Will Hutton asked to probe charity pay gaps by Unite
19th May 2010
Will Hutton, the head of the new public sector pay inquiry, is
being asked to investigate glaring pay differentials in the not for
profit sector, by Unite.
Unite - the largest union in the country with 60,000 members in
the voluntary sector - said there are organisations where chief
executives have exceeded the 20:1 ratio in pay, even though their
organisations are heavily dependent on statutory sources of
income.
Last year, Unite highlighted the case of Anchor Trust's then
chief executive, John Belcher, whose pay was £391,000 in 2008/09,
while many of his employees, running homes for the elderly, were
struggling on wages just above the national minimum wage.
Rachael Maskell, Unite national officer, not for profit sector,
has now written to Will Hutton, the executive vice-chairman of the
Work Foundation, asking for an investigation into those charities
receiving statutory funding.
She said: ”Unite would like to know if your work will extend to
organisations in receipt of statutory funding sources.
”And if so, we would very much want to highlight the problems
experienced in the sector, especially in the light of this
government’s determination to make wider use of the sector for the
delivery of public services.”
She said that it was known that pay in the charity sector was 21
per cent below that of the private sector, and in London, that
disparity rose to 24 per cent.
”We also know that only 19 per cent of organisations have carried
out any form of equal pay audit, suggesting that there are
inequalities in organisations resourced from statutory sources.
”We are also aware of some organisations, that are again heavily
dependent on statutory sources and have been paying below the
national minimum pay rate for elements of employees’ work, for
instance in residential care.”
Recent Unite research revealed that more than 90 per cent of
voluntary sector staff felt their well-being was being undermined
due to the financial crisis facing charities.
ENDS
Notes for editors:
For further information, please ring: Rachael Maskell, national
officer, community and not profit sector 020 7420 8979 or 07768
693933 or Doug Nicholls, national officer, community and youth
workers sector 07970 345381or Shaun Noble, communications officer
(third sector) 020 74208951 or 07768 693940.
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