Public sector pay policy for staff pay remits 2019-2020: technical guide

Supports the application of the 2019-2020 public sector pay policy and applies to staff in the Scottish Government and its associated departments, agencies, non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs) and public corporations.


B. Worked Example

1. Varying the level of the basic award within the 1 per cent cap

The following example illustrates how a public body can chose to vary the levels of basic award within the 1 per cent cap set by the pay policy. The example is based on a public body with 105.0 (FTE) across 9 grades and includes seasonal staff:

Current pay structure for staff (£)

Grade Min Min+1 Min+2 Min+3 Min+4 Max
A 16,900 17,300 18,050 18,800
Seasonal 18,900
B 18,900 19,900 20,900 21,900 22,725
C 22,725 23,609 24,493 25,376 26,260
D 27,270 28,180 29,090 30,000 30,910 31,820
E 33,000 34,000 35,000 36,000 37,000 38,000
F 41,000 42,500 44,000 45,500 47,000 48,500
G 55,000 57,000 59,000 61,000 63,000 65,000
H 70,000 72,500 75,000 77,500 80,000 82,500

Staff profile (FTE)

Grade Min Min+1 Min+2 Min+3 Min+4 Max
A 2.0 2.5 3.0 8.5
Seasonal 3.5
B 3.0 2.5 4.0 3.0 8.5
C 2.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 9.0
D 1.0 1.0 2.0 1.0 3.0 5.0
E 2.0 1.5 2.0 1.5 2.0 6.0
F 1.0 1.0 1.5 2.0 0.0 5.0
G 0.0 1.0 0.0 1.0 1.0 3.0
H 0.0 1.0 0.0 1.0 0.0 1.0

Base salary costs

Total for all staff, of which: £3,265,651
Below the Lower Pay Threshold £1,872,151
Between the Lower and Upper Pay Thresholds £1,311,000
Above the Upper Pay Threshold £82,500

Illustrative costs for applying differing levels of basic award to staff between the Lower and Upper Pay Thresholds within the 2 per cent cap

Basic award proposal options Cost of basic award increase(1) Cost as a percentage of the base salary cost
i. 2% across the board £26,645 2.03%
ii. 3% on Grade E(2) pay points >£36,500k; 2.5% Grade F; and 1.5% on Grade G & H below UPT £26,816 2.05%
iii. An across-the-board increase of £1,005 £26,633 2.03%

(1) the costs are after applying the progression increase
(2) The cost of applying an additional 1% to pay points in Grade E above the Lower Pay Threshold is costed within the 3% for staff below the Lower Pay Threshold.

2. Using the flexibility to use paybill savings to address equality issues

The following example illustrates how a public body can choose to use the additional flexibility in the policy to use paybill savings to address pay inequalities. This example includes a higher increase to lower paid staff and a reduction in progression journey times without increasing the pay minima.

Using the pay structure and staffing example in 1 above, the proposals are:

  • to apply progression under existing arrangements
  • to apply a 3% consolidated increase to all pay points of £36,500 or less.
  • to apply 2% consolidated increase to all pay points above £36,500 and below £80,000
  • to apply £1,600 to pay points £80,000 and above.
  • to provide a 1% non-consolidated payment to staff on their pay range maxima
  • to apply an additional 0.5% to all pay points in Grade A & B above the SLW rate.
  • to remove the Min+3 pay point in Grades B and C and to use the 1% flexibilities to equalises the pay steps.

Proposed pay structure

Grade Min Min+1 Min+2 Min+3 Min+4 Max
A 16,900 17,906 18,682 19,458
Seasonal 19,562
B 19,562 20,881 22,201 23,520
C 23,407 24,620 25,834 27,048
D 28,088 29,025 29,963 30,900 31,837 32,775
E 33,660 34,680 35,700 36,720 37,740 38,760
F 41,820 43,350 44,880 46,410 47,940 49,470
G 71,400 73,950 76,500 79,050 81,600 84,100
H 16,900 17,906 18,682 19,458

Summary of costs and as a percentage of baseline paybill:

Increase applied Cost (£) As a percentage of baseline salaries for the relevant cohort As a percentage of baseline salaries
Progression 58,680 1.80%
3% for those earning £36,500 or less 57,298(1)(2) 3.06% 1.76%
Additional Increase for Living wage 22(3) 0.00%
3% for in Grade E above the £36,500 threshold 3,595 0.11%
2% increase in baseline salaries for those earning above £36,500 and below £80,000 (2% across the board) 26,816(1) 2.03% 0.82%
£1,600 basic pay increase for those earning £80,000 and above 1,600 1.94% 0.05%
Flexibilities 27,222(4) 0.83%
Total 174,536   5.34%

(1) the costs are after applying the progression increase
(2) The costs include 3% for staff who cross the threshold in Grade E
(3) This additional increase in the Living Wage is more than 3% there is no additional increase applied in this example

The flexibilities are costed as follows:

Flexibility Cost (£) % baseline salaries
1% non-consolidated payment to staff on their maxima prior to applying the pay award 14,964 0.46%
Additional cost of topping up to a £750 cash underpin for staff earning below £25,000 3,379 0.10%
Removing Min+3 pay point in Grade B and equalising pay steps 5,693 0.17%
Removing Min+3 pay point in Grade C and equalising pay steps 3,338 0.10%
Total 27,222 0.83%

Contact

Email: financepaypolicy@gov.scot

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