking in with others and keeping that social contact that is so important

• Speak to a PCS rep for support.

Always remember – this is not your fault.

Phone apps you can use: but only if safe to do so

Bright Sky: a free-to-download mobile app, providing support and information to anyone who may be in an abusive relationship or those concerned about someone they know. It can also be used by anyone looking for information about issues around domestic abuse such as online safety, stalking and harassment and sexual consent. It appears as a weather app on the phone.

Hollie Guard : provides enhanced levels of protection - essentially transforming your smartphone into an advanced personal safety device. All you need to do is shake your phone or tap the screen and you generate an alert, which automatically sends your location and audio/video evidence to your emergency contacts

Other websites which provide advice and information

Government website Gov.UK: Domestic abuse: how to get help

Refuge (formerly the National Domestic Violence Helpline)

Women’s Aid Federation Northern Ireland

Scottish Women’s Aid

Welsh Women’s Aid

Galop, the LGBT+ anti-violence charity

Mankind Initiative

Victim Support.

Looking after yourself

During this difficult time, you also need to look after yourself, including your own well-being and mental health:

• SilverCloud: is a free, safe and secure online guided self-support and includes online programmes for depression and anxiety, sleep, and stress.

• The Mental Health Foundation: has advice about looking after your mental health during the coronavirus outbreak including some specific advice for those in an abusive relationship.

• Samaritans: offer a non-judgemental listening service. It’s a free and confidential 24-hour phone and email service which provides emotional support for anyone who needs someone to talk to. No advice and no pressure.

• Call 116123 or email jo@samaritans.org

COVID-19 Update

To support members during the Covid-19 emergency we are changing the way we work so we can respond to your questions much more quickly and where necessary act to keep you safe.

From this week, and for the duration of this crisis, our Centralised Response Team will be the first point of contact for your coronavirus-related queries and representation requests.

Access this help via the new PCS Digital system for members.

How to logon to PCS Digital

PCS Digital went live in January 2020. See the article below for full details about the new PCS Digital system.

You can logon or register for PCS Digital here: PCS Digital Logon page

Coronavirus Q&A

Here there is guidance and advice all in one place online, answering members’ frequently asked questions, which will be updated regularly to reflect a situation that is changing rapidly, where you can see trending questions and answers. This will be prominently promoted on the home page of the PCS website and on our social media channels.

Once logged on to PCS Digital navigate to the Q&A page or use this link to take you there: Coronavirus Q&A page

Ask your questions

Over the last few weeks members have contacted us with understandable concerns about their safety and well-being at this extremely difficult time. Our newly-created team will offer guidance and advice when members need it. Where our on-line FAQs do not answer questions or concerns, members will also be able to ask questions.

Once logged in you will see a landing page with an ‘Ask a question’ link. When you start to write your question in the box you will see suggested answers which link to articles. If it’s not quite what you’re looking for you can submit ‘a case’ which will be acted upon by our team, but please bear with us as we are expecting a lot of cases.

The temporary reshaping of our front line staffing is designed to support you in the best way possible to help you to adapt to the new circumstances.

Defence Sector Group page (for members in MoD)

If you have specific questions about your employer, in the first instance visit the PCS employer group page on the PCS website here:

Links for different PCS employer groups

Defence Sector Group (for members in MoD)

PCS Guide for Home Working

Please see "COVID-19 - home working and mental health" which is a guide for union members, here: COVID-19 - home working and mental health

Join now

It is a very important time to be a union member, so urge your colleagues to join PCS online today.

The link between slavery and 21st century racism

Taken from Defender - Issue 2/20 (July 2020)

The recent cold-blooded murder of George Floyd by a white policeman in Minnesota, USA has correctly resulted in world-wide condemnation This murder can be analysed from the historical perspective to understand the genesis of why some people do not accept people from a different race to theirs.

Historically Black people have been subjected to being treated differently due to their race; this can be traced back as far as the slave trade which USA and Europe economically benefited from. Despite the atrocities committed during the slave trade, the generations which inherited the wealth created by slavery have not acknowledged that any crimes were committed. It is important to recognise that modern day racism against Black people can be linked to the ruthless economic exploitation that took place during the slave era and colonisation which has negatively affected Black people to this day.

The refusal to accept people from a different race is discrimination and is a systemic structure designed to deprive minorities of the opportunities to excel in today’s society. This is a crime against humanity and has impacted on every aspect of Black peoples’ lives over many decades. It is the mind-set of people who propagate the concept of one race having a superiority over another and has led to exploitation of the disadvantaged race.

The institutional racism that exists in this century is not accidental; it was designed by the colonisers when they recognised the empire could not be sustained. Racism is a corporate business model designed to disadvantage black people in all aspects of life including education, health, criminal justice and social economic development. The education system for instance, is very biased and is designed to exploit Black people, for example on average Black children are more likely to drop out of school and leave secondary school with less than three GSCEs. These generations of poorly educated Black people are a source of cheap labour for companies in USA and Europe to maximise profits and pay their billionaire shareholders dividends, at the expense of the cheap labour.

The unfair criminal justice system has involved the privatisation of prison services, creating wealth for rich white elites who have no interest in dismantling racist practices. The majority of the prison population in the UK and USA are Black people who serve as cheap labour, maximising profits of the private prison system, it is as if slavery never went away. That the inequitable health system works against Black people who are the workforce in the NHS is no surprise. The discrimination that Black and Asian workers face in the health sector is evidenced by high death rates from Covid-19 because of their poor health conditions. In order to eradicate racism, there is an urgent need to re-educate people to change their mind-set and treat Black people equally. The government must reform all facets of society such as education, health, criminal justice and the police.

Note from the editor

Defender magazine is really honoured to have this piece written by one of our DSg Black members. We publish this article fully in the way it was intended and rightly so, not only in the wake of the events in the USA, but closer to home where the permanent secretary dial in was affected by racist comments. A statement that PCS fully supports was issued by the permanent under-secretary of state for defence condemning those who took a racist perspective.

The extent of prejudice in the MoD was well known to BAME members and to PCS, it is structural and individual, now it is clear to the employer that there is a significant issue to deal with and deal with it we must. PCS stands shoulder to shoulder with the BAME community in this endeavour, the fight against racism and bigotry will continue until every last shred of prejudice is removed from our nation.

Black lives matter.

Pay 2020

You and your colleagues are going above and beyond the call of duty, working hard to help keep the country running during the current crisis.

Despite this government ministers have told us they have decided to cap any pay rise for the year ahead between 1.5% and 2.5% – a real terms pay cut. RPI inflation is currently running at 2.6%.

Your union had made interim demands during the coronavirus pandemic including an above-inflation pay rise paid across the board, not through the complicated delegated pay system, so that all efforts would be focused on the pandemic crisis. You deserve action to deal with low pay so that you can carry out work vital to the government’s response to the coronavirus crisis with a sense of security. PCS has worked hard to make sure you and your colleagues are kept safe and, where possible working from home, as our members support people accessing benefits, deal with taxes, support businesses and workers in the furlough scheme and protect our boarders. It is an outrageous swindle that ministers have embarked upon by not giving civil servants a proper pay rise as the Cabinet Office has today issued its pay remit guidance of 1.5-2.5%.

You are not asking for special treatment but only for what is fair. Pay injustice has gone on for 10 years and during the pandemic public sector workers have made Herculean efforts to keep services running. But ministers do not feel this warrants a just pay settlement. Your union will continue to campaign for pay justice until we get what you are entitled to for the hard work you do every day.

• We need you and your fellow members to get involved in PCS by signing up to be a PCS Advocate.

• If you have concerns read our coronavirus Q+A and you can log an enquiry with our response team by email responseteam@pcs.org.uk.

• Read further information on our response to the coronavirus outbreak on the employer pages of our website.

• If you know a colleague who is not in PCS ask them to join.

Mark Serwotka - PCS General Secretary

PCS writes to Cabinet Office expressing frustration at delay on interim demands

The union has been waiting for a response to its claim for above inflation pay rise, a moratorium on office closures, and end to the pensions’ robbery.

PCS is also opposed to any changes to the Civil Service Redundancy Scheme (CSCS).

In the letter to Mervyn Thomas, general secretary Mark Serwotka points to the hypocrisy of ministers on the one hand praising civil servants and other key workers, for their handling of Covid-19, while at the same time failing to address key issues such as poor pay, redundancies and office closures.

Mark has asked for an urgent meeting on the interim claim and a written response from the cabinet office.

Outrage as government fails to respond to PCS over interim demands

PCS rebuked ministers for failing to respond to interim demands over pay, pensions, office closures and redundancy compensation.

Despite repeated promises following numerous meetings with the Cabinet Office and personal assurances from minister for the Cabinet Office Michael Gove that he would write to the union, no letter dealing with PCS demands has yet been received. The current exceptional crisis has meant that it would be wrong, and potentially unsafe, to continue with the normal delegated mode of working and that decisive central action is needed. PCS made the following interim demands during the corona pandemic in order to help staff who are facing challenging times, many of whom are carrying out essential work for society. They were:

• An immediate across the board above inflation pay increase for all staff

• A 2% reduction in pension contributions

• No changes to the Civil Service Redundancy Scheme (CSCS)

• A moratorium on office closures and redundancies.

Following an NEC meeting yesterday, the union agreed that it would oppose any attempt by government departments to force people back into workplaces before the end of the lockdown. We will continue to work to establish an acceptable national protocol with the Cabinet Office if employers insist on members returning to workplaces. If members were forced back into workplaces, PCS has committed to:

• Consulting reps and members on their views and potential for collective opposition to the employers’ action.

• Parliamentary and media campaigning would be carried out.

Speaking after the NEC, general secretary Mark Serwotka said: “It is an outrage that after 6 weeks we have received no answer regarding our interim demands. Ministers cannot on the one hand clap workers every Thursday and then on the other refuse to pay them properly and continue a pensions robbery. Our members are doing an incredible job, helping people access Universal Credit, the job retention scheme and protecting our borders, amongst many other roles. However, thousands are having to claim benefits while they help others access support. That cannot be right. PCS members were owed a pay rise before the Covid outbreak but to not give them one now is a slap in the face and shows the real attitude of the government to key workers.”

Mark pointed out that in Scotland they had already introduced a 3% pay rise for civil servants working for the Scottish Government. He added: “It is quite obvious from the job retention scheme and the money being used to underwrite business, that there is money for hard-working civil servants to be awarded a long overdue above inflation pay increase.”

Read further information on our response to the coronavirus outbreak on the employer pages of our website.

Read our coronavirus Q+A and you can log an enquiry with our response team by email responseteam@pcs.org.uk

If you know a colleague who is not in the union please ask them to join.

Find out more about getting involved in PCS.

PCS stops outsourcing of Veterans Services

Taken from Defender - Issue 1/20 (March 2020)

PCS has been successful in its campaign to keep the veterans services in the MoD in the public sector where it should be.

There is still work to do in this campaign as the employer rarely likes to be challenged, this campaign is established and not going away. On top of the privatisations there is also the desire to close workplaces involved in delivering the services to veterans especially Norcross in Lancashire. It is essential that we do not win against privatisation only to lose jobs and services in an area of the UK that the government have promised to revive.

In the spring of 2018, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) announced its intention to look at outsourcing Veterans Services. They did this without public consultation as part of the Future Services Delivery Contract (FSDC). This contract covers the provision of armed forces pay, pensions and military HR and administration services. It is important for PCS members to understand it will eventually be expanded to include:

• Administration of the War Pensions Scheme and Armed Forces Compensation Scheme.

• MOD Medal Office – the administration and issue of medals and awards.

• Provision of veterans enabling and supporting services; and

• Maintenance and development of existing information system (IS) and inquiry services in support of the above services.

Our union believed that asking the market to bid to run veterans services on a for profit basis was at odds with the military covenant. PCS knew the MoD needed to value veterans services, those who need them and the civil servants in MoD who are delivering those services to our veterans.

The group executive council HOCS trade union side immediately held meetings with the PCS members who deliver veterans services and they made it clear that they were totally opposed to any outsourcing, because of the moral obligation which exists between the nation, the government and the armed forces in return for the sacrifices they make. The PCS Defender editorial board entirely agree.

From April 2018 our union ran a campaign to oppose the outsourcing of veterans services, PCS engaged MPs from across all the political parties, tabled parliamentary questions, developed a social media presence and petition. We gained so much traction that we were able to hold a parliamentary drop-in session where every single MP who joined us agreed that any outsourcing of veterans services was unacceptable.

Visiting different events on Armed Forces Day in 2018 and 2019 it was clear from talking with the public and our veterans that no one wanted to see Veterans Services run for profit and our campaign went from strength to strength leading to a petition with the highest level of signatures for a PCS Defence Sector group campaign. At the close of 2019 a decision was finally reached by the MoD not to outsource veterans services and instead explore what could be done to deliver better veterans services by the MoD.

