IfG explains why government pay restraint for civil servants will ultimately cost

Article summary

The Institute for Government (IfG) comments on why recent civil service strikes following pay cuts in 2022 pose a risk to the government’s attempt to restrain public spending. In the 10th edition of Whitehall Monitor, data has shown how salaries of civil servants have been cut by 12-23%. Senior researcher at IfG, Rhys Clyne, comments on how the current 2% pay award for civil servants is small considering the rapid rate of inflation and promise of 4-5% awards for the wider public sector and over 6% in private sector. Clyne is of the opinion that ministers’ reasoning for a pay restraint is unconvincing given data that shows civil service pay accounts for 1% of the government spending and enforcing such a restraint will cost the government more in time and resources if workplace morale falls and staff turnover rises.