Agenda item
MOTION ON NOTICE - A FULLY FUNDED, PROPER PAY RISE FOR COUNCIL WORKERS
To consider the motion to be proposed by Councillor Jason Wood. Seconded by Erica Lewis, Jack O’Dwyer-Henry Robert Redfern and Faye Penny.
“Lancaster City Council notes:
1. Local Government overall has endured central government funding cuts of nearly 50% since 2010.
2. Between 2010 and 2020, Lancaster City Council will have lost 54p out of every £1 they have received from central government.
3. The 2019 Local Government Association (LGA) survey of council finances found that 1 in 3 councils fear they will run out of funding to provide even their statutory, legal duties by 2022/23. This number rises to almost two thirds of councils by 2024/2025 or later.
4. The LGA estimates councils will face a funding gap of £8 billion by 2025.
5. Faced with these cuts from central government, the local government workforce has endured years of pay restraint with the majority of pay points losing 22 per cent of their value since 2009/10.
6. At the same time as seeing their pay go down in real terms, workers experience ever increasing workloads and persistent job insecurity. Across the UK, an estimated 876,000 jobs have been lost in local government since June 2010 – a reduction of 30 per cent. Local government has arguably been hit by more severe job losses than any other part of the public sector.
7. There has been a disproportionate impact on women, with women making up more than three quarters of the local government workforce.
Lancaster City Council believes:
1. Our public service workers are a valuable resource. They keep our communities clean, look after those in need and keep our towns and cities running.
2. Without the professionalism and dedication of our staff, the council services our residents rely on would not be deliverable.
3. Government funding has been cut to such an extent that a proper pay rise could result in a reduction in local government services.
4. The government needs to take responsibility and fully fund increases in pay; it should not put the burden on local authorities whose funding been cut to the bone.
Lancaster City Council resolves to:
1. Support the pay claim submitted by GMB UNISON and Unite on behalf of council workers for a:
a. £10 per hour minimum wage and a 10 per cent uplift across all other pay points in 2020/21,
b. one day increase to the minimum paid annual leave entitlement set out in the Green Book,
c. two hour reduction in the standard working week as set out in the Green Book, and
d. comprehensive joint national review of the workplace causes of stress and mental ill-health throughout local authorities
2. Call on the Local Government Association to make urgent representations to central government to fund the NJC pay claim
3. Request the Council Chief Executive write to the Chancellor and Secretary of State to call for a pay increase for local government workers to be funded with new money from central government.
4. Request the Cabinet member for Resources meets with local NJC union representatives to convey support for the pay claim.
5. Encourage all local government workers across the district to join a union.”
An officer briefing note to follow.
Minutes:
Having previously declared an interest which he felt required him to leave the meeting, Councillor Dennison left the council chamber for the duration of the following item.
The required notice of the following motion had been given to the Chief Executive in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 15 by Councillors Wood, Lewis, O’Dwyer-Henry, Redfern and Penny.
After responding to questions from Councillors, Councillor Wood proposed the following motion. In accordance with Council Procedure Rule 17.7 he added the word ‘national’, for clarification, into the first resolution, to change “pay claim” to “national pay claim”.
“Lancaster City Council notes:
(1) Local Government overall has endured central government funding cuts of nearly 50% since 2010.
(2) Between 2010 and 2020, Lancaster City Council will have lost 54p out of every £1 they have received from central government.
(3) The 2019 Local Government Association (LGA) survey of council finances found that 1 in 3 councils fear they will run out of funding to provide even their statutory, legal duties by 2022/23. This number rises to almost two thirds of councils by 2024/2025 or later.
(4) The LGA estimates councils will face a funding gap of £8 billion by 2025.
(5) Faced with these cuts from central government, the local government workforce has endured years of pay restraint with the majority of pay points losing 22 per cent of their value since 2009/10.
(6) At the same time as seeing their pay go down in real terms, workers experience ever increasing workloads and persistent job insecurity. Across the UK, an estimated 876,000 jobs have been lost in local government since June 2010 – a reduction of 30 per cent. Local government has arguably been hit by more severe job losses than any other part of the public sector.
(7) There has been a disproportionate impact on women, with women making up more than three quarters of the local government workforce.
Lancaster City Council believes:
(1) Our public service workers are a valuable resource. They keep our communities clean, look after those in need and keep our towns and cities running.
(2) Without the professionalism and dedication of our staff, the council services our residents rely on would not be deliverable.
(3) Government funding has been cut to such an extent that a proper pay rise could result in a reduction in local government services.
