Thread: Civil Serpants £300M bonuses

As Jim30 says, CS pay is a laugh, as a wearer of green blotchy clothes, one of the (very few) upsides of being in a predominantly CS workplace is comparing pay, or "accidentally" leaving payslips on your desk . One of my colleagues, a WO2, is reported on (1st RO) by a C2 CS on about £8k less than him.

This turd has been floating in the bowl for a while now. The thirty second piece on this morning's BBC Breakfast news has just poked it with a stick, that's all.
Over the last few years, the MoD Performance Pay scheme has evolved into an exercise in report writing; and even that didn't necessarily guarantee you an award as numbers were capped and spineless reporting officers failed to grow a set and put every man and his dog through on recommendation to leave the Award Groups with the onerous task of deciding the First Among Equals. It adds no value, it is non-pensionable, it is unfair and I wouldn't be at all surprised if it's scrapped because of course it's worth more than half a dozen Chinooks. To round off the analogy, someone flush the bog...

My employer has cancelled bonuses this year due to the recession. Needless to say there was particular pressure to scrap the top-level discretionary bonuses.

With regard to MoD bonuses, it beggars belief that these were to be paid at the same time that committed TA training was to be scrapped.

Where does the £300M figure in the heading come from? Is it a cross-government figure? I can't see it anywhere in the story. Incidentally I gave a quick interview on this subject on BBC R Scotland this morning, and a separate interview on BBC R Wales on a different subject - for which I may be able to claim one of the first broadcast uses of the term "outrage bus". ;)

When I was in the CS FSA the reason I was given for PRP bonuses was that it meant annual pay rises could be shown to be within limits whilst at the same time giving above limit pay rises.

The trouble with this system is once you start it's very hard to stop or change it without giving a massive genuine pay rise.

Seems I'm in line for a 4 figure bonus and 3 weeks Christmas leave.



BOSS!!!!!!!!



"………How do the civil servants at MOD sleep at night?

Unless you have been on the moon for the past 12-18 months you will have heard the claims that British soldiers are losing their lives in Aghanistan due to the lack of equipment. You may also have heard rumours of potential slashing cuts to the Armed services in a government drive to save money. That in itself is hugely controversial, cutting public spending on the Armed forces during a war? It is unheard of.

Well, do not fear, not all departments of the MOD is having to slash its budget. The MOD civil servants, you know, the fat, lazy, and very safe part of the forces that never do anything more dangerous than use a stapler or a photocopier are all rubbing their hands together in anticipation of their 3 week Christmas holidays. Why? Because their pay bonuses are incoming.

£300 million has been paid to these these pie eating pen pushers with some being given presents of up to £17,000 each since the war began. That is more than a private soldier in Afghanistan earns in a year and would have paid for an extra 1,800 soldiers.

The MoD admits that £287million has been paid in bonuses since Britain went to war in Iraq. Last year, its bureaucrats pocketed £52.9million and in the first six months of 2009/10 they collected another £47.2million. Senior officials shared £1.5million, averaging £8,000 each. Junior staff took home an extra £775.

Shaun Rusling, vice-chairman of the National Gulf Veterans and Families Association, said last night: ‘This is disgusting. The sums beggar belief. ‘Surely the Government can see it would be better to spend this money on kit for our troops rather than lining the pockets of bureaucrats.’

How much did the actual Army of 103,000 men and women earn in bonuses during the same period? £0.……"

http://www.madnessoftheworld.com/?p=1355

That was the point I was making, every government employee should be eligible for one based upon performance not just a few. We might even get a more efficient system as a result.

Originally Posted by MrPVRd

My employer has cancelled bonuses this year due to the recession. Needless to say there was particular pressure to scrap the top-level discretionary bonuses.

With regard to MoD bonuses, it beggars belief that these were to be paid at the same time that committed TA training was to be scrapped.

The so-called bonuses are paid out of a different pot and were agreed with the unions almost 3 years ago as part of a wider pay deal (which royally stitched the MOD CS, IMHO).

