Staff at the Financial Conduct Authority are being balloted for strike action over claims that the organisation plans to slash pay by 10-12% and introduce an ‘unfair’ appraisal system.
According to Unite, a “large majority” of staff are set to see their pay dramatically reduced, while staff outside London will be put on new, lower pay scales.
Unite said that the FCA planned to abolish “bonuses”, but staff have claimed that these are universally accepted as part of their basic pay – however, the FCA has said there will be no cuts to base pay.
The union alleged that the FCA’s plans to increase salaries for its lowest paid staff was a “cynical attempt to buy off opposition”. Hundreds of staff are set to benefit from a £3,800 base pay rise.
The organisation, which regulates financial services firms and markets in the UK, is also set to bring in an appraisal system that will require managers to downgrade a certain number of their employees if they are not performing strongly, Unite claimed. However, the FCA has indicated an appraisal system that rates employee performance on a curve has been in place for a number of years.
Unite has also accused the FCA of refusing to discuss plans to cut staff pension rights with its workforce.
“Management at the FCA are attempting to implement a programme of pay cuts, which has come after two years in which the staff at the FCA have worked gruelling hours to provide financial protection against Covid for borrowers, investors, small businesses and people with mortgages,” said Unite national officer Dominic Hook.
“Unite has made it clear that if introduced these cuts will make it even less likely that the FCA will be able to deliver this high standard of public service in the future. Experienced employees have been quitting the regulator in droves. More are expected to follow, as in a recent Unite survey 89.8% of staff described their morale as ‘low’ or ‘very low’.”
Yesterday (24 January), Unite began balloting its members at the FCA to determine whether they felt a strike was appropriate. The ballot will close on 31 January.
“The ballot will deliver a clear sense just how dire workforce morale and employee confidence is within the FCA leadership,” said Hook.
A spokesperson for the FCA said: “Our pay and reward proposals would ensure the FCA continues to provide one of the best employment packages of any regulator or enforcement agency in the UK. Our proposals focus on those paid the least, with 800 colleagues below manager-level in line for salary increases of, on average, £3,800.
“We are now carefully considering the feedback received during our extensive consultation with colleagues with the aim of announcing the outcome by March.”
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Unite is also currently challenging the FCA on its alleged refusal to allow staff to be represented by an independent trade union. In October the union launched a staff petition to secure the right to be formally recognised by the FCA.
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