At Knowsley Council’s full Council meeting on 22 March 2023, a Notice of Motion calling on the Government to fund a real-terms pay increase for local government workers was passed.
It comes after the local government workforce played a key role in efforts against the Covid-19 pandemic, providing a huge range of services and support for communities.
On top of that, the local government workforce has endured years of pay restraint with the majority of job roles losing at least 25 per cent of their worth since 2009/10. Staff are now facing the worst cost of living crisis in a generation, with inflation going above 10% and many having to make impossible choices between food, heating and other essentials.
At the same time, workers have experienced ever-increasing workloads and persistent job insecurity. Across the UK, 900,000 jobs have been lost in local government since June 2010 – a reduction of more than 30 per cent. Local government has arguably been hit by more severe job losses than any other part of the public sector.
Knowsley Council is supporting the NJC Pay Claim and is urging the government to take responsibility and fully fund a real-terms pay increase for the local government workforce.