Public Sector: Pay
Wales
Owen Smith (Pontypridd, Labour)
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales pursuant to the answer of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Wales of 20 June 2012, Welsh Grand Committee Debates, columns 12-13, on regional pay, what examples there are of the private sector in Wales being priced out of local labour markets in Wales due to public sector pay scales.
Cheryl Gillan (Secretary of State, Wales; Chesham and Amersham, Conservative)
The Institute for Fiscal Studies estimate a pay premium of on average 18% in Wales, the highest in the UK, for working in the public sector over comparable jobs in the private sector.
The Government has asked the independent Pay Review Bodies to consider how public sector pay can be made more responsive to local labour markets. The independent Pay Review Bodies are expected to report on their findings shortly.