PCS is clear that the challenge to protect veterans services and the employment of civil servants delivering those services has not disappeared. We will have to remain constantly vigilant. There is an expectation that veterans services will transform to produce efficiency saving and at the same time will exit its Norcross site which could put the delivery of those services at severe risk. Defence Business Services must engage and consult in a timely, meaningful and informed manner with our union on how they will look to transform veterans services without negatively impacting the delivery of services, creating job losses and undermining the Fylde coast local economy.

The fantastic support of PCS members in DSG combined with public and political interest shown in veterans services has enabled us to work with the MoD to persuade them to reach the right decision, not to outsource. This campaign continues so members interested in helping us should contact dsg@pcs.org.uk to register with the campaign.

Even though PCS has fought off the privatisation the battle goes on to not only keep the service in the public sector but to keep the jobs in the local area in the north west. The decision by MoD to close Norcross is part of the DBS regional hub concept to pull civil service jobs into one central location; by not outsourcing the work, at least it’s MoD making the decision where the jobs might go, rather than a random contractor, PCS will campaign to keep the jobs in the local area so we can continue to keep the the services operated by those with the expertise and keep work in areas that rely on these vital public sector jobs.

2020 National and Group Elections

National and Group Elections 2020

The National Executive Committee (NEC) met on 26 March and considered the question of holding national and group elections during the current coronavirus crisis.

The NEC considered the fact that members’ workplaces and normal working practices are in a state of extreme disruption. The coronavirus situation dominates our work and our members’ lives. For some members and their families this is a time of tragic loss. Our staff and our activists are focused primarily on our response to the coronavirus crisis and are unlikely to be in a position to progress business as usual. The union is in the process of adapting to the situation with new methods of communication and organising which are not yet fully tested.

In terms of the practicalities of holding elections, the independent scrutineers have informed us that, while at this moment in time it would be possible to despatch and count returned ballot papers, uncertainty over the coming period (including the impact of the coronavirus crisis on their own staff and on the postal system in terms of receiving and returning ballot papers) means that delays and lowered turnout would at least be likely.

Having carefully considered the position, the NEC decided that it would not be appropriate for the NEC and Group elections to go ahead as planned. The NEC decision means that existing post holders will remain in place until elections can be held.

Annual Delegate Conference (National) and Group Conferences 2020

The NEC had already agreed at a meeting on 19 March that it would not be possible to go ahead with our Conferences in May, the expected time of peak infection rates.

Summary

The NEC has taken these decisions with the utmost consideration of all the factors. It has been an extremely difficult, yet an absolutely necessary to make these decisions. PCS has enshrined democracy at the heart of everything we do. We are proud of our record and we are widely admired across the movement. In the circumstances of this huge crisis in our workplaces and communities, however, it would be wrong to carry on with the union’s formal elections. The NEC agreed that the situation would be kept under review. Branches will be kept fully informed.

Mark Serwotka - General Secretary

Fran Heathcote - President

Pay, Pensions and the CSCS

PCS has written, on behalf of members to head of the civil service Mark Sedwill, to table demands on pay, pensions and redundancy rights and call for urgent talks on these vital issues.

• PAY - on pay our demand to the government is that all members in civil and public services should receive a 10% pay rise, fully funded by the Treasury. That would go some way to making up for the pay cut you have received in recent years. We cannot have a situation where the government cuts your terms and conditions to give you more money. We’re also demanding equal pay across our membership. 

• PENSIONS - on pensions we have, alongside the Fire Brigades Union, launched legal action via a judicial review to force the government to give you back the 2% you are being overcharged for your pensions each month. If we’re successful everyone will get 2% backdated to April 2019. The government has announced this week that is has no intention of giving you back that money and ministers are going to ask parliament to agree to carry on forcing you to pay at the same rate. That’s completely unacceptable.

• CSCS - we have demanded no cuts in your redundancy rights and that the redundancy scheme complies with age discrimination legislation.

Once we have met with the government we will tell you what progress has been made. To make our campaign a success we need you to get involved with the campaign that we’re running. We’ve got a range of activities taking place over Budget Day. If you know someone who is not currently a member, talk to them about these issues, the situation you and your colleagues are facing and why we need to mount a campaign. Do everything you can to work with us to make the campaign a success so that we can achieve these demands on your behalf.

Mark Serwotka - PCS General Secretary

Fran Heathcote - PCS President

Pay, Pensions and the CSCS

We took important decisions on your pay, pensions and redundancy rights at last week’s NEC meeting. 

We recognise that your pay, pensions and redundancy rights (the Civil Service Compensation Scheme) are inextricably linked. You and your fellow members are all affected by at least one of these issues. We need a campaign to join those issues up and demand fairness and justice from the government.

I am writing to the Cabinet Office, on your behalf, with 3 demands:

• PAY - that we should achieve pay rises significantly above inflation in the region of 10% and for national pay across the civil and public service that delivers equal pay wherever you work. 

• PENSIONS - we are demanding that the government gives us our 2% back now, backdated to April 2019. 

• CSCS - for your redundancy rights our demand is very simple – no cuts to your redundancy rights. The government wants to cut your redundancy pay by 33%.

To support those demands we are calling for central negotiations with the Cabinet Office. When we get them we will keep all members informed of what is being said and how we intend to put pressure on the government.

Legal action 

We have agreed to take aggressive legal action against the government on all 3 issues: 

• We’ve already joined the FBU judicial review on pensions. 

• We’re looking to take legal action on your right to no reduction in redundancy pay when you get to 57 or older and to protect your existing rights. 

• We’re also looking to take legal action on issues such as equal pay. 

Campaign

But to really get the government to listen we need a campaign involving more members and more people joining in, delivered across the UK. So we’re going to set up a series of local campaigning initiatives in all parts of the UK to get reps and members joining in across different employers and departments, urging people to get involved.

Mark Serwotka - PCS General Secretary

Pensions - Overpayment (the McCloud Judgement)

Last year’s civil service pension valuation showed that you have been over-paying for your pension, and last year the government refused to cut your pension contributions.

The government met us last week and told us they intend to ask parliament to allow them continue deducting pension contributions at the current rate for a further year. This will mean that you will continue to pay 2% higher pension contributions than the independent valuation says you should.

In the meeting we opposed this pension robbery, and we’re meeting them again tomorrow to reiterate that’s totally unacceptable. We’ve told the government they need to cut your pensions contributions by 2% as soon as possible. At the moment they’re not listening so we intend to:

• Tell the government to cut your pension contributions immediately by 2% and guarantee that moving forward they will implement the legal case won by the Fire Brigades Union to improve everybody’s pensions. 

• Launch a major national campaign around the question of pay, pensions and your redundancy rights.

If they don’t do that we’re urging you to join our campaign, ask people who aren’t in PCS to join us and get involved in our local campaign initiatives.

Legal action

We’re also going to be exploring legal action. We will be seeking jointly with the FBU a judicial review to give you your pension money back. We hope you will join our campaign, fight for pensions justice, tell the government to give you your 2% back or if not we will campaign against them and we will take action in the courts.

Mark Serwotka - General Secretary 

Campaigning on Pay, Pensions and the CSCS 

At January’s National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting, it was agreed in principle that preparations for a new campaign should be made that will bring together three central issues for public sector members as the bargaining picture shows that national developments on these issues are converging: 

• Pay

• Pensions

• The Civil Service Compensation Scheme (CSCS)

Pay

Meetings with the Cabinet Office on pay are taking place. A meeting of senior lay reps from each group will shortly be held to discuss a national pay claim for above inflation pay increases to redress years of pay restraint, and the establishment of national civil service pay bargaining.

Pensions

We continue to campaign against the government’s unjustified suspension of the public sector pension valuation process, which is denying our members the improvements due to them, following the breach of the pension cost cap in 2018. PCS has agreed to join the FBU’s judicial review of the suspension maintaining that it is unlawful. Our members are fully entitled to have their pension contributions reduced by 2% or more, and to benefit from other pension improvements.

CSCS

Next month it will be 4 years since the government first attempted to change the CSCS terms. Our campaign has defended the 2010 terms over those years, resulting in £100s of millions available to workers covered by the scheme. Since we won the judicial review on the government’s lack of consultation on changes to the Civil Service Compensation Scheme in July 2017, we have managed through ongoing negotiations with the government to maintain the CSCS at the 2010 terms. Talks with the employer continue. We have been consistently clear that there is no case for changing the terms of the scheme that were reinstated by the Court.

Campaigning

The NEC will decide at the appropriate moment whether, and to what timetable, an industrial action ballot should take place. At this stage we are preparing to launch initial campaigning activity, including new local initiatives, which will bring the three areas of pay, pensions and the CSCS together.

The new campaign will emphasise a bottom-up approach; the maximum involvement of members will be the key aim and new organising initiatives will provide a forum for members to mobilise in their localities. The objective is to build the union and to build union power. The NEC will take decisions on any new national ballot for industrial action at the appropriate time.

A special NEC meeting will be held on 19 February to finalise national demands and the campaign plans.

Mark Serwotka - General Secretary 

Fran Heathcote - National President

Willing to take a case against age discrimination in the Civil Service Compensation Scheme? 

PCS is looking for ordinary and associate and retired members willing to bring cases following an employment tribunal ruling that the 6 months cap on compensation for redundancy for those over their civil service pension age within the Civil Service Compensation Scheme (CSCS) is not proportionate and is therefore direct age discrimination.

Within the CSCS as it is currently written, once you are 15 months from your civil service pension age, your entitlement to compensation for voluntary exit or redundancy begins to be tapered and then, from pension age, capped at 6 months. Tapering works to reduce the amount, month by month, from 21 months maximum to 6 months by the time you reach pension age. Similar restrictions are placed on the compensation payable to those dismissed for efficiency reasons.

In a judgment handed down in November, an employment tribunal ruled that the 6-month cap on compensation for redundancy for those over their civil service pension age within the Civil Service Compensation Scheme is not proportionate and therefore is direct age discrimination.

In Ms J Elliot v Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman: 2200464/2018 the tribunal decided that, although the aim of the compensation scheme was legitimate, cutting compensation back to 6 months only for those over pension age was not proportionate. Although the government has decided to appeal that judgement now, anyone who might have a case needs to submit this now, just in case the original ET judgement is upheld. PCS has instructed its lawyers to support the claimant in defending the appeal.

Legal possibilities

This case opens up legal possibilities for anyone facing redundancy, whether voluntary or compulsory, or voluntary exit within the age range that attracts the cap or tapering. There are legal time limits involved in such cases but at this stage PCS is proposing to advance legal claims regardless of precisely when someone left employment under these terms. We are also looking to open a dialogue with the employer, through the Cabinet Office, to seek a central relaxation of the age cap, pending determination of the remedy in this case. This dialogue is taking place outside of any talks that may start on any proposed new redundancy scheme. The union’s starting position in any such talks will be that the 2010 redundancy terms must remain in place. 

Want to submit a case?

If you want to submit a case you can fill in our web form if you:

• Are aged 58 and 9 months – or older.

• Are about to leave employment with a compensation payment for early severance, voluntary or compulsory redundancy, or with compensation on an efficiency dismissal, or left under such terms recently.

• Are departing under such terms in the future, if the departure date has been set.

• Have left employment with a package under the Civil Service Compensation Scheme.

• Have left employment through an efficiency dismissal.

• Had compensation that was tapered to be below that which is appropriate to someone younger than you, or capped at 6 months because you are over 60.

We will support former members who have left their jobs in the civil service and did not immediately take out PCS ARMS membership, but we would expect them to take out such membership now and maintain it for the duration of the cases.

Public Sector Pensions - Update

This briefing gives the latest position on our continuing work to achieve pension improvements: 

1. To overcome the unlawful age discrimination in the imposed 2015 pension changes and

2. To lift the Government’s unjustified suspension of the pension valuation process, which is denying our members the improvements due to them, following the breach of the pension cost cap in 2018.

In an earlier report there was news about a Ministerial Statement in July, which stated that the Government accepted there was a clear “read across” of the judgment about unlawful age discrimination, to all those who were not given transitional protection in the Civil Service pension scheme and other public service schemes. The process of deciding the remedies to eradicate the discrimination, via the Employment Tribunal has made a start with some progress reported below.

At the same time, PCS has continued with our strong pressure to lift the suspension of the pension valuation remedy processes, which has had a damaging impact on our members, by stopping the expected and fully justified reductions in pension contributions of 2% and more, plus some benefit improvements.

Talks with Cabinet Office and Legal Process

A further meeting with Cabinet Office officials took place in late September, at which we heard that Case Management/Preliminary Hearings at the Employment Tribunal had been arranged in October for judges, police and Civil Service cases. Arising from these first hearings about the remedy, the Treasury produced a note in late November, which has reaffirmed the Government’s decision that all other public sector schemes, including the civil service scheme, will have the same age discrimination removed. The Treasury note also states that the Government has agreed an interim declaration which means that:

• The claimants are entitled to be treated as members of the appropriate pre-2015 pension scheme, and

• The Government intends to extend the same treatment to all members of the public service pension schemes (whether claimants or not), but

• In those cases where members will be better off by staying in the Alpha scheme, they will be able to continue these present arrangements.