Bonuses in a CS environment are divisive and soak up a huge amount of administration time and resource all the way up the CoC that could be better used in managing the business. But, from the perspective of HMT, they are much cheaper than paying a salary and the subsequent pension.

Why the MOD, the unions and the CS at large signed up to the idea of bonuses in the late-90s is beyond me. But, IIRC, one T Blair claimed to be changing the world - and everyone believed him!

This is a non-story peddled by journalists who cannot be bothered to check back through their achives.

Litotes

Junior staff took home an extra £775 each?

Utter utter utter utter bollocks.

Originally Posted by jim30

The bonus is a dreadful system, foisted on the MOD by HM Treasury. Most MOD CS that I know (including myself) are deeply opposed to the scheme on the grounds that it is very divisive, and that it doesn’t achieve its aims. The only reason we have it is because HMT knows that bonus payments are non pensionable, and as such would rather pay out a one off lump sum, rather than life long increasing payments through actual pay rises.

This issue has linked into the wider problem of CS pay – now at a junior level, CS pay is reasonably competitive for the work it involves – usually in the £14 - £19K per year range for admin staff. My old clerk has done 22 years, and is on £22,500k per year – less than a reasonably experienced private.

Forgive me Jim for just using some of your well-written prose on this subject.

I too am a Civil Serpant and think it's devisive, not just within the CS but throughout the MoD as witnessed here by some readers, Surprisingly, quite a lot of MoD CS have actually served in the Forces, a point conveniently ignored by some. I don't get a hard-on equating myself to the Major or Lt Col rank although Mrs Chance would be quite happy for me to bring home their equivalent wage packet as opposed to £350!

The main gripe most in the CS have is that if we were valued by Broon etc, we would be paid a better wage. I couldn't give a flying fukk whether I get a bonus or not although it's nice to have the extra £350 or whatever but I can live without it. If it was treated as part of my annual salary, it would count towards my pension which is nowhere near the sum a soldier gets.

Originally Posted by hackle

Where does the £300M figure in the heading come from? Is it a cross-government figure? I can't see it anywhere in the story. Incidentally I gave a quick interview on this subject on BBC R Scotland this morning, and a separate interview on BBC R Wales on a different subject - for which I may be able to claim one of the first broadcast uses of the term "outrage bus". ;)

Its bonuses since 2003, ie Since Op Telic kicked of

Oil Slick: You talk sh1te

What a remarkably sensible range of view are shown here - mainly due to the very large number of ex-Service personnel employed by the CS (it helps to have a pension,as the money is so rubbishy).

Given the massive media interest in all things military recently, two thoughts spring to mind here:

1. will the media start quoting ARRSE in this case, when almost every comment has been dismissive of this latest scare story? (Hint: I doubt it!)

2. It seems odd that this 'story' has suddenly surfaced again, and in several 'papers, at the same time. How is it that families of dead Soldiers just happened to be asked this? (Odd, eh?)


In short - this is a non-story.

As usual, the press and, in particular, Liam Fox, haven't a bloody scoobie.

They link this to the Nimrod fiasco and lack of kit but can someone tell me what the MoD CS in, for example, the Met Office have to do with this. Here's a good idea. Shut down the Met Office and make them all redundant. That'll save billions, as our aircraft won't be able to fly > won't have to buy any more > close down the RAF ......

They get a £500 non-consolidated, non-pensionable "bonus". So? How much does it cost to administer that scheme given all the forms they have to fill in etc, diverting them from the real task? Say it takes a man-day per CS to submit the claim and decide who gets a bonus. 50% of them don't get anything. That's 40,000 wasted man-days. MoD happily pay consultancy agencies £2k per DAY. Do the math, as they say.

Originally Posted by Norfolknchance

Oil Slick: You talk sh1te

What the fvck are you on about?


Or do you know something about my bonus and leave entitlement this Christmas I don't?