Pay settlement for Royal Borough staff may be ‘too little, too late’

UNIONS are claiming a partial victory in a contract dispute, but have warned ‘it may be too little, too late’.

UNISON and GMB unions have been battling the Royal Borough since November last year when proposed contract changes, away from the nationally-agreed terms, were announced.

The deadline for most council staff to sign the new deals was February 1, but the issue of market premium incentive pay – incentivised bonuses which council employees receive based on the standard of their work – remained under review.

An outcome has been reached which would see staff in public protection, such as trading standards, lose their market premium of up to £2,000 as it is phased out over the next six months.

Social care staff will see a reduction, from £2,000 to £1,000 annually, also phased over the next six months, and managerial social care staff will lose their market premiums completely.

Alan Barwise, deputy vice-chairman of the Royal Borough branch of UNISON, said: “I think it is good news and it is also good members were listening to what we have been saying.”

At an Employment Panel meeting held at Maidenhead Town Hall, in St Ives Road, on Monday, February 11, Mr Barwise warned about the effect eliminating the market premium could have in addition to the contract changes which pulled the council out of nationally-agreed terms and conditions.

He stated at the meeting that in the Royal Borough’s child protection team four staff members had left, four were seeing out their notices and the many others were looking elsewhere for employment.

Mr Barwise added: “We hope that this slows down social workers leaving, but it could be too little, too late”

A council spokesman said: “There is a right of appeal and we are expecting to receive the results of that in April.”