• The Government state that legislation will be necessary “to deliver the commitment to remove the discrimination from all public service pension schemes”. Also the Treasury acknowledge that some older members who were given Transitional Protection and continued in their existing scheme in 2015, could have been better off moving into the new Alpha scheme.

Earlier, the Treasury had confirmed that already accrued pension entitlements cannot be taken away. Together with the important statements above, these commitments should mean that key aspects of PCS objectives, as stated in BB.43/19, about 

(a) No detriment to members` existing pension, 

(b) Choice for members to ensure their pensions are maximised, and 

(c) An outcome which means all those not included in Transitional Protection will be better off, can now be expected to be fulfilled. Our other 3 objectives about equality assessments, full negotiations and ending the suspension of the valuation continue as primary goals.

However, it is recognised that the Employment Tribunal process has not yet been completed as there are further remedy hearings, notably of the Firefighters` cases in mid-December, and it is possible that some aspects explained above may be modified. Other aspects of the likely outcome of the Tribunal remedy process, involve recognition that:

• Those who have already taken pension, which involves the new pension scheme and who would have gained a higher pension under the old scheme, or who have retired early on ill-health, may already be “out of pocket” and this should be rectified quickly.

• Those not yet “out of pocket”, as they are still working/not yet drawing pension will be dealt with later.

Obviously it will be important, especially in our negotiations with the Cabinet Office, that we gain assurances that all cases are included in the coverage of the remedies, including members who have left since 2015 and those who are leaving soon, especially for those cases where ill-health retirement has taken place or is expected. In addition there is a need to ensure that there is firm commitment that those no longer employed will still receive the benefits of all adjustments to their pension or deferred pension. The coverage of these arrangements must include all members who are members of the civil service scheme, or other public service schemes, whether or not they are civil

servants.

Lifting Suspension of the Valuation Remedy

From the above report, it is clear that the age discrimination remedies, particularly those requiring legislation, will take some years to finalise, whilst recognising that action should be taken earlier on those cases where members are already, or will soon, be “out of pocket”. The Cabinet Office have recently indicated that completing the whole benefit review exercise is likely to end in 2022 – so up to 3 years. We have already made clear that it will be completely unacceptable for the Government to continue the suspension of the valuation for this period of time. This is particularly the case, as we will be approaching the next valuation at that time, and it would be outrageous that our members will be overpaying contributions for an even longer period. 

Earlier, PCS made very clear that the suspension of the valuation remedy should be lifted immediately, and that the Government must not use the remedy process for their failure to observe age discrimination laws, as an excuse for delay. All unions have declared that members should not have to bear the cost of dealing with the Government’s unlawful discrimination. I have said to the Cabinet Office, in relation to PCS plans for industrial action on Pay in 2020, that any attempt to repeat the “rollover“ of current contributions from 1 April 2020, could be a trigger for the beginning of action. It is clear that there is strong feeling among members that the agreed recommendations from the valuation process, as put to the Minister earlier this year, must be implemented soon.

Our members are fully entitled to have their pension contributions reduced by 2% or more, and to benefit from other pension improvements. Following December’s General Election, it is our firm intention to engage quickly with the Treasury Chief Secretary, to have the suspension lifted, and allow remedies for the cost cap breach to be implemented without any further delay.

We will be liaising closely with the TUC about the position, and considering the possibility of legal action if the suspension continues for a further period. The National Executive Committee will meet early in the New Year to review the position.

Mark Serwotka - General Secretary

4 things to know about Disability History Month

UK Disabilty History Month (UKDHM) runs from 22 November to 22 December this year.

1. UKDHM is an annual event that began in 2010 to create a platform highlighting the story of disabled people’s struggles for equality and uman rights. This year the theme is ‘leadership, resistance and culture’. It focuses on disabled leaders’ fight for acceptance throughout history and charts changes in the way disability has been viewed, transforming from a ‘personal burden’ to a human rights issue. 

2. Among the leaders UKDHM highlights are: Chartist movement campaigner and striking tailor William Cuffay; trade union and social justice campaigner Ben Purse; Megan du Boisson and Berit Moore, who founded the Disablement Income Group – thought by many to have started the UK’s modern disability movement; Labour MP and PCS supporter Marsha de Cordova; and Disabled People Against the Cuts founders Linda Burnip and Debbie Jolly. 

3. PCS is active on disability issues as part of its equality work. The National Disabled Members’ Forum (NDMF) meets to discuss and address challenges and barriers faced by disabled people and to share success stories and best practice. It aims to develop campaigns, policies and collective bargaining issues to protect and enhance the rights of disabled people at work and beyond. It produces a digital journal called Disability Matters. 

4. The UKDHM theme interfaces with PCS’s vision, ‘Building, Growing, Winning’. The union is building equality networks through the regions. In the north-west the NDMF is due to relaunch on 27 November. By enabling disabled members to work together, leading the bargaining agenda from their own experiences, PCS builds a culture that resists discriminatory practices and achieves truly inclusive workplaces. 

https://www.pcs.org.uk/equality/equality-groups/national-disabled-members-forum

Pensions: The McCloud Judgement and how you are overpaying for your pension by at least 2%

• We are campaigning for civil servants to get their pension contributions reduced and scheme benefits improved, after a valuation showed you are overpaying by at least 2% every month.

• The government is not giving you the money that is yours. You overpay every month and you should get that back now.

• The government must also correct the unlawful age discrimination against younger members involved in pension changes imposed in 2015. 

The Fire Brigades Union defeated the government and now all public sector schemes have to be reconsidered to see whether the discrimination that the courts found has affected our scheme and what the government’s going to do about it. We are pressing for progress.

I want to assure you that we have registered with the Cabinet Office all of the issues about pensions that you and your fellow members have raised with us. We have demanded negotiations and consultations to ensure that the pension scheme that we get, that will have to be fit for purpose for the next 50 years, solves in a fair way all of the problems that have been raised. We will do everything we can to secure the best possible pension for you and all members and will continue to ensure that not only do you not pay any more money, but you get back the 2% you have overpaid. To do that we will negotiate with whoever is in government and the civil service. We need to do that with a strong union, with more people joining us and more people getting involved. 

Learn more about the McCloud Judgement here: Civil Service Pensions - the McCloud Judgement

Civil Service Compensation Scheme (CSCS) – 2010 Terms to remain until at least 31 Dec 2019 - Talks Continue

The Cabinet Office have confirmed that the 2010 CSCS terms will remain in place until at least 31 December 2019. Our campaign has defended the CSCS terms since 2016 with £100s millions available for workers covered by the scheme.

Background

Branches have received regular updates on developments in negotiations. We submitted our counter proposal to the employer in October 2018 after they imposed a deadline. The principles underpinning our counter proposal were to:

• Secure maximum protection for the lowest paid

• Secure maximum protection for the greatest possible number of PCS members

• Secure maximum protection for those who want to remain in a job, prioritising Compulsory Redundancy terms over Voluntary Exit and Voluntary Redundancy terms

• Eradicate the age discriminatory aspects of the current scheme

Cabinet Office Response

The Cabinet Office wrote to us on 9 April 2019 stating that the Minister had considered our counter proposal, had determined his preferred position and, in accordance with the provisions of the High Court Judgment, now wished to enter a period of consultation on his preferred position. We met with the Cabinet Office on 10 April. We said that we wanted a full, written explanation from the Minister of his position on our proposals and why he was minded to make the changes he was proposing. We also asked for details of costings of his preferred proposals. The Cabinet Office wrote to us on 17 June outlining their rationale.

Further Talks

We met the employer again on 30 July. We pointed out that, since the response on 9 April, the political situation in the UK had significantly altered. We said that there had effectively been a change of Government and that we now wanted to meet Oliver Dowden, former Minister of Implementation at the Cabinet Office, who had been promoted to Minister for the Cabinet Office, in his new capacity. We also pointed to the raft of announcements from the new Prime Minister containing spending commitments. We said that this indicated that the Government’s previous position that the savings from the Civil Service Compensation Scheme (CSCS) were hard wired into future financial projections no longer stood up to scrutiny in light of this new found largesse. As well as seeking a meeting with the Minister, we asked that the 2010 terms remained in place until at least the end of the year to allow time for that process of engagement. The Cabinet Office agreed to take our request back to the Minister. They have since confirmed that the 2010 CSCS terms will indeed remain in place until at least 31 December 2019. 

In February 2020, it will be 4 years since the Government first attempted to change the CSCS terms. Our campaign has defended the CSCS terms for four years with £100s millions available for workers covered by the scheme.

Political Lobbying

We have met with John Trickett, Shadow Minister for the Cabinet Office, and appraised him of the position. John has pledged Labour’s support to do whatever it can to block the proposed changes. We are also in the process of setting up a meeting with the DUP to appraise them of the position. They have previously opposed any changes to the CSCS.

Mark Serwotka - General Secretary

Fran Heathcote - President

Pension Revision Exercise Update

PCS has been holding discussions with Civil Service Pensions via the Joint Superannuation Committee about the large number of pension recalculation letters being issued to retired and partially retired members. 

A major internal review conducted from 2016 identified around 13,000 cases where pensions in payment have been changed. In the majority of cases pension has been increased but in more than 2,000 cases pension has been reduced. The administrator MyCSP has issued letters in these cases which request immediate repayment of a claimed overpayment. These letters are headed Civil Service Pension Benefits Re: change to your benefit entitlement and include a reference to, “further information from your employer”. The letters have caused confusion as the rectification exercise for Guaranteed Minimum Pension (GMP) is taking place at the same time. In relation to GMP rectification there was trade union consultation and a write off of overpayments.

Civil Service Pensions has acknowledged the failure to consult over this important development in the administration of the scheme and one which raises serious issues of concern because it is important that when notifying a recalculation sufficient information is provided to enable the member to have a reasonable level of assurance that it is correct. This applies to changes which increase as well as decrease pension.

The PCS view is that the circumstances giving rise to the revision exercise, i.e. the failure to process known information for many years, amounts to maladministration and we have put it to Civil Service Pensions that a write off is appropriate as it was for GMP rectification. This has not been agreed but Civil Service Pensions have undertaken to reflect on the difficulties arising from the revisions exercise and write again to the unions.

Mark Serwotka - General Secretary

Public Sector Pensions - Latest Developments

Last week our National Executive Committee considered the actions which PCS needs to pursue to secure:

• A satisfactory outcome for all members in the Civil Service Pension schemes, or other public service schemes, which eradicates unlawful age discrimination and changes members` pension terms to overcome the imposition for younger members of the new Alpha scheme from April 2015 or later.

• The lifting of the Government`s Suspension of the Pension Valuation from last year, which is currently denying members a 2% or more reduction in pension contributions plus benefit improvements.

Government Confirms “Read-Across” to Other Pension Schemes.

A significant statement was made by the Treasury Minister, Liz Truss on 15 July that the Government now accepts the legal judgment about age discrimination in the Transitional Protection arrangements, and that:

“As “transitional protection“ was offered to members of all the main public service pension schemes, the government believes that the difference in treatment will need to be remedied across all those schemes”.

Also,this statement specifically said that the civil service and other pension schemes are included in this position, which confirms our view about the read-across of the legal judgment.

Our Work on the Remedy.

Our attention is now focussed on the remedy to overcome the discrimination, and the Employment Tribunal dealing with the firefighters` and judges` cases will be key to this. Consequently, PCS are now engaging with the Cabinet Office and the Treasury about the basis of the remedy to be put forward by them to the Employment Tribunal.

• At a meeting with the Cabinet Office on 18 July, PCS demanded that the remedy involves 6 key points as below:

• No detriment to members` existing pension entitlement.

• Choice for members to ensure their pensions are maximised.

• An outcome which means all those not included in transitional protection will be better off

• Full attention to Equality requirements, including Impact Assessments.

• Commitment to full negotiations on all aspects

The recommendations for remedies about the Valuation outcome (Cost Cap breach) must be implemented now, giving members at least 2% contribution reductions and benefit

improvements. These demands are reasonable, as both the Treasury and Cabinet Office have agreed that already accrued rights of individual members to their pension entitlements cannot be taken away – thus any remedy must either improve on the current position or stay the same, meaning no detriment can arise from this process.

Calling for an Early End to Suspension of Valuation Remedies

The timetable for the Employment Tribunal deciding the Remedy for Age Discrimination is presently unclear, and this process may take several months. Consequently, PCS are arguing strongly with both the Cabinet Office and the Treasury, that the suspension of the Pension Valuation remedies must be lifted now, as it is outrageous that our members continue to overpay contributions for lower pension benefits. And this is now more than ever the case because of the Age Discrimination, which has identified further real pension losses for a large majority of members.

Campaigning

PCS continues to campaign with other public service Trade Unions and the TUC, and we argued for our position in clear terms at a TUC organised meeting of these unions with

Treasury Officials on 23 July. It was agreed that, as the picture becomes more defined and specific, further meetings will take place both on the general position across public service schemes but also for each sector. A further report will be issued soon.

Mark Serwotka - General Secretary

Pensions Update

Last year the government carried out a valuation on civil service pensions.  The results showed that since the changes in 2015, which meant most people paid in more but got less back, members of the scheme have massively overpaid.  

