Council scraps lowest pay grades

City council leaders have done a deal with unions

Liverpool City Council has announced it is scrapping low pay grades as part of its attempts to tackle "poverty pay".

The council said it was the first in Britain to abolish the bottom two pay grades.

The move will mean 3,275 workers - almost all women - will get pay rises of up to £755 a year.

But the union Unison, which has held strike action over low public sector pay, said it did not go far enough.

Workers have gone on strike over low pay

Unison's North West regional organiser Steve Blakesley said: "This pay offer, while a step in the right direction, will not help other low paid workers, such as street cleaners.

"We would like to see it go further than this.

"It is not related at all to our pay claim of 6% and the strike action that has been taken over that in the past."

Glyn Thornton, of the GMB union, said the deal was a "red letter day" and called for other councils to follow Liverpool's lead.

The pay deal means the bottom two grades will be phased out with all workers earning a minimum of £5.14 an hour by 2005.

We are raising the pay of thousands of workers in Liverpool because it's the right and decent thing to do

Councillor Marilyn Fielding

Mainly part-time staff will be affected, including care workers, caretakers, security staff and cleaners.

Liverpool councillor Marilyn Fielding said other local authorities should follow their example.

She added: "It's unacceptable in today's age that people can work hard all week and still struggle to buy shoes for their kids or afford to take a holiday.

"We are raising the pay of thousands of workers in Liverpool because it's the right and decent thing to do."