Local government pay goes to ACAS

UNISON and other council unions put their case for a larger 2008-9 pay award in England, Wales and Northern Ireland to ACAS today.The joint unions, and the employers, had both already submitted written evidence on the pay deal, which both sides referred to arbitration late last year.The trade union presented their submission and supporting evidence in an oral hearing today, followed by the employers.The unions argued that local government has treated workers on National Joint Council terms and condit6ions as “poor relations” for a long time.Employers have failed to invest in pay, training and good conditions, while making over-the-odds efficiency savings and putting ever-larger off sums of money into reserves. UNISON and other unions also pointed out that the money available to local authorities from central government for the next three years will far exceed inflation if economic predictions are correct. The employers argued that pay offers had been constrained by government pay policy, the cost of the local government pension scheme and Single Status.Each side asked the other questions and the arbitration panel asked questions too. They were particularly interested in unallocated reserves - which have increased significantly in the last few years, and whether they can be used for pay purposes. The joint unions agreed to provide them with further information on unallocated reserves as a proportion of revenue for 2007/8 and 2008/9. That information has been obtained and he unions are now waiting for the employers to agree it so that it can be sent to the ACAS panel.There is no indication yet of when the ACAS panel will respond to the submissions.