 In a meeting with the Cabinet Office, I have made it clear that the money due to PCS members from the civil service pension valuation – a minimum of 2% every month – should be paid immediately.  The government’s decision to suspend the valuation is unacceptable when you have been paying at least 2% more out of your pay every month than you should.

Further, the consequences of the successful case brought by the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) against the government, that proved that the changes brought in to their pensions were discriminatory on the grounds of age, mean that the government must look again at every public sector pension scheme.

I  have demanded from the Cabinet Office that all future pension changes will be negotiated with PCS, and they have agreed to this. PCS has also demanded a guarantee that no-one should be worse off due to pension changes following the FBU’s legal victory – an important issue, as some people did actually see improvements to their pensions following the changes in 2015.

No-one should be asked to pay more.

However long it takes, we are determined that the government must pay for the improvements to pensions that the court has said must be brought in.  If this process takes a long time, the stronger we are, the more likely the government is to listen.  So please encourage your colleagues to join PCS and think about getting more involved yourself as an advocate or rep.  

Mark Serwotka - General Secretary

Pensions Update

Public Sector Pensions

As reported in BB.04/19, the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) won an important victory at the Court of Appeal against the transitional arrangements in their 2015 pension changes. The government has now been refused leave to appeal this judgement (frequently referred to as McCloud) to the Supreme Court.

The FBU had challenged whether the transitional protection arrangements of the new Firefighters Pension Scheme for a group of older members constituted discrimination on the grounds of a protected characteristic (i.e. age). The England and Wales Court of Appeals (Civil Division) found that these transitional arrangements were discriminatory on grounds of age. For the government to prove its case it had to successfully argue that it had a “legitimate aim” in introducing the transitional arrangements in the way that it did. The Court of Appeal found that it did not have a legitimate aim, and that therefore the transitional arrangements constituted age discrimination.

This confirmation of the unlawful age discrimination in the Firefighters` and Judges` cases, is based on the same/similar transitional protection measures applied generally across public service pension schemes when these were reformed 4/5 years ago. This means that there should be a clear “read across” of this judgment to our members in the Civil Service Pension Schemes and those who are in other public service pension schemes.

PCS has publicly congratulated the FBU for pursuing these legal cases, particularly as the now established position:

• It enables us to challenge the terms of the new pension arrangements, which were imposed on many thousands of our members from 1 April 2015, which moved them onto the Alpha pension scheme from that date, or later, unless they were aged 50 years or over on 1 April 2012. (Older members continued in their existing scheme, Classic, Premium etc. beyond April 2015).

• It helps to renew our call for lifting the Government`s decision on 30 January to suspend the pension valuation remedy processes, which has had a damaging impact on our members, by denying them expected reductions in pension contributions of 2% and more, plus some benefit improvements.

Ending suspension of the pensions valuation remedies

PCS has been active in ensuring that there is good co-ordination among all trade unions in the public sector, aimed at ending the current suspension of the pensions valuation and the remedy for the cost cap breach. Prior to the legal judgment being confirmed, TUC officers, including myself as TUC President, met the Treasury Chief Secretary, Liz Truss MP, on 13 June. At this meeting the decision to suspend pension valuations was attacked as unjustified and disproportionate, given the immediate impact on take home pay of our members, who were being denied reductions in their contributions of at least 2%. PCS argued it was outrageous that our members who had endured pay freezes and inadequate pay rises for all of the last decade, were still continuing to overpay for pensions which had dwindled in value. There is to be an examination of the position in each pension scheme at meetings of unions and Treasury officials to test the basis for the suspension in each scheme, by considering the details in each of them and to decide whether suspension of the remedy for Cost Cap breaches can now take place. 

Remedy for unlawful age discrimination

At the same time as we are challenging the current valuation suspension, PCS will meet with senior Cabinet Office officials in July, to take this forward, and pursue the legal remedy for dealing with the unlawful age discrimination in Civil Service and other pension schemes. At this point the nature of the remedy for this discrimination is not clear, and it could depend on the remedy which the Employment Tribunal determine should apply to the Firefighters` cases. PCS has been monitoring the legal proceedings in these cases throughout the period since the original Tribunal in 2017, and PCS met with our lawyers in early June to consider the relevant issues involved in ensuring that PCS members will be dealt with on the same/similar basis as Firefighters etc. We will be considering the advice we receive about the best means of tackling the situation, now that a confirmed legal judgment exists. 

Campaigning

In line with motions carried at ADC, we have submitted a motion to the TUC Congress on public sector pensions which calls on the General Council to ensure that the TUC organises joint union campaigning, including building for joint industrial action if necessary, until the valuation suspension is reversed (see attached). We are also due to hold a fringe meeting on pensions with other unions.

On 10 July Mary Glindon MP submitted a PMQ:

The prime minister will be aware that yet again her government has lost in court to a public sector trade union, this time to the FBU over pensions. Is she aware that whilst her government fought this case it penalised all public sector workers by suspending the pensions valuations, which in the case of her low paid frontline civil service staff has resulted in them not only being denied the money they are owed, but continues to force them to overpay for their pension at 2% per month. When will the prime minister give these loyal workers the money that is rightfully theirs?

The National Executive Committee is meeting in July and will be giving full consideration to the current situation. A further report will be issued.

Mark Serwotka - General Secretary

Find out more about your Civil Service Pension

You can find out more about Pensions including links to guides on the different pensions such as Classic, Classic Plus, Premium and Nuvos here: 

https://www.pcs.org.uk/campaigns/pensions

Talks on pensions

Following pressure from PCS and the TUC the government is to look at all public sector pension schemes ahead of talks over the government’s outrageous decision to suspend the public sector pension valuation process.

Public sector pension valuations took place at the end of last year and revealed that thousands of workers had massively overpaid into their pensions and the government was obliged to give that money back to members of public sector pension schemes. This should have meant that civil servants should have had a minimum 2% reduction in their pension contributions, meaning a 2% increase in their pay packets and other beneficial changes.

The government then lost a legal case to the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) who successfully argued that the protection imposed on younger members was unlawful on age discrimination grounds. As a result the government dramatically overreacted and in January suspended all public sector pension valuations. And for civil servants it was even worse as in March the government put rules through parliament that forced our members to continue to overpay every month by at least 2% into their pension pot.

Pay and Pensions

Pay

The government has delivered yet more bad news about your pay, announcing that it is only funding a 1% pay increase for the coming year, with any increases above that most likely funded by attacks on your terms and conditions. The latest Treasury pay remit announcement which provides a framework for all civil service departments to set pay for 2019 to 2020, says departmental heads can give pay awards of up to 2% – still below the current 2.1% inflation rate – for the coming year but outlines that the government is only funding 1% with the additional 1% funded by departments that are able to find it. 

The latest announcement means that the value of civil servants’ pay will have fallen for over a decade. It means the best that’s going to be on offer is below the rate of inflation and in many cases people will be asked to give things up in order to get it. We will now be entering into pay talks with departmental managers, but we have to prepare for all eventualities. That means building your union, getting more people involved, getting more people to join, is essential so whatever the government has in store for you and your colleagues.

Pensions

Following pressure from PCS and the TUC the government is to look at all public sector pension schemes ahead of talks over the government’s outrageous decision to suspend the public sector pension valuation process. Public sector pension valuations took place at the end of last year and revealed that thousands of workers had massively overpaid into their pensions and the government was obliged to give that money back to members of public sector pension schemes. This should have meant that civil servants should have had a minimum 2% reduction in their pension contributions, meaning a 2% increase in their pay packets and other beneficial changes. The government then lost a legal case to the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) who successfully argued that the protection imposed on younger members was unlawful on age discrimination grounds. As a result the government dramatically overreacted and in January suspended all public sector pension valuations. And for civil servants it was even worse as in March the government put rules through parliament that forced our members to continue to overpay every month by at least 2% into their pension pot.

Get involved

To support our campaigns in your workplace we need you and your colleagues to sign up to get more active in your union. A few hours a week can make all the difference. 

You can start by signing up to be a PCS Advocate. 

Mark Serwotka - General Secretary PCS

Treasury pay remit – 1% pay increase unless departments find savings 

Sacrifice your terms and conditions if you want more than a 1% pay increase, is the stark message the government has sent to PCS members through the Treasury pay remit guidance published today.

The guidance, which provides a framework for all civil service departments to set pay for 2019 to 2020, says departmental heads can give pay awards of up to 2% – still below the current 2.1% inflation rate – for the coming year but outlines that the government is only funding 1% with the additional 1% funded by departments that are able to find it. Awards above 2% can only be obtained through business cases.

The guidance says that employers will be allowed to use ‘recyclables’ in addition to the funded headline percentage remit figure of 1%. However, their definition of recyclables applies only to the difference in pay rates between leavers and joiners. Funding for vacant posts is not included. Recyclables can only be used up to the 2% cap. If employers wish to go beyond this, they are required to submit a business case to the Cabinet Office and the Treasury.

The guidance says business cases that can be made are:

• To address recruitment and retention issues

• For transformational workforce reform

• For transfer of funds from non-consolidated pay pot to consolidated pay.

The latest announcement means that the value of civil servants’ pay will have fallen for over a decade. Back in 2010, the government put in place a two-year public sector pay freeze. They then implemented a “pay cap”, set at 1%. Last year the government announced it was ending the public sector pay cap and gave NHS and local government workers increases above 1%, but the pay remit was a meagre 1.1.5% for the civil service.

Prepare for all eventualities 

PCS General Secretary Mark Serwotka said: “What this means is the best that’s going to be on offer is below the rate of inflation and in many cases people will be asked to give things up in order to get it. “We will now be entering into pay talks with departmental managers, but have to prepare for all eventualities. That means building the union, getting more people involved, getting more people to join, is essential so whatever the government has in store for us we are able to respond in the applicable way. I hope these talks can get us a just outcome but at the moment you have to say that’s a big ask.”

Readiness for a further ballot

We have repeatedly made the point that the massive vote for action on pay in our national ballot shows the strength of feeling among members. Our national executive committee has agreed, in a motion supported by PCS conference last month, that we must continue to build our organisation in readiness for a further national ballot, which may be required at some point in the year ahead.

PCS Pay Campaign 

PCS postal pay ballot

PCS members in the civil service voted by four to one in favour of strike action and action short of strike over pay, however, the ballot turnout of 47.7%, while over 6% higher than in 2018, is still just under 3,000 votes short of reaching the required 50% threshold.

The turnout of 47.7% is the highest ever achieved in the history of PCS, and up and until 2016 would have given a strong mandate for strike action. However, in 2016, in a politically motivated attack on workers’ rights, the coalition government introduced an undemocratic restriction in strike ballots; a 50% turnout threshold.

The ballot result means that PCS cannot call a lawful civil service-wide strike, but will not mean the end of our pay campaign. Civil servants deserve a pay rise and PCS is determined that fight for pay justice will continue.

From 18 March to 29 April we balloted PCS members in the civil service to ask if they were prepared to take industrial action to get the pay rise they deserve.

Our pay claim calls for a cost of living pay increase for all workers in the civil service and its related bodies of 10% with a minimum underpin of £2,400 and a Living Wage of £10 an hour nationally and £11.55 in London.

We asked members to: 

• Mark a cross ‘X’ in the yes box next to the question ARE YOU PREPARED TO TAKE PART IN STRIKE ACTION?

• Mark a cross ‘X’ in the yes box next to the question ARE YOU PREPARED TO TAKE PART IN INDUSTRIAL ACTION SHORT OF A STRIKE?

Senior civil servants have been keen to praise their staff for their hard work and commitment but such hollow words don’t pay the bills for the vast majority of hard-working civil servants who have seen the value of their pay fall through the floor over the past decade and desperatelty need a decent pay rise. 

Permanent secretaries and the Cabinet Office betrayed their staff on pay last year by secretly agreeing to limit pay increases to 1-1.5%. Disgracefully they argued our members should get less money for their hard work than had been given to other parts of the public sector in 2018.

That betrayal has been compounded in 2019 as John Manzoni, chief executive of the civil service, has told us that only 1% is on offer this year, unless civil servants agree to changes to their hard-won terms and conditions. This is a disgrace and unacceptable.

Our national executive committeee (NEC) has taken the decision to ballot members over industrial action from 18 March to 29 April to force the government to offer an above-inflation pay rise. 

We’re asking all members to vote yes in the postal ballot for industrial action and yes to action short of strike. 

For any potential ballot to be successful members in all workplaces need to get involved in our union to ensure we achieve a ballot turnout in excess of the 50% legal threshold imposed by the government. 

Pay Ballot 2019 - Result

In our pay ballot, nearly 80% of members have voted for strike action and more than 90% for action short of action short of a strike, but unfortunately we have fallen a fraction short of the government’s undemocratic requirement that more than 50% of members vote in a postal ballot. 

