25th March 2009, 10:54 AM
Bob's understanding of what I meant is correct - if pay is already above the minimum in an organisation, it is unlikley to be raised by 3.2%.
A big issue will be whether ROs paying below the new minimum levels can afford in the current climate to raise them, and what happens if a number of them don't? A real test for the "benefits" of being an RO - given a hard choice between staying an RO or staying in business, which way would people go? And then, the whole edifice of pay minima set unilaterally by a non-statutory body has the potenetial to come tumbling down.
Extending what Bob said, it is also a real issue for many local authority contracting units who have no discretion over their salary awards. Harsh as it may seem, it might be the push needed to sort out (ie remove) the disruptive position in the market of these contractors.
A big issue will be whether ROs paying below the new minimum levels can afford in the current climate to raise them, and what happens if a number of them don't? A real test for the "benefits" of being an RO - given a hard choice between staying an RO or staying in business, which way would people go? And then, the whole edifice of pay minima set unilaterally by a non-statutory body has the potenetial to come tumbling down.
Extending what Bob said, it is also a real issue for many local authority contracting units who have no discretion over their salary awards. Harsh as it may seem, it might be the push needed to sort out (ie remove) the disruptive position in the market of these contractors.