Public sector pay policy 2020 to 2021: technical guide

1. What is new for 2020-21

What are the key features of the Public Sector Pay Policy for 2020-21?

1.1 The Public Sector Pay Policy for 2020-21 was announced in the Budget statement on 6 February 2020 and covers pay settlements in 2020-21. The policy sets the parameters for public sector pay increases for the period 2020-21 for both staff pay and senior appointments within a range of public bodies in Scotland and for public appointments not linked to a public body.

1.2 The policy is available on the Scottish Government website at: Scottish Public Sector Pay Policy 2020-21

1.3 The key features of the pay policy in 2020-21 are:

• delivering a progressive approach to pay increases:
  • providing a guaranteed cash underpin of £750^[1] for those earning a full-time equivalent salary of £25,000 or less
  • providing a guaranteed basic pay increase of 3 per cent for those with a full-time equivalent salary of less than £80,000
  • limiting the basic award increase for those earning £80,000 or more to £2,000
• continuing with the requirement for employers to pay their staff at least the real Living Wage
• providing the flexibility for employers to use up to 0.5 per cent of baseline salaries to address inequalities, Where such proposals result in changes to existing pay and grading structures, public bodies must demonstrate that they can be wholly funded by savings. The inequalities can include:
  • affordable and sustainable changes to existing pay and grading structures where there is clear evidence of equality or recruitment and retention issues
• retaining discretion for individual employers to reach their own decisions about pay progression (limited to a maximum of 1.5 per cent for Chief Executives) outwith the pay metrics for basic award increases
• maintaining the suspension of non-consolidated performance related pay (bonuses)
• removing the flexibility for employers to make non-consolidated payments of up to 1 per cent for employees on the maximum of their pay scales
• continuing to support the policy of No Compulsory Redundancy.

What are the pay thresholds for 2020-21?

1.4 The policy has removed the lower pay threshold for 2020-21 but has retained the upper pay threshold to continue to help work towards reducing overall income inequality.

1.5 For 2020-21, the Upper Pay Threshold will remain at £80,000. The threshold includes all staff and Chief Executives earning a full-time equivalent base salary of £80,000 or more.

1.6 An equivalent £80,000 per annum threshold applies to the daily fees for all public and Ministerial appointments those who are paid less than £307 per day (this equates to £80,000 per annum).

Where will I find the key policy information in this Technical Guide?

1.7 For information on the application of the pay policy, you will wish to note, in particular, the following sections:

• Application of the real Living Wage
  • Staff Pay Remits - C.3.27 to C.3.33
  • Chief Executives - not applicable
  • Chairs, Board Members and Public Appointments - not applicable
• Application of the guaranteed cash underpin of £750 for those earning a full-time equivalent salary of £25,000 or less
  • Staff Pay Remits - C.3.34 to C.3.35
  • Chief Executives - not applicable
  • Chairs, Board Members and Public Appointments - not applicable
• Application of the guaranteed basic pay increase of 3 per cent for those with a full-time equivalent salary of less than £80,000
  • Staff Pay Remits - C.3.36 to C.3.40
  • Chief Executives - C.4.3
  • Chairs, Board Members and Public Appointments - not applicable
• Application of the basic pay increase for those with a full-time equivalent salary of £80,000 or more
  • Staff Pay Remits - C.3.41 to C.3.44
  • Chief Executives - C.4.4
  • Chairs, Board Members and Public Appointments - not applicable
• Paying Progression
  • Staff Pay Remits - C.3.48 to C.3.54
  • Chief Executives - C.4.5 to C.4.6
  • NHS Scotland Executive and Senior Management posts - C.5.3 to C.5.4
  • Chairs, Board Members and Public Appointments - not applicable
• The flexibility to use paybill savings to address pay inequalities
  • Staff Pay Remits - C.3.58 to C.3.62
  • Chief Executives - not applicable
  • Chairs, Board Members and Public Appointments - not applicable