2024 Pay Settlement – Our Response

31 January 2024

It’s fair to say that whilst expectations for pay were low, no one expected them to be as low as a 0% increase in base pay.

Today’s announcement was a cruel and unnecessary one. 

Those who worked hard and made sacrifices to go above and beyond at work with the promise of being rewarded, were rewarded with barely treading water against inflation. The rest of us experience another punishing year of competing for the degree of real-term pay cuts we receive. Those of us unlucky enough to get a grade ‘1’ will get 0%. 

This year we asked for performance-related pay to be sacrificed to achieve a base pay that meets inflation for all – the only fair and respectful thing to do during unprecedented times for our personal finances. Instead, the FCA made all pay contingent on performance, effectively abolishing base pay, after abolishing bonuses. This is a radical and dangerous experiment with 5000 staff livelihoods and careers and it’s hurting. 

Can the FCA do better?

Yes – this is a choice. Their last two annual accounts show the FCA to be in a buoyant financial position, with excess reserves they are committed to spending. The FCA’s income is derived from some of the richest institutions ever to exist on planet Earth and it had the benefit of consulting on the levy with the full knowledge of the inflationary pressures staff were facing. FCA leadership cannot hide behind these excuses. This is their choice and they must take responsibility for it, while knowing that they are paid significantly above market rates for leadership at comparable regulators and are unlikely to be feeling the same pressures as our colleagues.

How bad is it?

Inflation (RPI) ended the year at 5.4% having averaged out at 11.6% for 2023.  Pay settlements (excluding bonuses) for 2023 year to November were 6.4% in the private sector and 6.6% in the public sector (6% and 6.5% respectively using LRD data). The FCA’s settlement? 0%.

Year after year we are seeing our work and pay devalued – something needs to change. 

• 2021-22 – Estimated 75% of staff received absolute pay-cuts between 10-15%
• 2022-23 – Everyone gets a real-terms pay cut averaging 6-7%. 
• 2023-23 – Approx. 75% of staff get another real-terms pay cut.

This means that the average staff member at the FCA has seen their pay devalued by approx 20% in the last 3 years. How much worse will it get in the next three years?

A full breakdown of how the FCA’s offer stacks up against our asks on behalf of staff can be found at the end of this email.

How can the FCA do this?

Because they can. FCA leadership took a political position against Union recognition at the FCA, instead imposing an SCC that barely fulfils the legally required minimum for staff representation. This means no collective bargaining, no negotiations, not even the right for staff reps to receive basic information they need to merely be consulted on pay. 

These are the basic rights almost all UK public sector employees have through recognised Unions at the BoE, CMA, ICO, Environmental Agency, countless others, and the National Crime Agency which is due to move into our Stratford Office. Not at the FCA.

The FCA have repeatedly ignored the representations and recommendations of the SCC year after year. It shows. Only a recognised Union with legally protected collective bargaining and negotiation powers can change that. 

We’re also interested to see the FCA briefing the press and staff as to Unite and the SCC’s role ‘influencing’ this decision. Consultations were poor quality, most data request by Unite and Reps was not shared, memorably one slide on the FCA’s ability to pay contained literally no information about the FCA’s ability to pay (quickly glossed over), and in a final fun twist, HR asked the Staff Deputies of the SCC to represent the views of the Unions to ExCo… without telling or asking us (also not their role)… subsequently locking us out the room when we found out… 

‘Influenced’ is too strong a word. ‘Used’ perhaps suits the occasion better? 

What can we do?

If you’re angry, that’s justified. Unaccountable choices by FCA leadership have caused you significant and tangible harm year after year. This isn’t just about pounds and pence, it’s about your livelihood, your career, your self-respect in the workplace. 

Every conversation with colleagues now seems to start with how exhausted, overworked and burned out we all are in an organisation perpetually in chaos, reorganising left-right and centre with the wheels flying off the rotating door of senior leaders and staff. Year. After. Year.

This is not sustainable.

Something needs to change. 

That change only happens when you and your colleagues join a Union. 

We can’t shirk that reality. After today, every FCA and PSR staff member needs to be clicking this link to join the Union – we can’t leave it to others and hope for the best anymore. 

This is THE ONLY constructive route to saying that you do not consent to being treated this way and actually securing better. 

Next Steps?

