Action on Pay
Bulletin No 3

April Fool?

Today, 1st April, is the operative date for Probation members to receive their increments and the pay rise they are entitled to expect; a pay rise which should, as a minimum, ensure pay remains in line with the rate of inflation.

This year our Employers are refusing to pay increments from 1st April and to date no offer has been received on the pay increase due despite the Trade Unions’ claim having been lodged on 15th January.

The Employers are insisting that this year the rate of incremental progression is included in the annual pay negotiations. Although no pay offer has yet been received we know that the Treasury is insisting that public sector pay settlements are consistent with a target of 2% inflation, even though the retail price index is currently increasing by over 4% per annum.

Although we always knew that negotiations would be difficult this year as a result of the Treasury policy on public sector pay, we were unprepared for our own Employers taking such a draconian approach to their own staff. In responding to our pay claim the Employers have also indicated that that they are looking to attack other conditions of service such as sick pay and are threatening to introduce performance related pay.

As in previous years, we would seek if at all possible, to negotiate a good outcome for members without recourse to industrial action. We sense that this year it may however be necessary to be ready to consider industrial action, which may need to include strike action as well as action short of a strike, such as working to contracted hours.

Indicative Ballot for Industrial Action

Napo’s March NEC meeting agreed that we should in the first instance conduct an indicative ballot to see if members will support a campaign of industrial action. A move to a statutory ballot will follow if the indicative ballot shows support for action and if progress cannot be made by negotiations alone.

We have now agreed a common approach in respect of the indicative ballot with Unison as it would clearly be important to act together to ensure that any action taken has maximum impact.

As the joint Napo/Unison statement on page 2 sets out, we have agreed to run the indicative ballot during the month of May and we are asking Napo and Unison Branches at a local level to establish joint committees to organise local campaigning action.

In entering this year’s pay negotiations, as your negotiators we need to know if members are prepared to back us with industrial action, should it prove necessary.

More detail will follow on the next steps in this year’s pay campaign.

Judy McKnight
General Secretary
1st April 2008

4 Chivalry Road, London SW11 1HT
Telephone 020 7223 4887
Fax 020 7223 3503
N19-08
www.napo.org.uk

Probation Pay Dispute - Joint Napo/Unison Statement

At the meeting of the National Negotiating Council (NNC) on the 4th March Napo and Unison jointly registered a dispute following the Employers’ confirmation of their decision to withhold the payment of increments to staff on the 1st April 2008.

Whilst the Employers accept that staff have a contractual right to incremental progression they are insisting that the rate of progression is agreed as part of the negotiations on the trade union pay claim for 2008/09. The unions have made clear that this is unacceptable:

􀁑 there is no written agreement suggesting increments should not be paid as laid out in he 3 year pay deal ending on the 31st March;

􀁑 it is unjust and potentially discriminatory;

􀁑 it will mean staff face a pay cut as a result of the increase in pension contributions from the st April.

Negotiations with the Employers are continuing in the hope of resolving this dispute (as well as addressing the formal pay claim) but the unions believe we must consider other options in pursuit of justice for our members in the Probation Service.

Next Steps

Napo and Unison have met nationally and agreed the next steps in our dispute. We have agreed to hold an indicative ballot of members to establish support for our dispute and commitment to any action that might become necessary if negotiations are unsuccessful. However, it should be noted that industrial action can only be taken following a statutory ballot of all members.

Branch Action

􀁑 Napo/Unison Branches are to establish joint committees immediately which will organise and implement local campaigning and disseminate information related to the dispute.

􀁑 The indicative ballot will start on 1st May – the joint committees will be asked to organise workplace meetings on that day which will promote the ballot and focus on the reasons for the dispute.

􀁑 The indicative ballot process and format will be confirmed shortly and Napo and Unison members will receive a ballot paper with identical wording.

􀁑 The ballot will close on the 30th May.

Further information will be provided to Branches and the joint committees in due course. Branches are asked to provide their respective National Officials with the contact details of their joint committees as soon as the information is available.

Any questions regarding this Circular should be directed to Jonathan Ledger, Assistant General Secretary, for Napo Branches or Ben Priestley, National Officer, for Unison Branches.

Judy McKnight Ben Priestley
Napo Unison