| Careers
staff start action over imposition of unfair pay system
by Chris Bartter
Members in Scottish Enterprise are taking industrial action
short of strike following the imposition of a performance
related pay scheme that is out of date and discriminatory.
After a successful ballot, in which around 80% of those who
voted, voted yes to industrial action, members began boycotting
the collection of national statistics and have also been publicly
demonstrating their objections to the system to the Chief
Executive, Jack Perry and Minister for Enterprise, Jim Wallace.
Regional Organiser Matt McLaughlin said, "The imposition
of this unfair and unequal scheme onto over 1100 staff in
the middle of pay talks was crass, hard nosed and destroyed
the good work that had been done in creating Careers Scotland.
Scottish Enterprise has imposed a pay structure that in 2003
saw 71% of Senior Directors awarded with a bonus of 2.5% -
on average around £1400 - on top of a 4.1% pay increase, whilst
only 12% of Admin staff received a bonus.
"Despite this glaring unfairness and inequality being pointed
out by UNISON, Jack Perry continues to ignore the fact that
the pay system he has imposed is out of date and runs against
the thrust of a number of reviews into civil service pay."
Matt added, "At a time when other agencies such as Scottish
Courts Service, the Scottish Executive and Highlands and Islands
Enterprise have moved significantly towards new and fair methods
of distributing pay, Perry and his Senior Directors stick
rigidly to a pay formula that benefits them and no one else."
On the prospect of further talks Matt said, "Of course UNISON
is prepared to talk to the employer - as we were doing before
this unilateral move - but they need first of all to take
a step back and come to the table with no predetermined view
other than the will and desire to create a fair pay system
for all SE staff, like most other public service agencies."
Careers Scotland became part of Scottish Enterprise in April
2002 bringing together 67 separate careers bodies across Scotland.
headlines . top
|
Scotland's
public service union
|