January 5, 2011 2.59 pm This story is over 158 months old

Council workers pay to freeze until 2013

Wage woes: Staff of the City of Lincoln Council will not be seeing any wage increases for the next couple of years.

People working at the City of Lincoln Council will see no further increases to their pay for the next two years.

Unlike previous years, City Council staff will see a pay freeze, meaning inflation will not cause a rise in their pay awards.

However, staff at the council earning below £21,000 will still be awarded an extra £250 per year.

The announcement was made in the council’s Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS), but the final decision is ultimately with the Coalition Government.

Monetary matters such as pay and pensions are drafted by the Council’s MTFS using past experience, current economic issues and advice from directors and heads of service.

The MTFS suggests the pay freeze will end in 2013/14, when inflation will allow pay awards in wages to rise from 2%.

City Council spokesperson Caroline Ashman said: “Staff pay is negotiated at a national level, and the council must adhere to whatever that national decision is.

“The council does not decide what its staff will be paid.

“However, the council must plan out its finances through the Medium Term Financial Strategy, based on the best financial assumptions that can be made.”

The government originally announced the pay freezes in the public sectors in June 2010, in its Emergency Budget.

The City of Lincoln Council will also lose 24.3% in government grants over the next two years, with a 0.1% rise in 2014 to 2015.