Key information
Executive summary
This report seeks the Mayor’s confirmation on the proposal for the implementation of the 2016/17 pay award for the GLA’s Statutory Officers and his decision on the application of the 2016/17 pay award for his staff appointed under s67(1) (a) and (b) of the GLA Act 1999.
Decision
That the Mayor:
• Confirms that the pay award made to GLA staff (1% for senior staff) should also be made to the Statutory Officers (noting that it is a joint decision with the Assembly);
• Agrees to implement the pay award made to GLA staff (1% for senior staff) effective from 1 April 2016 to his staff appointed under s67(1) (a) and (b) of the GLA Act 1999 as amended;
• Agrees that, for the current Mayoral term, mayoral appointees who are on the same grade as GLA staff should receive the same pay award. Mayoral appointees who are on spot salaries at the same level as Executive Directors (not Statutory Officers) should receive the same pay award.
• Notes that, in accordance with the Senior Salaries Review Body recommendation (agreed in 2009), the local government pay settlement of 1% is to be applied to the pay of the Assembly Members and the Mayor.
Part 1: Non-confidential facts and advice
1.1 The Mayor and the Assembly acting jointly are required to approve the annual pay award for:
• The Mayor and Assembly members; and
• The three Statutory Officers – the Head of Paid Service, Statutory Finance Officer and Monitoring Officer.
1.2 The Mayor alone has to determine if the annual pay award will apply to his appointees.
1.3 The Head of Paid Service, following receipt of a pay claim from Unison on 17th October 2016 and subsequent consultation with the Mayor and with the Assembly at the GLA Oversight Committee, has determined that senior staff in the GLA should receive an increase of 1% effective from 1st April 2016. He has also determined, in consultation with the Mayor and the Assembly, that staff on grades 1 to 5 should receive an additional 1% and staff on grades 6 to 8 should receive an additional 0.5%.
1.4 Following consideration by the Mayor and Assembly in 2009 of the last independent review by the Senior Salaries Review Body of GLA elected members’ remuneration, it was confirmed that basic salaries of elected members should track the local government staff settlements nationally.
1.5 The Mayor and Assembly must determine the pay award for Statutory Officers in line with sections 72, 73 and 127 of the GLA Act 1999 (as amended).
1.6 By way of background generally, the table below sets out the pay awards to GLA staff, Assembly Members Statutory Officers and Mayoral Appointees since 2008.
2.1 Subject to agreement by the Mayor and Assembly the pay award for the Statutory Officers will be implemented. The Assembly will be consulted at a full Assembly meeting in January.
2.2 The Mayor is asked to determine that the GLA pay award for senior staff should be applied consistently to his appointees from 1 April 2016.
2.3 The Mayor is asked to agree that during this current Mayoral term his appointees should receive a GLA pay award in line with similarly graded Head of Paid Service appointed staff. Should this be agreed, then mayoral appointees on the GLA salary scale will receive the same pay award as HOPS appointed staff. Mayoral appointees who are on spot salaries will receive the same pay award as Head of Paid Service appointed Executive Directors on spot salaries.
3.1 The pay award will apply to the Mayor, Assembly, Statutory Officers and Mayoral appointees based on a standard percentage increase of 1%. Therefore no negative impacts upon any of the recipients are expected. By applying the same percentage increase across the board there is no disproportionate impact on any member of the group with a protected characteristic.
4.1 It is considered fair and appropriate that Mayoral appointments are treated in a similar way, in terms of pay awards, to Head of Paid Service appointed senior staff.
5.1 The additional costs (salary plus on-costs) required to apply a 1% pay award to all staff, with an additional 1% for grades 1 to 5 and an additional 0.5% for grades 6 to 8 will cost approximately £0.56m per annum and will be funded from the Authority’s Contingency Budget. The additional cost of £0.56m per annum includes provision for a 1% pay award to the GLA’s statutory officers and to those GLA staff appointed by the Mayor and also for the Mayor and Assembly Members.
6.1 The Mayor and the Assembly have the power to determine pay for Statutory Officers in line with sections 72, 73 and 127 of the GLA Act 1999 (as amended). The Mayor and Assembly therefore
have the power to confirm the consolidated pay award be made to the Statutory Officers.
6.2 The Mayor and the Assembly agreed the Senior Salaries Review Board recommendations in 2009 that pay increases for Assembly Members and the Mayor should mirror future local government pay awards. The local government pay award this year is a 1% rise. Therefore this rise will be applied to the Mayor and Assembly Members. As the formula for calculating pay rises (in line with local government awards) was decided in 2009, the Assembly and the Mayor are simply asked to note the position.
6.3 In accordance with section 70(1) of the GLA Act 1999 (as amended), the Mayor has the power to determine the terms and conditions of his staff appointed under section 67(1) of the GLA Act (as amended). The Mayor therefore has the power to confirm the consolidated pay award to be made to staff.
7.1 If approved, the pay award for GLA staff and the Mayoral appointees pay award will be implemented in January 2017, with backdated pay paid in February 2017. The Statutory Officer’s pay award will be paid in February 2017 if approved as the Assembly will be consulted in a full Assembly meeting in January.
Signed decision document
MD2067 GLA Pay Award