New figures reveal that Scottish public sector workers earn an average of £463 more each year than their English counterparts. According to figures from the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (SPICe), median gross annual pay for Scots public sector workers is £31,877, in comparison to an average of £31,414 for English workers. Public sector pay increases in the UK were capped at 1% for six years, following a two-year pay freeze from 2010 to 2012 for all public sector employees. The SNP Government ended the pay cap, giving an immediate 6.5% pay increase rise to police and a minimum of 9% to nurses over three years. More than 80% of Scotland’s workforce is paid at least the living wage, making Scotland the best performing of all UK nations in this regard. Kenneth Gibson MSP said:
“These figures clearly demonstrate the SNP Governments commitment to insulating Scottish families from the worst of Tory austerity.
“With the powers we have, the SNP Government is working to ensure our public sector workers are paid fairly, promoting a real living wage, fighting zero-hours contracts, and building a social security based on fairness and dignity for all.”
ENDS
