Ceredigion: Welsh council boss' 14% pay rise 'insulting'

Those representing cleaners, bin workers, and librarians say the 14% pay rise is insulting

A union representing council workers has criticised a 14% pay rise for a chief executive as "offensive".

The £15,000 pay rise was approved by Ceredigion county council, bringing the salary to £130,000.

Unison Cymru said the "bumper pay day" was insulting to staff, including care workers, who were offered a 1.75% rise.

The council said staff had to be "remunerated in line with their duties" and salaries should remain competitive with other local authorities.

Council workers across Wales, including school cleaners, refuse collectors, librarians, and care workers, have been offered a pay deal of 1.75%, with the lowest paid grade increased by 2.75%.

However, plans to increase the salary of the chief executive of Ceredigion council were approved by councillors, after being given the green light by the Independent Remuneration Panel for Wales.

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Alison Boshier, Unison branch secretary, said the pay rise had left workers in the county "stunned" as they voted on their own pay offer for 2020-21."A 14% pay rise is so offensive when you consider care workers, school support staff, refuse collectors and many others who kept vital services going throughout the pandemic, have been offered a real-terms pay cut," she said.

She said the pay rise protected bosses while staff faced rising energy bills, and the council needed to think about whether it was "promoting fairness" in the county, and called for the CEO Eifion Evans to refuse the cash."The chief executive would do well to follow his predecessor's example," she said.

"She showed a unity with the workforce by turning down past increases because she didn't want her pay to be so far above the pay levels of her staff."

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) the new pay scales will see top wages boosted from £106,077 to £121,618 to £130,108, for 2020-21.

Ceredigion council said the pay review, which started in 2017, had seen a number of top roles abolished, including the deputy chief executive, and replaced with lower ranking positions.

Ray Quant, deputy leader of the council, said: "We are grateful to all council staff for their hard work and determination as we strive to provide and effective service that works for everyone.

"We have a duty to our staff to ensure that they are properly remunerated in line with their duties and this equally applies to the chief executive.

"This decision reflects the expected duties and responsibilities while remaining competitive with other local authorities across Wales."

The proposals were passed by full council on Friday, with three votes against and three abstention.

However a number of councillors had opposed the plans saying it was "morally very bad timing" in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.