The turnout of 47.7% is the highest ever achieved in the history of PCS, and up and until 2016 would have given a strong mandate for strike action. However, in 2016, in a politically motivated attack on workers’ rights, the minority Conservative government introduced an undemocratic restriction in strike ballots – a 50% turnout threshold designed to make it as hard as possible for people to take industrial action. The ballot result means that PCS cannot call a lawful civil service-wide strike, but will not mean the end of our pay campaign. Civil servants deserve a pay rise and PCS is determined that the fight for pay justice will continue until we achieve pay justice for our members.

When you look at this ballot the government should take no heart in the fact that we’ve fallen a fraction short, because you and your colleagues voted in massive numbers to take industrial action to say you are not prepared to accept the government’s unfair treatment on pay. In reality we are only a few thousand votes short of reaching that undemocratic threshold. So this week I will be meeting the government and urging them to listen to your voice and do something about pay in 2019.

Your national executive committee is also meeting this week to take decisions on how we move forward. We will update you on those decisions towards the end of this week.

Thank you for your support in this campaign and I can assure you that we will continue to do all we can to fight for decent pay and decent conditions. 

Mark Serwotka - General Secretary 

Civil Service Pensions Valuation – Government Suspends Remedy Process

Background

Talks with the Coalition Government on Reform of Public Service Pension Schemes began in 2011 and ended with an imposed outcome. A major strike by all public sector workers took place on 30 November 2011 and PCS led an ongoing campaign of opposition to the changes.  An important feature of the new, imposed arrangements was the Government`s arrangements for continuing control of pension costs, by requiring scheme valuations every 4 years, and applying a Cost Cap mechanism. The Cost Cap process stipulates that, if the valuation shows an employer cost of more than 2% above or below the employer cost cap figure (currently 18.5% for the CS Pension Schemes), then steps must be taken to rectify the breach and restore the employer cost cap figure to the target amount of 18.5%. The steps to be taken can include changes to members’ contributions and/or changing pension benefits. In 2018 the first valuation in the 4 year cycle since the imposed pension reforms was completed, and a downward breach of the Cost Cap of 5.4% was declared.

Suspension of the process

On 30 January 2019, the Treasury Chief Secretary announced a suspension of the process for rectifying the downward breaches of the Cost Cap in many Public Service Pension Schemes. They said that this was due to a Court of Appeal Judgment relating to Firefighters and Judges Pensions, published on 20 December that transitional provisions used as part of Pension Reforms imposed in 2014/15 are unlawful due to Age Discrimination (BB.4/19). They are arguing that, as they believe that there is a potential read-across of this ruling to other pension schemes, “it is not now possible to assess the value of the current public service pension arrangements with any certainty.” Prior to this, the process for achieving a suitable remedy for the 5.45% Cost Cap breach in the CS Scheme was proceeding positively, as reported to Branches in December. By early January it seemed that final recommendations would soon be put to the Minister for proposals to be made and then followed by consultation with PCS and other unions. Had this proceeded members could expect to have gained: 

• Reduced contributions of at least 2% later this year.

• Increased Accrual Rate for Alpha pensions.

• Improved Death-in-Service benefits for most members.

Suspension is Premature and Unjustified

Given the last decade or more of austerity on Civil Service Pay, this Ministerial announcement is a bitter blow for members, as the Pension Valuation made clear that members have been paying too much for too long, and for pensions which have dwindled in value. A PCS website and media statement were produced when the statement was published, which criticised the Government’s decision as not only unacceptable but both premature and unjustified. It is premature because the Government are pursuing an appeal to the UK Supreme Court (permission for this has not yet been granted by the Court), and because the remedy of the Firefighters’ cases is not yet known as it has been put to the Employment Tribunal to determine. It is unjustified because the implications of the Court judgment are far from clear, yet the Minister asserts that the potential impact across the public services could cost around £4 billion per annum. 

The suspension of the process is a completely unacceptable U-turn of the Government’s own process for keeping a tight rein on pension costs, and now the valuation remedy process is at standstill, with no indication of when it will start again, and importantly no idea of when, or if, members will have any gains arising from this. PCS will be working with other public service trade unions, via the TUC, to ensure that our message and that of others is properly heard. I am writing to the TUC calling for an urgent meeting of public sector unions to discuss a joint campaign.

Mark Serwotka  - General Secretary

Analysis shows civil service pay well below rest of public sector 

Shock conclusions of analysis commissioned by PCS shows average civil service pay has fallen in value since 2010 by between 9% and 11%, by comparison with the average pay in the rest of the public sector.

Since 2010, during the period of the public sector pay freeze and 1% pay cap, increases in average pay in local government, health and education have been consistently higher than the civil service.

The analysis, by Dr Mark Williams of the University of Surrey, shows that average annual growth in median pay in the civil service was between 1.1% to 1.9% below inflation since 2010, depending on whether the CPI or RPI inflation measure is used. And while median pay has been declining in the rest of the public sector in real terms too, the erosion in pay has been proportionately much larger in the civil service. By 2018, cumulative real pay growth had fallen between 8.6 and 11.4 percentage points behind the rest of the public sector since 2010.

The dramatic fall in the value of pay in the civil service is shown by the fact that by 2018, median pay in the civil service was between 8.9% and 14.5% lower than it was in 2010 in real terms. This translates to a cumulative loss in pay of between £13,200 and £16,200 since 2010 for the median earner over this period, depending on whether the CPI or RPI is used.

Betrayal

Last year, while unions and employers in health and local government were negotiating above-inflation increases, civil service permanent secretaries met in secret and betrayed their staff, by agreeing that funding for pay increases should be limited to 1-1.5%. Already this year, civil service chief executive, John Manzoni, has told PCS, that there is only 1% available to fund pay increases in the civil service. This pay betrayal must stop. The government is in disarray over Brexit, and needs civil servants more than ever before.

If you’re a PCS member, we want you to email civil service chief executive, John Manzoni, to tell him that you’ve been betrayed on pay.

Ballot

PCS has launched a ballot for strike action over this pay betrayal, which will open on 18 March and run to 29 April. Please get involved in the campaign.

We want members to fill in our online form to volunteer and commit to doing one, several or all of the following:

• Talking to other members about the campaign

• Recruiting new members

• Handing out leaflets at work

• Taking part in an organised phone bank to help get the vote out

• Attending a pay event.

Unfair dismissal upheld after refusal to delay hearing 

An important decision relating to union members being accompanied by their reps at disciplinary hearings has been made by an Employment Appeals Tribunal (EAT).

The ruling effectively means that when an employer refuses to delay a hearing and an employee is subsequently dismissed, it could lead to a decision of unfair dismissal, even when the employer hasn’t breached the legal right to be accompanied.

In this case the original Employment Tribunal in 2017 found that the employee, Mrs Smith, had been unfairly dismissed at a hearing in her absence, after the employer, Talon Engineering Ltd, refused permission to delay the hearing for nearly two weeks until her union rep was available. Talon appealed the ET decision but lost the appeal and the unfair dismissal decision was upheld. Mrs Smith, who had 21 years of unblemished service with the firm, was sacked in 2016 after referring to an unnamed colleague in unflattering terms in an email to a company contact, who was also a close friend. She had tried to delete the messages but they were retrieved by the employer. After deferring the first scheduled disciplinary meeting due to the employee’s sickness and subsequent annual leave, a second request for a delay was made based on to the rep’s lack of availability. The employer refused the request and when Mrs Smith opted not to attend without her rep she was summarily dismissed for gross misconduct in her absence. The tribunal found that she was “not at fault in failing to attend the hearing”.

Although the requested delay was longer than the five working days set out by law, and the employer didn’t actually breach the legal right to be accompanied, the EAT judge ruled that they had been “unduly hasty in not accommodating a further short delay to enable the Claimant to be represented”.

Section 10 of the Employment Relations Act 1999 gives workers the right to be accompanied by a fellow worker or union official to all meetings that may result in disciplinary sanctions. If the worker’s companion is unable to attend the disciplinary meeting, the employee can ask for the meeting to be postponed. The employer must agree if the alternative time requested is reasonable and within five working days after the date originally proposed.

The tribunal held that although her employer had shown a potentially fair reason for dismissal, its decision to dismiss was procedurally unfair because of its refusal to postpone the hearing. The EAT agreed that the employer’s response fell outside the range of reasonable responses and the dismissal was unfair. The employer’s claim that Mrs Smith had breached the company’s bullying and harassment policy was also thrown out. The judge agreed with Smith’s lawyer’s description of the email as “venting to a close friend about an unnamed colleague thought by the Claimant not to be pulling his or her weight, in other words an everyday workplace moan”.

“It is not clever and it is not funny, and it may amount to a breach of the policy, but the Tribunal was entitled to conclude that it did not amount to serious gross misconduct that puts the business reputation of the [company] at risk” said the EAT judge.

Find out more:

Thompsons Solicitors article

Full EAT decision

PCS to launch industrial action ballot in March 

The national executive committee has unanimously decided to hold a ballot of over 120,000 members working in government departments for strike action over pay. The ballot will open on 18 March and close on 29 April 2019.

The union is demanding a fully funded pay rise significantly above the rate of inflation and national pay bargaining across the civil service and related areas.

PCS will ballot over 120,000 members working in key government departments for strike action over pay, it was revealed today.

Workers from the UK civil service will be balloted for strike action as well as disruptive action short of a strike, which would take place in May.

If the strike goes ahead, it will be the biggest walkout by the civil service since the coordinated pensions’ strike of 2011.

General Secretary Mark Serwotka said: “Never has it been more necessary to have a well-paid and well-funded civil service than at a time of great uncertainty over Brexit. Yet what we have seen is a monumental betrayal of hard working staff in civil service departments over pay. Our members were led to believe that the pay cap had been lifted last year. Instead civil servants were singled out for unfair treatment and a de-facto pay cap remained in place. PCS members have had enough and after years of real terms wage cuts, will now be balloted with the aim of launching targeted and sustained strike action which will have a significant effect on key government departments."

Mark went on to say: “Ministers need to understand the very real anger that our members feel and seek to immediately reward their staff with a pay rise significantly above the rate of inflation.”

For civil service occupations average pay has fallen in value by around 10% since 2010. 

Remember to update your personal details here and tell your work colleagues to do the same.

Betrayed on pay? Join the PCS campaign 

PCS members have been betrayed on pay by permanent secretaries from across the civil service and we want them to get involved in our campaign for action to get you the pay rise you deserve in 2019. Permanent secretaries and the Cabinet Office betrayed their staff on pay last year, by secretly agreeing to limit pay increases - this was the shocking revelation from the court case taken by civil service unions in October this year.

Rather than argue with the Treasury that you should get more money for your hard work they actually argued you should have less - that is nothing short of a betrayal. Public sector pay increases have been capped at 1% for years and average civil service pay has fallen in value by more than £3,000, further and faster than anywhere else in the public sector. Last year the government announced the end of the pay cap, and negotiators in local government and health sat down and agreed above-inflation pay increases. But in the civil service our court case has revealed that the most senior managers met in February, and agreed to continue the pay squeeze, and limit pay increases to 1-1.5%.

We cannot let this happen in 2019.

Our national executive committee met this week and agreed a campaign strategy for our 2019 pay campaign. NEC members agreed to:

• Launch a mass consultation on our pay campaign in January

• To campaign politically to put the pressure on ministers and departmental heads.

• Hold an industrial action ballot, if it's required, to ensure we can force the government to think again and negotiate a fair, equal and above-inflation pay increase across the civil service.

Also, jointly with the other main civil service unions, FDA and Prospect, we are writing to the government to demand they meet us and treat us fairly in 2019.

Campaign for pay justice in 2019

PCS will soon be consulting members on a pay claim and a campaign to force the government to negotiate a fair, equal and above-inflation pay increase across the civil service. If you think you have been betrayed on pay, then:

If you have been betrayed on pay, then:

• Get involved in the pay campaign

• Ask your colleagues to get involved by becoming a PCS Advocate

• Ask any colleagues who aren’t members to join PCS.

Let’s prepare to win on pay to get the pay rise we deserve.

#PCSpayAction #PCSpay2019 

PCS wins £3million check-off compensation 

PCS has achieved a major victory over the government as the High Court has ruled that ministers acted illegally by withdrawing check-off, the decades-old practice of collecting members’ union subscriptions directly from their pay packet.

Our union has won £3 million from the government because of the illegal moves the Department for Work and Pensions took to try and smash PCS. In 2015 we were at the heart of opposition to the government, fighting against the government’s cuts and closures, robbing members of their redundancy rights and we were fighting to end austerity.

As a result the then Tory Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude took a particularly vicious decision to attack members’ terms and conditions, attack our reps and try to bankrupt us by overnight announcing that he would not allow our members to pay their union subscriptions directly from your pay packet. A system that had been in operation for many decades. He did that because he knew that 90% of our income came from that method.

Magnificent campaign

In a magnificent campaign we signed up over 160,000 members to pay their subs by direct debit in a matter of weeks and months to stop us from going bankrupt and to ensure we could continue to represent members at work. We also took legal action in the High Court to show that the government had acted illegally and to get compensation. Today that case has been settled and in a humiliating defeat for the government, in its attempt to smash PCS and other unions in the public sector, it has to pay £3 million compensation and all of our legal costs.

