The chancellor has been accused of ‘punishing’ the public sector with his announcement in yesterday’s budget that pay increases are to be capped at 1% for a year, by trade unions.
TUC general secretary, Frances O’Grady, said: ‘The chancellor is either oblivious to the tough time that millions of public sector workers and their families are having or he is deliberately setting out to punish them.
‘Public sector workers have seen their pay frozen as the cost of living soars and thousands now find themselves earning less than the living wage.
O’Grady also criticised Osborne for scrapping incremental pay progression for the public sector. He said: ‘The Government also seems set on ditching long-established, easy-to-understand pay progression in the public sector based on increased experience and skills over time.’
Unison said the cap on pay increases goes against Osborne's ‘aspirational nation’ mantra. Chief executive, David Prentis, said: ‘On top of the three-year public service pay freeze workers will now have their pay pegged to 1% until 2015/16 – what does that say about giving people aspirations?’
