Issue - meetings

That the Pay Policy Statement for 2020/21 be approved and the latest Equal Pay Audit be noted.

The Chief Executive introduced the report on the annual Pay Policy Statement for 2020/21 which summarised the current approach to pay and remuneration within an organisational, regional and national context.  It was a statutory obligation to publish the Pay Policy Statement each year within the deadline.  The latest Equal Pay Audit was also shared for information.

The Senior Manager for Human Resources and Organisational Development said that some sections had been re-written to improve the flow of the report and that deferral of the report from earlier in the year had enabled the 2020 pay award data to be incorporated as well as national changes.  She provided an overview of the main changes including an additional section on a cap on public sector exit payments which she confirmed was to be implemented on 4 November 2020.  More information on the impact to the authority would be shared at a later date.

The recommendation was moved and seconded by Councillors Mullin and Palmer who both thanked the team for their work.

Councillor Peers referred to discussion at the Constitution & Democratic Services Committee on the timely responses by officers to Members’ queries and asked whether this was a consideration in the annual and mid-year appraisals of Chief Officers.  The Chief Executive said that he was responsible for conducting all Chief Officer appraisals which covered all performance objectives for the respective portfolios.  He reiterated the advice that any issues of under-performance should be reported either to himself or the Customer Services Manager, as set out in the agreed protocol, in order for them to be actioned.

Having been moved and seconded, the recommendation was put to the vote and carried.

RESOLVED:

That the Pay Policy Statement for 2020/21 be approved and the latest Equal Pay Audit be noted.