Staff re-assured over fairer pay steps

Date Published : 09 September 2010

Walsall Council bosses have moved to re-assure staff as steps towards fair pay for all comes a step closer.

The authority are looking at reviewing pay grades for their staff as part of a legal requirement.

A major review - known as single status - has been taking place for the past three years with talks taking place with trades unions since the New Year.

Councillor Christopher Towe, Walsall Council cabinet member for finance and personnel, said: "There are likely to be some winners, some losers and some will stay the same. We are working on the detail of this.

"We'd prefer to implement the Single Status review by agreement with trade unions and staff. We've made strenuous efforts to do so this and will continue these efforts.

"As part of this process we've written to the trades unions. We don't want people to be alarmed by this or get the wrong end of the stick.

"We've given trades unions fair warning that we may have to dismiss employees and take them back on under new terms and conditions if agreement can't be reached.

"A decision on whether to dismiss employees and take them back on under new terms is some way off. It's the situation we don't want to reach. However, it's important we are quite open and set out what the future could hold."

Councillor Bird said: "We remain committed to introducing the single status review for the benefit of council tax payers and employees by agreement."

Along with all other councils across Britain, Walsall Council is obliged to implement the new pay and grading system.

The new process looks at the skills duties and responsibilities needed to carry out the work and seeks to place each post into a simplified and fairer pay structure.