We now plan to take legal action against every major government department because of the illegal way they’ve treated us.

PCS General Secretary Mark Serwotka said: “Today’s announcement tells us we have settled one departmental case on union busting, we have many more to come. That’s good news for all of us, and now we’ll ensure we use that money to benefit our members.

This goes to show that this union can win. We can win in the courts and we can win through campaigning. We’ve defeated the government on the Civil Service Compensation Scheme and we’re waiting for the outcome of a judicial review on the way the government handled pay this year because we believe they did not consult us lawfully. But we’ve got more campaigns to fight. We’ve still got to challenge the government on pay, and ensure that next year we can win above inflation pay rises.

We will continue to take them to court when we can, but the key to winning is to be a stronger union in every workplace. If you know a colleague who hasn’t joined PCS, please urge them to join. If you’re a member consider becoming a rep. The more of us who are in the union, the more of us who are active means we won’t just beat the government in court we will beat them in our campaigning, too.”

Equal pay battle secures £2m payout for PCS members 

Hundreds of PCS members working in the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) are receiving lump sum payments of up to £4,000 thanks to an equal pay claim brought by the union.

The case is putting in excess of £2m into the August pay packets of more than 700 members of staff working in non-operational roles in the service.

PCS had argued that so-called “one off” additional payments made to, mostly male, prison officers in 2015, 2017 and 2018 discriminated against members in non-operational roles in the same grades (bands C, D and E). The issue was originally brought to the attention of PCS officers by the local branch during pay negotiations in 2015, and local reps led the campaign for the bonuses to be extended to all staff.

An equal pay challenge was subsequently launched after PCS Scotland industrial officer Danny Williamson attended a Thompson’s equal pay seminar and talked to solicitors about the potential for arguing indirect sex discrimination in this case. PCS argued that the payments were discriminatory because the prison officer complement was mostly male, whereas the non-uniformed staff in the same grades were predominantly female. While SPS did not concede the union’s equal pay claim, they agreed to an out-of-court settlement which means all staff in these grades will receive equivalent payments, backdated to 2015, worth up to £4,000.

However the union is continuing to fight for the same payments for all staff, especially those who are the lowest paid. The equal pay legal argument could not be applied to workers in other grades where there are no prison officers. The employer has so far failed to “do the right thing” and apply to the payments to everyone, said Danny, so “the campaign goes on”. PCS has argued consistently that all staff should have received the same payments as all staff were being asked to contribute to SPS’s plans for future changes to the service. “There can be no doubt that without the union’s action these payments would never have been made, staff would not have benefited by up to £4,000 and an unfair situation would have been allowed to continue,” said Danny.

PCS National Officer Lynn Henderson said the settlement “demonstrates clearly the power of trade unions in fighting for equality. There are still workers in lower grades who haven’t yet seen justice done and we will continue to support their fight,” she added. But for now we’re glad that these women working in Scotland’s prisons are finally getting the money they deserve.”

Ballot result: what next? 

The national pay ballot is over – what happens in the coming weeks and months?

The pay campaign is certainly not over. Pay talks are continuing with employers, Cabinet Office talks are being sought centrally, and legal challenges are being pursued. Across the union we’re still fighting for the best outcome possible for members in 2018, while simultaneously lining up the next steps of our campaign.

Not reaching the 50% turnout threshold means we can’t take national cross civil-service action at this moment, Mark Serwotka told members in our post-ballot live Facebook broadcast, but the “injustice” over pay remained.

He added: “We don’t let this setback with our national vote make us give up. Our anger should be directed at Theresa May and the government. [She is] singling out her own workforce to be treated worse than everyone else.”

Colleagues will undoubtedly be asking you, ‘but what now’?

Here are the key points to know:

• PCS has written to the Cabinet Office demanding urgent talks on pay. The ballot result shows the strength of feeling, with 85.6% of our members voting for strike action. So it’s important that we convey this message to the Cabinet Office and continue to seek meaningful talks at a national level.

• PCS union reps have now entered the latter stages of negotiating pay deals in each delegated area. The union has offered its unequivocal support for members in any groups who wish to pursue a ballot for industrial action over their employer’s pay offer, where strength of feeling has already been demonstrated. Members in the MoJ are currently being balloted over their offer, with a recommendation to reject it. Read more on continuing the campaign at delegated level here

Two legal potential legal challenges are being pursued:

1. PCS is going to the High Court to challenge the government on its failure to meaningfully consult with the unions over pay this year. Alongside fellow civil service unions Prospect and the FDA, we have launched joint legal proceedings seeking a judicial review over the 2018 civil service pay guidance. Read more

2. PCS is seeking legal counsel’s opinion on whether there’s a basis for challenging the 2016 Trade Union Act, which introduced draconian new restrictions on unions. We’re exploring whether the combination of the 50% turnout ballot threshold and the requirement for postal ballots infringe the right to ‘freedom of association’. During the passing of the new law, the government agreed to a review of the use of electronic balloting in trade union ballots for industrial action, but has done nothing about it. Writing in the Morning Star, PCS national officer Lynn Henderson reiterated the union’s view that if online voting, and secure workplace balloting, had been available, the turnout would have been above 50%.

• Our plans for a 2019 pay campaign are now under way. It’s crucial that we do this right away and do not wait for the outcome of the 2018 pay round or legal action. We must start strengthening our levels of union organisation on the ground, so that we are ready to smash the threshold next year. Read more here

• Key to this is for branches to identify more PCS Advocates, who can act as the foot soldiers in every workplace for getting the union message out. Ballot outcome analysis confirms that where we have the highest level of rep and Advocate activity, we achieve the highest turnouts. Short training modules are available to help build the confidence and knowledge of members interested in coming forward to help.

• The union has been running some workshops with groups and hubs, to reflect on the ballot campaign and discuss how branches can be supported. They cover both the work that’s been done to strengthen the union, and where we have identified weaker areas we can now focus on. If you would like to hold a similar session, contact organising@pcs.org.uk for advice and materials.

Civil service unions jointly issue legal proceedings over pay

PCS, Prospect and FDA have launched legal proceedings seeking judicial review of the government’s consultation over the 2018 civil service pay guidance.

This legal action follows a number of failed attempts to resolve the dispute with ministers. Instead, the government has made clear in defending its position that there was never any attempt to meaningfully consult the unions on the new civil service pay cap, and did not trust the unions to keep any proposed figure confidential during negotiations.

PCS General Secretary Mark Serwotka said: “Not content with reneging on its commitments to engage in consultation on an issue as fundamental as our members’ pay, the government is now adding insult to injury by claiming it never intended to consult in the first place. This shambolic state of affairs cannot go unchallenged and we will now pursue this matter to the High Court.”

FDA General Secretary Dave Penman said: “To add insult to injury, the government’s defence of its shambolic consultation process on pay for hundreds of thousands of civil servants is that they never intended to consult us on the new pay cap and rushed the guidance out because they didn’t trust us not to leak the 1.5% figure. This, more than anything, demonstrates the perilous state of industrial relations in the civil service.”

Prospect General Secretary Mike Clancy said: “By refusing to consult on the remit guidance in any meaningful way, the government has demonstrated a disdain not only for the unions, but for hundreds of thousands of loyal, hard-working civil servants. By treating civil servants differently and worse than those employed in other parts of the public sector, the government has shown how little they value their vital contribution.”

 More on this - The Guardian:  Civil service unions start legal case after government fails to consult on pay 

Last year, the PCS successfully launched a judicial review over the government’s civil service compensation scheme, which led to changes to the guidance. The former cabinet office minister Ben Gummer was found to have acted unlawfully by excluding some unions from negotiations about redundancy terms. 

Pay ballot result 

Huge strike vote – but anti-union strike laws will prevent action.

PCS members have delivered the highest yes vote and turnout in the history of the union. But undemocratic, anti-union strike laws, implemented last year, will prevent strike action. Our independent scrutineers’ report, as required in accordance with section 231B of the Trade Union and Labour relations (Consolidation) Act 1992, for the above ballot which closed at noon on Monday 23 July 2018 is as follows:

• Number of Individuals who were entitled to vote in the ballot  142,673

• Number of voting papers returned                                                              59,285

Question: Are you prepared to take part in strike action?

• Number of spoilt or otherwise invalid voting papers returned             31

• Number of votes cast in the ballot                                                                          59,254

• Votes cast in ballot as a % of individuals who were entitled to vote   41.6%

Result of voting

• Yes                         50,726                   85.6%

• No                            8,528                   14.4%

The ballot will send a strong message to the government that PCS members want a pay rise. However, the new legal requirements mean that unions not only have to show majority support for a strike, but that 50% of those balloted have voted.

The pay campaign continues

The result is a major disappointment, but the campaign has made our union stronger, with thousands of new members and hundreds of new reps and advocates. You and your colleagues still deserve a pay rise, so the pay campaign will not end here. The PCS national executive committee (NEC) will meet on Tuesday 24 July, and agree the next steps in the pay campaign.  A full statement about the next steps in the campaign will be issued on Wednesday 25 July.

Civil service unions seek judicial review over government below inflation pay guidance 

The Public and Commercial Services union (PCS) has joined fellow civil service unions FDA and Prospect, calling for a Judicial Review over the government’s below inflation pay remit guidance.

Ministers issued the pay remit guidance of 1-1.5% last month and refused to consult the civil unions properly over pay despite promises to the contrary. Now the PCS is pursuing legal action against the government with other civil service unions in an unprecedented show of unity.  All three unions have already written to the government demanding that the pay remit guidance is withdrawn but they refused, despite clear evidence there was not a proper consultation as well as unions receiving an apology from ministers for the process.

In a joint statement today from all three unions, it says: “We wrote to Elizabeth Truss, Chief Secretary to the Treasury and the minister responsible at the Treasury for the pay guidance, following the refusal of the Minister for the Cabinet Office to withdraw the guidance and commit to a meaningful consultation process for 2018. In the letter we requested an urgent meeting with Elizabeth Truss but we have not received a response. We cannot accept the lack of meaningful consultation.  Accordingly, our lawyers have today, written to the minister for the Cabinet Office to request that they withdraw the civil service pay guidance and undertake a process of appropriate consultation, and in the absence of an appropriate response we will be issuing proceedings for Judicial Review.  As General Secretaries, we have agreed to continue working as closely as possible on these issues for the common good of our members. Whilst each union will clearly have to determine their own objectives and strategy for delivering them, we are committed to pursuing this matter together.” 

PCS general secretary Mark Serwotka: “Our members have run out of patience with this government. They have had enough of ministers making false promises of lifting the pay cap and having a meaningful consultation, only to be told the de-facto pay cap will remain.

Shadow Cabinet Office minister Chris Matheson MP calls on the government to negotiate properly with civil service unions to end the dispute  

Read this story here:  PCS national site

PCS National Ballot Commences Across Civil Service Membership

Yesterday PCS triggered its ballot of members across the Civil Service to ask you to support it in negotiations with the Cabinet Office. You will recall that not too long ago Theresa May’s government said that the pay cap had ended in the public sector. Whilst the settlements elsewhere have been paltry, in the NHS for example and still below the rate of inflation, they nevertheless breach the 1%. But for you and other Civil Servants, the contempt and loathing of government continues. Although the Treasury remit has not yet been published, PCS has been advised in no uncertain terms that the 1% cap remains in place for you. Your colleagues in Scotland are faced with the farcical situation of Scottish government Civil Servants obtaining a fair and decent rise, whilst Scottish MoD employees will be rewarded for their hard work and dedication with 1%.

In addition, early indications are that the Armed Forces Pay Review Body (PRB) will propose a pay rise of 3% plus progression payments of over 2%. The Senior Civil Service Pay Review Body is unlikely to propose only 1%. And therefore, you, a significant and important part of “whole force”, will be the poor relation because you have no PRB. 

When PCS raised this issue with Stephen Lovegrove, the Permanent Secretary, he expressed the view that such a situation could not be acceptable within the parameters of “Whole Force”. This position has already been outflanked by the Treasury and their drive to hold down your pay.

To make matters worse, MoD Civil Servants face leapfrogging and the capture of greater and greater numbers in a National Living Wage (NLW) silo. The cost of NLW will start to swallow up the vast majority of 1% in the next two years. Permanent Secretaries have pleaded with the Treasury to separately fund the NLW, but have been refused. The consequence of this will be to engulf Civil servants higher up the pay band and create a bunching of people in the NLW silo. The lack of progression within the Civil Service simply exacerbates the problem. Even if the MoD had the determination to do right by its employees, it simply cannot when pay delegation is a farce and the government through the Treasury dictate the terms.

That’s why we must ballot everyone in the Civil Service and that’s why we MUST win this ballot AND achieve a 50% turn out- otherwise under the Tories new legislation our ballot result- even if a YES- will be void. It’s never been more important for you to vote. Vote, even if you vote NO. But use your vote. Don’t leave your ballot pack on the mantelpiece and say “I’ll get around to it at some point.” Vote today.

You can also support the PCS pay campaign by:

• Signing up to become a PCS Advocate to help us win the pay rise you and your colleagues deserve.

