'The South West has some of the highest house price to wage ratios in the country', plans for regional pay will exacerbate the problem
Communists in the South West have condemned the government’s plans to introduce regional pay in the public sector.
The South West of England and Cornwall District of the CPB met on Saturday May 12 in Exeter.
Tim Gulliver, district media officer, began by quoting figures from the South West TUC, which reveal that pay in the region is already amongst the lowest in the country. Devon and Cornwall in particular would be badly affected, with pay rates in Cornwall being £3.59 an hour below the national average.
The public sector makes up around 27% of the workforce in the South West.
“By removing national bargaining agreements the government is taking power away from working people,” warned Liz Payne, the district’s Chair. “This is all part of a wider plan to dismantle public services at a local level and make them easier to privatise.”
The South West has some of the highest house price to wage ratios in the country. The committee also warned that any decrease in the wages of workers would have serious consequences for the wider economy.
(from a press release)
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