IER launches new report on Pay Review Bodies

The Parliamentary launch of the IER’s new report, ‘Pay review bodies: their past and their future’ took place yesterday, Thursday the 19th September. Written by IER expert Dr Andrew Moretta, in collaboration with a range of trade unions, the report is a valuable contribution to the debate around pay review bodies and collective bargaining.

The launch took place in Committee room 4a, Palace of Westminster, London, SW1A 0PW at 5pm on Thursday. The event was attended by a range of trade union representatives and officials and experts from the world of employment law.

Against a backdrop of 44 years of political attacks on trade unions and collective bargaining, workers in some sectors were initially better off under Pay Review Body (PRB) structures. However, over time, successive governments have exerted undue influence over the independence of PRBs, until their recommendations became no more than options for the government to either accept or dispense with as they saw fit.

Moretta takes us through the history of pay review bodies (PRBs); when they should be used under international law; when they shouldn’t be implemented, and the evolving history of how they have inadvertently become a political trojan horse for successive neo-liberal governments to degrade real-terms wages, and undermine collective bargaining in various sectors even further.

The author ends the report by making a list of practical recommendations which should help restore independence and due process to existing PRBs where they are appropriate, and, in cases where the workers concerned are illegitimately denied the right to bargain collectively, allow the representative unions to be able to revert rapidly to collective bargaining.

Speakers at the launch event included James Harrison, Director of the IER, Steve Gillan, Prison Officers Association General Secretary, IER Vice President Lydia Hayes, Fran Heathcote, PCS General Secretary, Phil Clarke, President of the NEU, Gawain Little, GFTU General Secretary and author of the report Dr Andrew Moretta.

James Harrison, the Director of the Institute of Employment Rights (IER), said of the report:

“The operation of Pay Review Bodies has been something that we, as the Institute of Employment Rights, have been tracking for some time, contrasting it to collective bargaining structures and analysing its independence. We are delighted to present this report, expertly compiled by Dr Andrew Moretta, which reflects the varied experiences of PRBs amongst trade unions, as well as taking a broader view of how these bodies developed historically and their likely future use.”

Fran Heathcote, General Secretary of PCS union, commented on the publication of the report, saying:

“Stronger trade unions with collective bargaining rights are key to tackling problems of insecurity, inequality, discrimination, and low pay. As this report shows, too often pay review bodies are subject to government interference and far from independent.

The real experts on pay are the ones receiving it: our members. We don’t need an independent pay review body to tell us what fair pay is – our members know and we are their voice. We welcome the new government’s commitment to sectoral collective bargaining and look forward to that being implemented in the civil service.”

In the meeting, she noted that there was an emerging consensus across the trade union movement for a renewed push for sectoral collective bargaining across the board.

Prof Lydia Hayes welcomed the IER report and the way it highlighted the historical and international context of the development of pay review bodies. She also noted that the business of PRBs should be conducted in a timely fashion and in line with international standards – and that unions should be able to revert to collective bargaining if desired.

Gawain Little, General Secretary of the General Federation of Trade Unions (GFTU), highlighted how PRBs had the effect of holding down pay:

“This important report comes at a crucial time. Pay review bodies have been used by successive governments to hold down workers’ pay. Too often, they lack independence and are a poor substitute for real collective bargaining. The newly-elected Labour government has an opportunity to reset this pattern and to lead a massive expansion of collective bargaining across our economy, bringing us in line with international expectations and introducing a genuine new deal for workers.”

Steve Gillan, General Secretary of the Prison Officers Association, highlighted the history of restrictions on the POA’s right to strike and the lack of confidence of members in the independence of PRB’s :

“The Prison Service needs a complete overhaul of pay. We would much rather have collective bargaining on pay instead of the charade of the Pay Review Body, year on year. POA members deserve far more.”

Phil Clarke, President of the NEU, said the teaching profession is facing a recruitment crisis and that the sham independence of PRB’s is failing the needs of teachers. In addition, Daniel Kebede, General Secretary of the National Education Union, earlier raised the need to move quickly towards collective bargaining rights:

“The right to national collective bargaining was illegitimately taken from teachers under Margaret Thatcher. The review body system has failed teachers, providing no protection against pay cuts and sky-high workload, or the teacher recruitment and retention crisis which has resulted. Performance-related pay and the dismantling of the national teacher pay structure have been imposed without evidence and at great cost. Collective bargaining is a fundamental right under international law. We urge the new Government to move quickly to restore national collective bargaining rights for teachers.

You can read ‘Pay review bodies – their past and their future’ here.