The chief executive of Somerset Council and his most senior officers will all receive a backdated pay increase following councillors’ approval.
Pay rates for chief executives and senior officers at local authorities are set by the National Joint Council for Local Government Services, in line with the ‘Green Book’ guidelines laid out by the Treasury.
The joint council reached agreement on July 23rd for a one-year pay increase of 3.2 per cent (below the current rate of inflation), which will be backdated to April 1st.
The pay awards for each individual will be backdated to April 1st, 2025 and there will be no further pay review until March 31st, 2026 at the earliest.
Within its annual budget (set in February), the council had budgeted for a two per cent increase for the chief executive, executive directors and service directors – which would cost the equivalent of £83,600 to implement.
The cost of a 3.2 per cent pay increase will be £121,400 – with the outstanding £37,800 being funded from the council’s reserves.
As of April 1st, 2024 (the most recent figures available), Mr Sharkey was earning £206,870 a year – meaning his new salary will be within the region of £213,500 a year.
Executive directors’ salaries in April 2024 range from £132,225 to £153,750 – meaning the highest paid of these officers will now earn up to £158,670 a year.
The council’s senior directors earned between £102,500 and £120,950 a year as of April 2024 – meaning the highest paid among them will now earn just over £124,000 per annum.
Because Somerset Council has currently opted out of national pay negotiations for chief executives, these salary increases had to be approved by an extraordinary meeting of the council’s human resources committee in Taunton on Tuesday morning (September 9).
Michelle Anderson, the council’s employer relations manager for HR policy and practice, told the committee: “The pay award is in relation to a cost of living payment – we don’t operate a performance-related pay award.”
Councillor Sarah Wakefield, portfolio holder for adults’ services, housing and homelessness, said it was “excessive” that a special meeting had needed to be held to rubber-stamp this decision.
She said: “It’s not a huge award, quite frankly. It might be different if they were saying everybody had to have a ten per cent increase, and we thought that was too much.”
The committee unanimously approved the pay increase, reports the local democracy reporting service.
