A salary review long overdue

Such change may be initiated by States Members next week – at least as far top salaries are concerned – when they consider a monitoring process designed to prevent payment above and beyond what is strictly necessary to attract the right talent and to remunerate high-flyers appropriately.

If the proposition to review and scrutinise salaries over £100,000, presented by the States Employment Board, is accepted, a process superior to the present lax and haphazard system would be introduced. It would not, as first mooted, involve direct States examination of all salaries and contract rates over £100,000, but it would represent a major step forward.

It can be argued that the States Assembly is the body which, in an ideal world, would have the final say on top rates of pay. However, practical considerations – including problems that would arise when the House is not sitting – mean that the States Employment Board will be the review body.

The board, which includes two Members without ministerial responsibilities, would be required to keep the States fully informed about the scrutiny process. It would also be advised by the Jersey Appointments Commission and take note of salary benchmarking information supplied by the director of the States Human Resources department. In addition, an independent reward consultancy would be engaged to publish reviews of senior pay.

This looks like a complex structure, but it could be established at a relatively low cost and would certainly provide a level of oversight which is currently lacking.

For the very practical reasons that a review structure should save unnecessary expenditure and prevent payment over the odds, Members must support the Employment Board’s proposals. They should also be aware that the general public will more readily accept austerity measures if they can be assured that they apply across the board and that there is no possibility of the senior officers helping to frame policy living off the fat of the land while others suffer.