Dear colleagues,
I wrote to you in November, and last week [PDF] to tell you that, as a University, we were strongly supporting a nationally-agreed pay rise for of at least five per cent for all staff, and that we were pushing to be able to give staff some of the annual uplift early, instead of implementing it all from August 2023 as usual. We took this position as we are acutely aware of the pressure staff are under as a result of the rising cost of living.
I’m pleased to tell you that the sector-wide national pay award for this year has been finalised. From August 2023 colleagues will receive an uplift of between five and eight per cent, with those on lower salary spine points receiving closer to eight per cent. Importantly, to help with the current cost of living, we can implement part of the 2023-2024 pay award in March, backdated to 1 February 2023. Colleagues will receive either two per cent of the uplift or £1,000 per annum (whichever is larger) backdated to 1 February 2023 in their March pay packets, with the remainder of the pay award implemented from 1 August 2023.
The new salary scales are available on the HR website.
I am very glad we are able to make part of the pay uplift early, as I continue to have daily conversations about the pressure staff are under as a result of the rising cost of living. Implementing part of the national pay award early in this way is unprecedented.
I will write again when there is a further update to share.
Best wishes,
Colin
Professor Colin Bailey, CBE, FREng, BEng, PhD, CEng, FICE, FIStructE, MIFireEPresident and Principal