Staff working at The Pensions Regulator are striking for two weeks in a dispute over pay.
According to the Public and Commercial Services union, members working for TPR in Brighton will take strike action from September 5 to 18 after they were offered a 3 per cent pay rise.
It said staff have been offered only a 3 per cent pay increase despite the improved civil service pay remit of 4.5-5 per cent.
PCS general secretary Mark Serwotka said: “Our hard-working members at The Pensions Regulator demand to know why they’re deemed worth less than their colleagues elsewhere.
“They’re furious at finding out the government is treating them as the poor relations of the civil service.
“If ministers want to end what will be disruptive strike action, they can treat these workers fairly and with respect, offering them at least the same pay rise everyone else needs to help them through the cost-of-living crisis and beyond.”
The PCS explained that on June 6 the government made an improved pay offer to all civil service and related areas of a £1,500 lump-sum payment and an increase in the pay remit from 2 per cent to 4.5 per cent, with an extra 0.5 per cent targeted for the lowest paid.
Despite other civil service employers applying this additional pay flexibility, TPR staff are being offered only a 3 per cent increase in the pay bill. This may result in some staff getting more than 3 per cent but many will not receive 4.5 per cent.
A spokesperson for The Pensions Regulator said: “We value our staff highly and hope to achieve a successful resolution with the PCS Union as soon as possible, within our current performance-related pay structure that is fair and equitable.”
FTAdviser understands around 150 staff, out of TPR’s 1,000 staff, are members of the PCS union.
amy.austin@ft.com