We will implore FCA leadership to do the right thing and come back to the table. They have badly misjudged what will be another hard blow to an already reeling and vulnerable organisation. Our Branch Meeting 1pm 13th February will be on the FCA’s Pay Offer, followed by an all-member email ballot on whether members accept or decline this offer. 

Industrial action is always a last resort. We will only consider this if it is clear that the FCA refuses to come back to the table and staff have been given no other options. 

The RPI Inflation rate for December 2023 was 5.4% having averaged 11.6% across the year.

Official earnings estimates for regular pay (excluding bonuses) for 2023 year to November was 6.4% in the private sector, 6.6% in the public sector (6% and 6.5% respectively using LRD data). Sources are from GMB’s Wage and Inflation Report January 2024.

How does it compare to what Staff asked for? Read the Unite Branch Pay Claim submitted to the FCA to see the case staff made for pay that meets inflation regardless of performance grade. 

We’ve broken down the outcomes against our asks below – it’s not a pretty picture. 

Ask	Achieved	Offer
General Pay Ask
A minimum guaranteed pay increase at least in line with inflation regardless of performance grade.	No	0% base pay. Performance-only pay. No relation to inflation.
That the FCA develop a long-term plan for achieving sustainable real-terms increases in year-on-year staff pay for the next 5 years that re-values FCA and PSR work.	No	Not mentioned or acknowledged
That all staff are paid at least the minimum of their pay scale.	No	Not mentioned or acknowledged
Performance Pay
For smaller increments in subsequent pay at each performance grade to fund a minimum inflationary uplift for all.	Partially	Minor adjustments made to increase grade ‘2’ and ‘3’ pot off pot for grade ‘5’.
That the FCA uses fair, clear and not misleading language on pay comms	No	Confuses base pay and performance pay in a matrix even financial regulators struggle to understand.
Standardised performance-related increases by grade regardless of where an employee sits on the pay scale.	No	Not acted upon.
Objectively Low Pay
Raise the minimum of all payscales to at least the Joseph Rowntree Foundations’ Minimum Income Standard (now at £29,500 per annum for a single person).	No	Not mentioned or acknowledged
DEI and International Pay Gaps
Implement a new high-profile HR project proactively inviting staff, managers and local DEI Staff Committees to identify and submit potential pay gap cases based on protected characteristics in the FCA and PSR.	No	Not acted upon.
To report metrics on the age pay gap in line with existing reporting on gender, race, sexuality, and disability.	No	Not mentioned or acknowledged
Consult existing international staff (or with international family) on the impact and implementation of Government changes to Skilled Worker visas.	No	Not mentioned or acknowledged
National and Corporate Pay Gaps
Formally review and assess the impact of National pay scales.	No	Not acted upon.
Uplift National pay scales each year until the gap with London pay scales are eliminated.	No	Not acted upon
Reduce the gap between Corporate and Supervision Hub pay scales with Regulatory pay scales.	No	Not acted upon
Benefits
Reduce health insurance premiums for apprentices and part-time staff.	Not yet	Acknowledged. Not acted upon.
Upgrade advance salary scheme to offer limited, interest-free bridge loans to staff for specific life-changing circumstances.	No	Not mentioned or acknowledged
Form a Staff Crisis Fund making limited grants available to staff facing emergency situations that risk their ability to access work.	No	Not mentioned or acknowledged
Pay Adjacent Decisions
Performance Reward – Comprehensively review the performance reward framework including consideration of performance assessments, grading, reward and pay.	Not yet	A review of the performance assessment framework may occur this year.
Flexible Working – To broaden the scope of the Flexible Working review to improve the flexible working offer.	No	Some improvements to DEI and leave policies in train. No sight on how FCA adjusting to new Flexible Working legislation.
Hybrid Working – Commit to retaining the 40% in office hybrid working policy or budget for the significant costs increasing this will have on staff and the organisation.	No	Not mentioned or acknowledged
Information, Data and Transparency
Providing Staff Representatives with all information on pay, performance, benefits, leave, benchmarking, finance and operations needed to participate in pay consultations and reach an informed position on behalf of staff.	No	ExCo agreed to a ‘lessons learned’ exercise on pay consultations. Almost no information requested by Unite was shared by HR. Staff Reps unable to make informed representations on pay for another year.