(4) The government needs to take responsibility and fully fund increases in pay; it should not put the burden on local authorities whose funding been cut to the bone.
Lancaster City Council resolves to:
(1) Support the national pay claim submitted by GMB UNISON and Unite on behalf of council workers for a:
a) £10 per hour minimum wage and a 10 per cent uplift across all other pay points in 2020/21,
b) one day increase to the minimum paid annual leave entitlement set out in the Green Book,
c) two hour reduction in the standard working week as set out in the Green Book, and
d) comprehensive joint national review of the workplace causes of stress and mental ill-health throughout local authorities
(2) Call on the Local Government Association to make urgent representations to central government to fund the NJC pay claim
(3) Request the Council Chief Executive write to the Chancellor and Secretary of State to call for a pay increase for local government workers to be funded with new money from central government.
(4) Request the Cabinet member for Resources meets with local NJC union representatives to convey support for the pay claim.
(5) Encourage all local government workers across the district to join a union.”
Councillor Lewis seconded the motion.
An officer briefing note had been circulated before the meeting.
An amendment to the motion was moved by Councillor Stubbins. He asked that two changes be considered:-
“(1) to add “conditional on it being funded by central government” to resolution (1) after the words “national pay claim”.
(2) to add an additional resolution, to read “In the event that any settlement does not include provision for a £10 per hour minimum wage, officers should be instructed to explore costs and implications of the City Council implementing this.”
Councillor Hamilton-Cox seconded this amendment.
The first part of the amendment was accepted as a friendly amendment by Councillor Wood and his seconder, however the second part, regarding the minimum wage, was not.
The Mayor then asked for debate on the second part of the amendment.
At the conclusion of the debate a vote was taken on the amendment. It was carried with 25 Members voting ‘for’; 20 voting ‘against’ and one abstention.
The amended wording then became the substantive motion and the Mayor called for a vote again. The motion was clearly carried.
Resolved:-
Lancaster City Council notes:
(1) Local Government overall has endured central government funding cuts of nearly 50% since 2010.
(2) Between 2010 and 2020, Lancaster City Council will have lost 54p out of every £1 they have received from central government.
(3) The 2019 Local Government Association (LGA) survey of council finances found that 1 in 3 councils fear they will run out of funding to provide even their statutory, legal duties by 2022/23. This number rises to almost two thirds of councils by 2024/2025 or later.
(4) The LGA estimates councils will face a funding gap of £8 billion by 2025.
(5) Faced with these cuts from central government, the local government workforce has endured years of pay restraint with the majority of pay points losing 22 per cent of their value since 2009/10.
(6) At the same time as seeing their pay go down in real terms, workers experience ever increasing workloads and persistent job insecurity. Across the UK, an estimated 876,000 jobs have been lost in local government since June 2010 – a reduction of 30 per cent. Local government has arguably been hit by more severe job losses than any other part of the public sector.
(7) There has been a disproportionate impact on women, with women making up more than three quarters of the local government workforce.
Lancaster City Council believes:
(1) Our public service workers are a valuable resource. They keep our communities clean, look after those in need and keep our towns and cities running.
(2) Without the professionalism and dedication of our staff, the council services our residents rely on would not be deliverable.
(3) Government funding has been cut to such an extent that a proper pay rise could result in a reduction in local government services.
(4) The government needs to take responsibility and fully fund increases in pay; it should not put the burden on local authorities whose funding been cut to the bone.
Lancaster City Council resolves to:
(1) Support the national pay claim, conditional on it being funded by central government, submitted by GMB UNISON and Unite on behalf of council workers for a:
a) £10 per hour minimum wage and a 10 per cent uplift across all other pay points in 2020/21,
b) one day increase to the minimum paid annual leave entitlement set out in the Green Book,
c) two hour reduction in the standard working week as set out in the Green Book, and
d) comprehensive joint national review of the workplace causes of stress and mental ill-health throughout local authorities
(2) Call on the Local Government Association to make urgent representations to central government to fund the NJC pay claim
(3) Request the Council Chief Executive write to the Chancellor and Secretary of State to call for a pay increase for local government workers to be funded with new money from central government.
(4) Request the Cabinet member for Resources meets with local NJC union representatives to convey support for the pay claim.
(5) Encourage all local government workers across the district to join a union.
(6) In the event that any settlement does not include provision for a £10 per hour minimum wage, officers should be instructed to explore costs and implications of the City Council implementing this.
Supporting documents: