1st November 2019
INTO totally rejects the suggestion that services be cut to fund a pay award. Public services need extra funding, not cuts.
The Department of Finance has today published the 2019/20 Pay Remit for public sector workers. The announcement of a one per cent increase, with anything above that coming out of departmental efficiency savings, means that the austerity agenda continues with no change to pay policy for 2019/20. Effectively this means that public sector workers whether they be civil servants, heath workers or education workers etc will have their pay increase capped at a below inflation level for the tenth year in a row. This is totally unacceptable.
NIPSA General Secretary, Alison Millar, stated:
“Members in the NICS are currently engaged in industrial action on the issue of pay, terms and conditions and our members in the Health Service will be receiving their ballot papers next week on the issue of pay and safe staffing levels. I am sure this will anger members and strengthen their resolve to fight for decent pay and fair increase.
This is totally unacceptable and does not auger well for industrial relations across the public sector. This is another slap in the face for hard working civil and public servants who have continued to deliver vital public services in the absence of the NI Assembly.
The decision to continue with austerity measures is a political choice rather than an economic necessity. NIPSA will consider carefully our next steps, in consultation with our members, but members can be assured we will be using the General Election as an opportunity to challenge candidates standing in that election about what they will do to ensure that public sector workers get a fair and decent pay increase.”