• Attending PCS meetings.

• Once you’ve voted record your vote in our online form.

• Persuading non-members to join PCS now to back our campaign for fair pay

• Using and sharing the PCS pay calculator.

• Use social media to spread our message.

PCS pay ballot to open 18 June and close 23 July

PCS members in the civil service and related areas will be balloted for strike action over pay from 18 June to 23 July. The decision to ballot was taken by delegates following a vote at the union’s annual conference in Brighton last week.

• The question members will be asked in the postal ballot is: Are you prepared to take part in strike action?

We are currently in pay talks with the Cabinet Office. A decisive Yes vote will strengthen our hand in the talks and give negotiators a clear mandate from members.

We guarantee that before action is called, we will report back on talks and consult members about the type and duration of action.

Hard-hitting action could put real pressure on government to meet our pay demands.

• Our 2018 pay claim calls for a fully-funded 5% pay rise, a Living Wage of £10 an hour, pay equality across the civil service and a common pay and grading structure.

• The Scottish Government has already agreed pay rises well in excess of inflation, and we now call on the UK government to make fair offers to all its staff.

Ballot

• The pay ballot will open on Monday 18 June and close at 12 noon on Monday, 23 July.

• This is a statutory ballot so members will only be able to vote by post.

• Under the terms of the trade union legislation we will need a turnout of more than 50% in order to be able to ask members to take strike action. Turnouts under 50% will mean that we are unable to ask members to take strike action.

• This means in effect that not voting is really voting no.

• Members will receive a ballot pack by post to their nominated ballot address (home or work address) from the Electoral Reform Society (ERS). Ballot papers will arrive with members during the week of 18th June.

• Members will need to complete the ballot paper, put the ballot paper into the pre-paid envelope which will be provided, and return the ballot papers to ERS. All ballot papers must be returned to ERS and received by 12 noon on Monday, 23rd July.

Requesting replacement ballot papers

Members should allow until Tuesday, 26 June to receive their original ballot paper. If this is not received by then, members should contact the PCS balloting office directly to request a replacement ballot paper by emailing balloting@pcs.org.uk

The email must also contain either their membership or national insurance number, and ballot address, including postcode. Ballot addresses are required to enable us to check the details we hold on Commix and update as required before issuing a replacement ballot paper. Alternatively, balloting can be contacted on 020 7801 2810, ensuring that members have their

membership or National Insurance number to hand. The deadline for requesting a replacement ballot paper is noon on Monday 16 July.

Requests for replacement ballot papers must come directly from the member; under no circumstances are reps able to request replacement ballot papers or provide us with a

member’s personal information on their behalf.

New members can vote

The deadline for new members to join the union and be included in the ballot is noon, Friday 13 July. Members will need to have completed an application form to join PCS and be

recorded on our membership database Commix by this deadline.

The easiest way to join PCS is online here: www.pcs.org.uk/join or call our membership department on 020 7801 2670.

Annual delegate (national) conference 2018

Annual Delegate Conference was held from Tuesday 22 to Thursday 24 May. Here are the highlights:

Thursday 24 May

PCS conference pays tribute to Grenfell victims

A minute’s silence was held at conference this morning in memory of the 72 people who died at Grenfell after a powerful speech from PCS vice president Zita Holbourne.

Demand for formal central agreement on performance management

PCS will demand the Cabinet Office introduces a formal central agreement on performance management and end the use of appraisal systems to allocate pay.

Cabinet Office urged to renegotiate MyCSP contract terms

The Cabinet Office will be urged to renegotiate the terms of the MyCSP contract after PCS conference heard members are still experiencing constant frustration at delays and misinformation from the pensions service.

PCS plan to raise awareness of dangers of air pollution

PCS conference has backed a programme of awareness raising of the dangers of air pollution across the civil service and beyond.

PCS backs plan to support ban on fracking

A renewed focus on climate change has been agreed at conference, including a support on a fracking ban and pushing for a Just Transition Act.

Wednesday 23 May

PCS national organising strategy: Building, growing, winning for members

The PCS strategy to build and grow our union so that we can win for our members was debated and endorsed by delegates to our annual conference in Brighton today (23).

Government condemned over Windrush scandal

PCS conference condemned the government for detaining, deporting and denying access to services, such as the NHS, to members of the Windrush Generation who have lived, worked and paid taxes in the UK for decades.

PCS conference reiterates call for moratorium on Universal Credit roll-out

PCS will continue to call for a moratorium on the roll-out of UC and continue our campaign for a universal social security system following a debate at our union’s conference today (23).

PCS reaffirms commitment to defend the civil service pension scheme

PCS conference resolved today (23) to defend the civil service pension scheme and other public service pension schemes and stay at the forefront of the fight for security and dignity in older age.

Praise for PCS work towards fairer Scottish benefits system

Our conference today (23) recognised the fantastic work done by PCS in Scotland towards a fairer benefits system for all.

Conference calls for a wind-ranging survey of abuse in the civil service

A PCS rep spoke movingly of her own experiences of sexual harassment and assault while urging conference to support a wide ranging survey of abuse in the civil service.

PCS organising awards: winning reps announced

The hard work and dedication of our reps has been recognised in our national organising awards presented today (23) during PCS annual delegate conference in Brighton.

In defence of health and safety

PCS will launch a vigorous defence of the rights of health and safety representatives in the face of new threats from the Trade Union Act.

Tackling indirect discrimination across the civil service

PCS conference has resolved to develop a legal strategy to challenge indirect discrimination wherever it happens across the civil service.

Tuesday 22 May

PCS to launch industrial action ballot after overwhelming national conference vote

PCS members in the civil service and related areas will be balloted for strike action over pay, which could see 150,000 workers walk out this summer.

PCS fringe meeting: Building to win the pay campaign

How to win the most significant ballot PCS has held in years was debated at a packed fringe conference meeting this evening (22).

Mark Serwotka tells PCS to seize the moment on pay

Seize the moment and vote for industrial action on pay was the message from PCS General Secretary Mark Serwotka as he delivered the union’s annual report to conference today (22).

John McDonnell pledges to PCS conference to end victimisation of our union

John McDonnell was given a standing ovation by delegates at this year’s PCS annual conference after a speech in which he vowed a socialist Labour government will end the victimisation the union has suffered at the hands of the Tories.

PCS resolves to use all available means to defend redundancy pay

PCS will use all available campaigning means to defending our members’ redundancy pay entitlements from the government’s latest attacks, our union’s conference delegates have resolved.

Turn the tide against Tory attacks Janice Godrich tells PCS conference

Janice Godrich opened her 17th annual conference as PCS President this afternoon with a rousing speech urging members to continue turning the tide against Tory attacks.

‘Bonkers’ government hubs plan condemned by PCS conference

A campaign to fight a “bonkers” plan to close scores of local HMRC and DWP offices and move thousands of workers to regional hubs was unanimously agreed at conference this afternoon.

Lives of former PCS activists remembered

National president Janice Godrich has paid tribute to five PCS activists who have died in the last year.

12 May - Join PCS marching for a 5% pay rise

We’re calling on PCS members and supporters from across the UK to join us and thousands of others from across the union movement as we join the TUC’s march in London on Saturday 12 May to call for a fully-funded, above inflation pay rise for all civil servants.

The vast majority of our members, and colleagues from across the public sector, have suffered considerable hardship because of years of pay restraint leaving them on average £4,400 worse off in real-terms. You can find out how much you’ve lost, and share your result with Cabinet Office minister David Lidington, by using the PCS pay calculator. 

Local economies across the UK have been deprived of nearly £1.7 billion because of the civil service 1% pay cap and freeze, with a devastating impact on local communities, as well as public sector workers and their families.

PCS is demanding:

• a fully-funded 5% pay rise

• a Living Wage of £10 an hour

• pay equality across the civil service

• a common pay and grading structure.

Get involved

You can keep up the pressure on the government by encouraging your friends and colleagues at work to take part in PCS pay activities and protest events in the coming weeks and months. 30 April is our Big Pay Petition Day when members will sign large petitions, which can then be used in photo opportunities with the maximum numbers of members taking part. We will be offering members an opportunity to join a webinar on 14 April for members who want to get more involved in the pay campaign specifically and to build for the Big Petition activity on 30 April. 

The 12 May event is the TUC’s ‘new deal for working people’ march and rally. It’s a family-friendly event so save the date, make a day of it, bring your family, friends and colleagues and show the government your determination to achieve a pay rise that will make a difference to your life, your family and your community. Transport is being organised by our regional centres across the UK, so contact your local office to find out more.

When

The march will assemble at Victoria Embankment between Hungerford Bridge and Blackfriars Bridge from 11am.

It will move off at noon and march to Hyde Park. 

The rally will take place in Hyde Park, finishing at 4pm. 

Accessibility 

The TUC wants to make sure the event is accessible to everyone. There are special arrangements for people who:

• wish to join the march at the main assembly point

• wish to join the last part of the march for a shorter route to the rally

• wish to go straight to the rally.

Take a look at the accessibility guide.

What you can do

• Show a non-member the pay calculator and ask them to join PCS and support our pay claim

• Talk to members face-to-face in your branch

• Share your pay story with editor@pcs.org.uk

• Use our pay calculator – it takes 3 minutes – and share your results with Cabinet Office minister David Lidington

• Sign the new pay petition to David Lidington

• Read more about our pay campaign.

Together we can win on pay!

Talks on civil service redundancy pay set to continue

Negotiations on the future of the Civil Service Compensation Scheme (CSCS) will continue for the next few weeks.

On Monday 12 March the Cabinet Office wrote to PCS and the other 3 civil service unions – POA, Unite and GMB – who refused to sign up to detrimental changes to the CSCS in 2016. PCS successfully took the government to court after our exclusion from talks ahead of the government’s massive redundancy pay cuts being imposed in November 2016. The letter said that Oliver Dowden, Cabinet Office minister for implementation, would consider any counter proposal put forward by the unions, which includes proposals that do not meet the government’s aspiration of saving about a third off the costs of the 2010 scheme. The Cabinet Office would like to receive these proposals by 23 April at the latest.

Our High Court victory last July, which forced the government to reinstate the more generous 2010 CSCS terms, has put more money in our members’ pockets and led to a slowdown in job cuts as some departments have put redundancy plans on hold because they can’t get rid of staff on the cheap. Thousands of civil servants made redundant in the eight months from when the scheme was imposed in November 2016 to when we won at the High Court last July have won claims for extra compensation after originally being left thousands of pounds worse off.

2010 terms remain while talks continue

PCS General Secretary Mark Serwotka updated members on the progress of talks during our successful Facebook Live event on Tuesday night. He sought to reassure members that no changes could be made to the 2010 terms while negotiations continue.

“Anyone worried that the government is about to change their compensation terms now because they are considering departing, I am pleased to confirm that there can be no change in those 2010 terms for at least for a couple more months while the negotiations are in place. So I’m sure everyone will welcome that as a really stunning achievement,” he said.

PCS now has until 23 April to submit any alternative plans for the future of the Civil Service Compensation Scheme.

Read more about our CSCS campaign. 

PCS demands formal talks on pay

Meeting on Tuesday (6 March) our national executive agreed to write to Cabinet Office minister David Lidington to demand immediate talks on our national pay claim for a fully-funded 5% or £1,200, whichever is the greater.

Research published this week, commissioned by our union from the Class think-tank shows how the government’s claim to have ended the pay cap rings hollow in the civil service and related areas. The analysis shows that not only has the government not sought to fund pay increases above the 1% pay cap, in some of the major departments the resource departmental expenditure limits show significant shortfalls in resources to even meet the 1% pay cap.

Cuts in jobs or other expenditure would be expected. Our senior reps are telling us that the employer is already looking in individual departments to sacrifice our members’ hours, terms and conditions in return for a deal on pay. That there have been no negotiations on pay in the civil service, and the government has made no provision for an increase above 1% for its own workforce, is absolutely unacceptable when other parts of the public sector have received offers and/or are in formal talks over pay. At a meeting with parliamentary secretary at the Cabinet Office, Oliver Dowden, on 27 February where we pointed out that we had received no formal response to our claim. We made it clear that we had a mandate from the overwhelming result of our consultative ballot upon which we would act if there was no progress in sight. We have had no response from the minister to date.

Political campaigning

We are continuing our political work to make our case on pay. We held a successful parliamentary rally on Tuesday night themed “All public sector workers deserve a pay rise”. Speakers included PCS General Secretary Mark Serwotka, shadow chancellor John McDonnell MP, director of Class Faiza Shaheen, Unite assistant general secretary Gail Cartmail, and NEU president Louise Regan.

Mark highlighted at the packed meeting the range of occupations covered by our union keeping this country going. He said: "A 20% pay cut since 2010 has hammered our members purses and wallets. We need to take our campaign to the next level now to force the government to act. We should say to the government - it's not 200,000 PCS members you have a dispute with, its 2 million public sector workers as we all deserve a pay rise.”

The spring budget statement on Tuesday (13 March) will be a focus for activity around public sector pay. We have organised a Facebook Live event to respond to it and in a major coup for PCS, John McDonnell will be taking part and answering members’ questions.

