Rises in public sector pay in the UK appear to be slowing down, according to new figures, after a period during which pay rises in the public sector have been outpacing much of the private sector.
Research by pay specialists Incomes Data Services (IDS) show that while the median level of pay settlements for the third quarter of the year is 3.3 per cent, awards such as the 2.5 per cent for schoolteachers from April 2004 are an indication that the Government is determined to see lower headline settlements in the months to come.
The overall spread of settlements is wide, ranging from rises as low as one percent in parts of the telecoms sector to increases of 10 percent plus for some bus drivers in London and the South East.
IDS also says that the October increase to £4.50 an hour in the adult National Minimum Wage has triggered a second increase this year for the lowest grades in a number of retailers and has generated relatively high percentage rises for the lowest grades in parts of the hotel and catering sector.
