Nearly 1,500 staff at Nottingham City Council will have their pay cut to bring the council in line with equal pay legislation, it has emerged.
A total of 8,000 council officers were informed yesterday their pay could increase, decrease or stay the same as proposed changes to their pay and terms and conditions were about to be brought in, with 1,440 likely to have their pay reduced.
The changes will now be discussed with all three trade unions recognised at the council – Unison, Unite and the GMB – with a ballot taking place to see if union members agree with the different pay structures.
The council’s chief executive Jane Todd told local news site thisisnottingham.co.uk: “I am confident that by updating them and eliminating inconsistencies and inequalities, we are offering employees a very good package overall and hope that trade union members and other staff will agree,”
She added: “I know that these proposed changes have caused anxiety among staff and we have done everything possible to communicate with and support colleagues. The majority of staff will find that their pay will increase or remain the same.
“For the minority who face the prospect of losing pay, we have introduced a policy which will protect an individual’s pay for three years after the changes are implemented.”
Earlier this year, conciliation service Acas announced that equal pay had overtaken unfair dismissal for the first time as the most popular grounds for tribunal claims.
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Figures in the Acas annual report revealed the number of equal pay claims received in 2007-08 more than doubled to reach 58,513 – up from 27,497 the previous year. Unfair dismissal accounted for 43,231 claims.
Several councils and NHS Employers in England have been battling with multi-million pound equal pay claims, mainly from female workers.
