Welsh Government grants above-inflation pay rise for public sector

The Welsh Government has today announced an above-inflation pay awards for hundreds of thousands of public sector workers in Wales.

It comes after a series of strikes over the last 12 months as in education and health amid calls for a fairer pay deal for workers.

Today First Minister Eluned Morgan confirmed that NHS staff, teachers and public sector workers in many devolved services will receive pay rises of between five per cent and six per cent in 2024-2025.

The announcement comes as the Welsh Government has accepted the pay recommendations from independent pay review bodies in full:

• Teachers will receive a 5.5 per cent pay award.
• NHS staff on Agenda for Change terms and conditions will receive a 5.5 per cent pay award.
• Doctors and dentists, including GPs and salaried GPs, will receive a six per cent pay award, with an additional £1,000 for junior doctors.
• The Welsh Government has also agreed up to an average five per cent pay award for civil servants and for staff at a number of other public bodies, including Natural Resources Wales and the Development Bank of Wales.

First Minister Eluned Morgan said: “People across Wales have told us over the summer that public sector workers are the backbone of the services we all rely on – from the nurses in our NHS to teachers in classrooms across Wales.

“They want them to be fairly rewarded for the vital work they do. These pay awards reflect how we value them and respect their hard work.

“But the public has also been clear they want to see improvements in public services – especially in the NHS and education. We will work with these services to deliver on what people have told us over the summer listening exercise.

Cabinet Secretary for Finance Rebecca Evans added: “We greatly value the hundreds of thousands of people working across the public sector in Wales and the work they do every day. We have worked hard to be able to make this offer.

“We are committed to working in social partnership with trade unions to achieve fair pay settlements which are affordable while also recognising the huge contribution made by public sector workers.”

Independent pay review bodies make recommendations to governments about pay.

Other parts of the public sector in Wales, including local government staff, fire and rescue services and social care, are not covered by the independent pay review bodies and are negotiated through a separate process.

Union Response

Today’s announcement has been welcomed by unions which have long campaigned for a fair pay deal for its members.

However there has been criticism over the delay in the Welsh Government’s decision making process.

Dr Patrick Roach, General Secretary for education union NASUWT, said: “NASUWT welcomes the confirmation form the Welsh Government that it will exceed the recommendation of the pay review body and ensure teachers in Wales receive at least an equivalent pay award as their counterparts in England.

“It is disappointing that the Welsh Government has left teachers in limbo for so long before making today’s announcement.

“The NASUWT hopes that today’s announcement will be a first step in restoring the competitiveness of teachers’ pay after more than a decade of real terms pay erosion.

“We urge the Government to work with us to secure the world class pay and conditions that teachers deserve.”

Neil Butler, NASUWT National Official for Wales, said: “Teachers in Wales will be relieved to hear that they will receive a pay uplift of 5.5% this year after weeks of delay.

“The Welsh Government has known about the teachers’ pay award in England since the end of July and has been in possession of the IWPRB report for even longer.

“Teachers in Wales will wonder why there has been this long delay, particularly as they have been offered the same pay uplift as teachers in England.”

Tom Hoyles, GMB Senior Organiser, said: “To see First Minister Eluned prioritising a pay deal for public services so early in her tenure is a great sign.

“The only way to get our economy growing is to put money in working peoples pockets. It’s important to us that both Labour Government’ s continue to make that a priority.”

In a joint statement Dr Oba Babs-Osibodu and Dr Peter Fahey co-chairs of the BMA’s Welsh Junior Doctors Committee said: “Whilst we will continue to fight for full pay restoration to recover the years of real terms pay cuts, today’s award does provide some further reversal of that erosion.

“At the start of the year, our members made their feelings clear by taking industrial action to secure a fairer deal for the profession. We listened to and acted on their concerns then, and we will continue to do so.

“That’s why we’re encouraging our members to engage with our next survey to gauge their views on this pay announcement, as well as to better understand the experiences of doctors working across Wales”

Dr Ali Nazir, chair of the BMA’s Welsh Specialist, Associate Specialist and Specialty Doctor Committee said: “We welcome the decision by the Welsh Government to accept the DDRB’s recommendations on this year’s pay award which goes some way to feeling our hard work is valued.

“For too long doctors’ sacrifices were taken for granted with below-inflation pay awards and we will continue to work towards achieving full pay restoration for SAS doctors in Wales, some of whom have experienced pay cuts of almost a third in real terms.

“We will now consult with our members to gauge their views and experiences which will inform our next steps.”

Opposition Response

Responding to Welsh Government’s public sector pay rises announcement, Plaid Cymru spokesperson for Finance, Culture and the Welsh Language Heledd Fychan MS said: “Public sector pay rises are long overdue.

“Plaid Cymru has consistently campaigned for public sector workers to get fair pay for the invaluable work they do for our country.

“We’re clear that public sector workers in Wales should not have to await for announcements in England before receiving improved pay offers.

“That’s why we urgently need a fair funding model to end Wales’ dependency on political decisions made over the border.

“However, public sector workers have long stated that the challenges facing the workforce across the NHS and education sector go beyond just pay.

“If we are to truly tackle the recruitment and retention crisis across the public sector, the Labour Welsh Government must immediately listen to and work with these sectors to improve workers’ terms and conditions overall.”

Leader of the Welsh Conservatives, Andrew RT Davies MS said: “It’s clearly in the UK’s national interest to end these strikes, but Labour ministers in the Senedd allowed them to drag on.

“Unlike Labour ministers in the Senedd, Welsh Conservatives will never prioritise vanity projects that distract from our public services.

“Labour should also be prioritising fully funding our schools, NHS and helping farmers to feed our nation.”