The TUC major demonstration on Saturday, 12 May theme is “a new deal for working people”. We are mobilising nationally for it and urging our members and supporters from across the UK to join us and thousands of others from across the union movement as we march to call for a fully-funded 5% pay rise for all civil servants.

Getting ballot ready

It is clear from the lack of response to our national pay claim that we need now to increase the pressure on the employer on pay and speed up our work to get ready for a statutory national ballot on industrial action if the government does not make a positive response to our claim. Branches are working hard to be prepare for a possible ballot. Our NEC is meeting towards the end of the month to consider the timing of any necessary statutory ballot. 

How you can help

• Follow our Facebook Live event on 13 March

• Ask a non-member to join PCS and support our pay claim

• Share your pay story with editor@pcs.org.uk

• Use our pay calculator – it takes 3 minutes – and share your results with Cabinet Office minister David Lidington

• Sign the new pay petition to David Lidington

• Read more about our pay campaign

After the budget – steps from ballot-ready to strike-ready

The momentum of the PCS pay campaign is building as we head into 2018 as we argue that the Treasury pay remit, which sets the parameters for settling pay across the civil service, must formally lift the 1% public sector pay cap for civil servants and enable departments to pay above inflation increases.

A ground-breaking result in our consultative pay ballot has provided a solid foundation from which to keep building our campaign into 2018. Our national executive decided today that we will also put together plans for more protests and use the analysis of voting results from our pay ballot to ensure that all workplaces are ballot-ready, so that if we have to move to a statutory strike ballot we can achieve the majority turnout now required under the Trade Union Act, and an even higher yes vote. We will also be talking to the TUC and other unions about joint campaigning on pay.

The TUC has called a national demonstration in the new year calling for a new deal for working people, and backing the campaign for an end to the pay cap and for 5% increases for all public sector workers is an important theme of this demonstration. We will be supporting this demonstration and organising transport from across the UK so that members can attend. PCS General Secretary Mark Serwotka said: “The Tories’ attacks on our members’ pay over the last 7 years have created a crisis in civil service pay that is leaving many of the government’s own workers struggling to get by. As a union and a labour movement we must take collective action to force this government to scrap the pay cap, invest in public services and fully fund above inflation pay rises.”

Clear message on pay

Our ballot sent a clear message from PCS members to the government, to fund an above inflation pay increase for 2018. However, in a deeply disappointing budget, the has chancellor failed to listen – so far. So our campaign will continue and increase pressure on the government for a fair pay increase. The ballot result made history in our union. It was the highest vote in favour of strike action we’ve ever had, with nearly 80% voting yes. The turnout of 49% was the highest of any national ballot since PCS formed two decades ago. A massive 99% of voters said yes to scrapping the 1% pay cap and making funds available to provide above-inflation pay rises.

Without a doubt it showed that, after a 7-year pay squeeze, our members are prepared to fight for a real increase. After a year of action in 2017, which has seen thousands of members taking part in payday protests, rallies, lobbying and campaigning around the ballot, we’re not going to stop pushing on pay now. That we have built momentum on pay is clear. We all deserve a pay rise and we now need to take the steps in each workplace to show that PCS members are willing to take action if the government continues to refuse to listen in 2018.

Find out more about our pay campaign.

Indicative Pay Ballot - Result

A decisive yes vote by tens of thousands of PCS members in our consultative ballot on pay sends a powerful message to the government to act to scrap the 1% public sector pay cap and fund above inflation pay rises.

The ballot, run by the independent Electoral Reform Service and which closed on Monday 6 November, consisted of 2 questions:

1. Do you agree that the pay cap should be scrapped; and that funds should be made available to provide you with an above inflation pay rise?

2. If the government refuse to scrap the pay cap, are you prepared to take part in industrial action?

• On the first question 98.9% voted YES.

• On the second question 79.2% voted YES.

• Overall there was a turnout of 48.8%.

The government must act now on pay – and we must keep up the pressure.

Major achievement

This result is a major achievement for PCS. 

• We achieved almost 100% rejection of the pay cap.

• Just under 80% of participants in the ballot have confirmed that they are prepared to take part in industrial action.

• Almost half of our members have participated in the ballot.

• This is the highest turnout by far in any ballot in the history of PCS, the nearest being the 2004 industrial action ballot where turnout was 41%. 

• We recruited 3,000 new members

The ballot process was a massive structure test to indicate the strength of the opposition to pay restraint amongst our membership. Participation is just shy of the 50% threshold now required as a mandate for industrial action in statutory ballots. We can build from here. This is therefore a fantastic result at this stage in the campaign on public sector pay.

Next steps

We will receive a breakdown of the vote in a couple of weeks in time for our December national executive committee to consider the result and plan the next steps. On considering the analysis, we can start the task of building our union in the context of our key objectives for 2018-2020. We are now in a position to take our positive message to other public sector unions in the coming weeks and seek to co-ordinate the growing overall opposition to the government’s pay policy in the run up to the budget and beyond. PCS will be looking to work with other unions to develop a united campaign across the public sector for fair pay for all. We will propose a united pay strategy at a meeting of the TUC’s public sector liaison group. In the meantime, branches should encourage all members to continue to strengthen the pressure on chancellor Philip Hammond to scrap the cap and fully fund pay rises in the budget on 22 November. Members can use the PCS pay calculator at www.pcs.org.uk/calculator to see how much they and their families have lost because of the cap. Results can then be emailed to the chancellor. A separate briefing on activity in the lead up to the Budget and the pay calculator will be issued shortly.

Thank you

We would like to record our thanks to the army of reps and activists across the UK who worked tirelessly to get out the vote, and to the staff and lay leaders that prioritised organising support to workplace activities and phonebanking over 10,000 members.

Mark Serwotka - General Secretary

Janice Godrich - National President

Future defence civilian programme (FDCP) update

From: Defender Issue 3 - 2017.

FDCP is a banner programme that brings together a number of change initiatives (workstreams), designed to deliver the bulk of the proposed 30% reduction in civilian staff numbers by 2020.

As innocuous as this title sounds, the Future Defence Civilian Programme (FDCP) will significantly impact the lives of every member over the next few years. FDCP is a banner programme that brings together a number of change initiatives (workstreams), designed to deliver the bulk of the proposed 30% reduction in civilian staff numbers by 2020. It runs in parallel with a number of TLB level ‘efficiency’ programmes that support delivery of their financial reduction targets and contribute to the 30% target. In this article we look in detail at each element of the FDCP portfolio and identify how our union intends to stand up for the interests of our members.

Workstream 1 – Business modernisation

The business modernisation workstream will develop ‘what good looks like’ principles to inform TLB efficiency programmes and will also work with the TLBs to identify further cross-TLB projects to be initiated as part of FDCP. Our union will be looking to ensure that in-house efficiencies and options are properly explored before there is any rush to look at outsourcing activities and that any team properly understands the activities they are seeking to change before doing so.

Workstream 2 – Civil Service People Strategy

This workstream is developing the offer for civilians who survive the cull. Our union will be pressing for a thorough review of all existing employment policy rules to determine those that need fundamental change in order to ensure that MoD once again becomes an employer of choice for staff.

Workstream 3 – Conversations

This workstream is around changing the way that MoD management engages with staff and has already seen the development of blogs and senior leader dial-ins. Our union believes the most effective way to engage with staff is through their trade unions and through fostering a climate of good employee relations. We have moved some way towards achieving that goal and will be looking to build on constructive engagements with senior leaders across the department.

Workstream 4 – Leading through uncertainty

This workstream has gone through a number of name changes and the scope and ambition of the project seems to shrink with every iteration. Our union believes that the best way to deal with uncertainty is to positively engage with staff at every stage of a change programme, being open and honest about the potential impact of any change on their futures and to involve them, through their trade unions, in devising solutions. Members have been left in limbo since the SDSR announcement in November 2015, with many still having no idea whether they will have a job, what that job might be or where it is located. That is simply not good enough and until they get greater clarity about their futures, they will not be willing to engage positively on any departmental or TLB level change initiatives.

Cross TLB projects

There are a number of these: so called in-flight projects (like the future of the MOD Guard Service - see below), along with further reviews into the provision of driving services and storage and warehousing. All of these hold out the very real threat of outsourcing and our union will be looking to heavily scrutinise both the feasibility studies currently underway and any rationale for changes in delivery.

Defence estates optimisation

This is not formally part of FDCP, as the implementation timetable runs to 2040, but the estates optimisation programme will also have a significant impact on members. Our union is working with members on sites already identified for closure or relocation to develop alternatives and safeguard, where possible, employment in those locations. We would welcome further feedback from members on how to approach sites with later closure dates.

Your chance to make a difference

As you can see from this, our union will be heavily engaged in detailed discussions across the department on these issues over the next 18 months. To help us prepare a comprehensive response to each of these challenges, we would like to build up a pool of interested members who could be involved in particular elements of the programme. We are particularly interested in identifying members whose skillset or experience could enable us to challenge business cases and financial appraisals.

If you’re interested in finding out more, please contact us at dsg@pcs.org.uk

Unarmed Guarding Sevices to be tendered

PCS says MGS should remain in-house where effective control, flexibility and quality are kept under our own control.

Following a lengthy pause, it was recently announced by the MGS Unarmed Guarding Project that the DIO Chief Executive had received permission to tender the MoD’s unarmed guarding services through open competition using the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU). This means that any company will now be able to bid for the work when tenders are eventually sent out. This has been done, we are told, to ensure that better value for money can be achieved in the open market.

PCS and Unite met recently with the Unarmed Guarding Project and the DIO Service delivery director to take stock. We have asked for a clearly defined timetable as the original timetable for any potential outsourcing is now clearly unachievable. At this current time a revised initial gate business case is being prepared to cover changes in the market approach and the timeframe. 

While we do not know the revised timeframe at this point – although an update is due in September – we do know if the MGS is outsourced then it will be at least two years from the signing off of the IGBC. That at least gives members a better picture of where the MGS may go and when it may go.

PCS remains quite clear that the MGS should remain in-house where effective control, flexibility and quality are kept under our own control. The in-house bid team will continue with their work to provide a benchmark against which compliant bids will be compared – but our focus will be on issues, not of cost, but of security, of risk, of flexibility and of quality. The recent customer service excellence award proves this organisation is among the best in the country. This is not a one-off award. This requires a continual high standard in delivering for MGS customers. In delivering our message of quality to the department it is imperative that the MGS maintain those high standards.

Civil service compensation scheme (CSCS) - new government consultation

PCS' recent victory on the CSCS when a judicial review at the High Court ruled that the government failed to consult our union, with a view to reaching agreement, as required by law, on plans to slash civil service redundancy pay by about 30% - will benefit members who have left since the new terms were imposed, with considerable back payments due to members.

PCS, along with Unite and the POA, refused to be bullied by the Cabinet Office into agreeing the cuts to redundancy terms as a we were excluded from the talks.

Regrettably two smaller civil service unions, FDA and Prospect, agreed to the pre-conditions, and talks on cutting redundancy terms took place with them, now quashed by the judicial review.

This stunning and comprehensive victory means that the more generous 2010 CSCS arrangements have been reinstated.

2010 terms - REINSTATED

• 1 month’s salary per year of service 

• Capped at 21 months’ salary for voluntary redundancy and voluntary exit 

• Capped at 12 months’ salary for compulsory redundancy

• Employer funded access to early pension option when reach minimum pension age(50 with Classic and Premium/ 55 with Nuvos and Alpha)

• 6 months’ notice for compulsory redundancy 

2016 terms - QUASHED

• 3 weeks’ salary per year of service

• Capped at 18 months’ salary for voluntary redundancy and voluntary exit 

• Capped at 9 months’ salary for compulsory redundancy 

• Employer funded access to early pension only after age 55, but to then track 10 years behind state retirement age

• 3 months’ notice for compulsory redundancy 

Unfortunately - the government has now commenced another consultation on the 2016 terms. As they put it:

"The Government is resolved to introduce sustainable compensation scheme terms and, although the Court found against the Government on the process it followed, it accepted that the Government had good reasons for seeking to reform the CSCS.

The key features of the Government’s proposals in the consultation are:

• the standard tariff to be three weeks salary per year of service

• voluntary exit and voluntary redundancy payments to be capped at 15 months’ salary and compulsory redundancy payments to be capped at 9 months’ salary

• to allow employer-funded pension top up from age 55 and for this to track 10 years behind State Pension Age.

• The efficiency compensation Scheme tariff to be reformed to align with Compulsory Redundancy terms.

The proposed reforms are in line with the framework HM Treasury recently set out for exit schemes across the public sector, and they are essentially the same as the terms that the Government had intended to introduce in November 2016 had agreement with the majority of civil service unions not been reached at this time."

You can find the consultation at this link:

Consultation on reform of the Civil Service Compensation Scheme 2017

We would urge all members to read the Consultation Document at the link and to respond to the email address indicated. Your views matter.

The consultation is open until 6 November 2017.

PCS Consultative Pay Ballot

Find out how much you've lost - PCS Pay Calculator