Review of top civil servant salaries
Tuesday 22nd February 2011, 2:59PM GMT.
Senator Ben Shenton.
A REVIEW will be held into pay in the top echelons of Jersey’s civil service following last week’s revelations about the new Hospital director’s £216,000-a-year contract.
The review, which will be undertaken by the States’ independent spending watchdog, has been requested by the Public Accounts Committee and follows the shock expressed at Hospital director Andrew McLaughlin’s £216,000-a-year deal.
In a statement issued this morning, committee chairman Senator Ben Shenton said that there was a need to balance the priorities of recruiting high-calibre staff and ensuring value for money.
And he said that with several high-profile appointments coming up – including a replacement for Jersey’s top civil servant, Bill Ogley, who will leave his post in May – it was important to be sure that the right processes were in place.
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What a waste of money to have a review. Shenton should be ashamed of himself.
We need to pay market rates if we want quality candidates. Simple.
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Ben, Not only what are they paid, but what do they all do.
Too many protecting high salaries. Also, notwithstanding the 5 year residency rule most are UK imports. Time to terminate a few post at the end of their 5 year term.
Think local, employ local.
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If indeed there is a review into the pay of Senior Civil Servants then top of the list surely must be the totally obscene wage paid to Mr. Izatt head of Waterfront Enterpise Board.
I believe he receives something in the region of £270,000 annually, plus a bonus of £20,000 plus a £30,000 housing allowance.
Perhaps someone can tell me what the bonus is for? and the £600 a week housing allowance!, for being in charge of the ugliest Waterfront imaginable.
What exactly does this guy do?
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This is not new Ben,why has it taken all this and so long ..this has been an issue for ages…. but now the head is being taken off the snake…let’s make hay and you politicians regain control…
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Whilst I see the need to occasionally bring in external expertise we do not need to pay them more than the UK prime Minister. Time also to make the current overpaid underworked bunch work a bit harder for their crust and be more accountable!!!!
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Value for money is the very last thing the public of this island recieves from it’s top civil servants.Story after story of serious failings costing millions but no one is ever to blame.Our “no blame” culture must be a paradise to work in.
And a STATES SPENDING WATCHDOG!!! Where has this dog been for the last three decades.Who makes up this “watching dog”, what are their credentials and what makes them INDEPENDANT? I get a strong vibe of “nice doggy, good doggy, sittttt.
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Real Truthseeker (1) We need to pay market rates if we want quality candidates. Simple.
A ha! Is that why you are not one of the select few? Explains a lot. Go on get down of your perch and stop bleating and let the big boys like Ben sort out the current mess.
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good for you ben and good luck, i hope you get the support you require.
come election time , you will get my vote.
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Low salaries = mediocrity. If you want top flight talent you have to pay competitive salaries.
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Can anyone explain why we have no succession policy implemented ..it was promised..ask any goood H.R. person and they will tell.you…too many have come here then used influence to row their mates in or their own subordinates as power base building is what gets their priority..and we mugs pay for it…needs to stop and proper management structure implemented.let’s be rid of this Ready, fire ,aim approach
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Real Truthseeker # 1. You are a wind up merchant. If these high ranking executives got paid for results or what they actually do, they’d be blooming paupers……you know that as well as the rest of us do. You are just trying to stir things up you machiavellian rascal
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#6 The issue is lack of political will, with the dreaded ‘face off’ which would inevitably come with the unions, not the apparent lack of independence of the Committee. Unfortunately it’s not just the ‘top tier’ who are overpaid.
Maybe if you attended the PAC meetings you would see how much the unpaid independent members added.
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Is Ben the only person on The Accounts Committee ?
I dont think he is, isnt there some lay people ? and other politicals ? but Shenton, he does like the attention
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About time.
Why does it take so long to see what is really going on and for someone to do something about it????
We have over 550 top civil servants earning £44 million!!! of taxpayers money. Our money!!!
This is unacceptable.
Real trusthseeker …. get a life.
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“Low salaries = mediocrity. If you want top flight talent you have to pay competitive salaries.”
Really?
What a depressing and negative view you seem to have of people and work.
I can think of many people in academic life, the judiciary and politics who could earn far greater salaries outside their chosen fields.
If you make money the measure of all things, do you not become a pauper in life?
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#1:Real Truthseeker: I’ve got a rusty Robin Reliant for sale, £100,000. It’s expensive so it’s good. Simple.
I’m finding it hard not to come to the conclusion that RT’s on the payroll and just employed to populate forums/the media with opinions that the government would want us to hold. Won’t be the first time this has happened.
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We keep being given the “if we want the best brains we must pay market rates” bit. However, we keep paying well above market rates for candidates whose achievements are no where near as good as those realised when the Island was run by honorary politicians without interference from UK experts.
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Perhaps they should look at the Police while they are at it.. In these times of austerity, cut backs and job losses why do the Police need to now have two superintendents and four chief inspectors (from one and two respectively). If you stand outside the Savoy you can see one of the former hard at work watching the sport on his telly
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10 Zoro – Can anyone explain why we have no succession policy implemented ..it was promised..ask any goood H.R. person and they will tell.you…too many have come here then used influence to row their mates in or their own subordinates as power base building is what gets their priority..and we mugs pay for it…needs to stop and proper management structure implemented.let’s be rid of this Ready, fire ,aim approach
Careful my friend you are wondering close to that forbidden terrotory known as the truth. Indeed why is there no sucession policy, not just in senior management state employed positions but in finance also. Many ( not all ) of our banks simply bring in UK people to occupy positions without any intention for them to train a local replacement. I’ve seen this throughout my time at the bank, some of these people come here having already had 5 years on the gravy train in the Isle of Man. They then get an unlimited J cat and have 10 years paying no rent living in Jersey, if they like it they stay qualifying for local residential status after 10 years during which they have not trained a local replacement.
Others simply move on to another juristiction such as Geneva, Gibralatar, Guernsey and continue their playboy lifestyles. It begs the question what precisely is it that these people do that is so complex that it can’t be taught to a local replacement during a 5 year period.
Bring back a time limit on J cats, not unlimited, ensure that they have a named replacement due to be trained before contract is signed. Stop giving ludicrous housing allowances ( I know of one senior exec given £65,000 a year to rent a house )Put in place a policy that ensures that we only recruit externally when no local candidate is available. When we do recruit a non local they are here for a set time limit and train a local replacement. We scrutinise all J cat applications and allow only those that can prove categorically that the position is essential and a local candidate is not available.
This system has been abused for far too long.
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PACMan # 12. Do I detect a hint of jealousy? The salaries in Jersey are higher than in the U.K. due to the fact the cost of living is that much more.
I can recall in the mid 80s the then Preisdent of Defence, Dick Shenton – Ben’s dad – wanted to pay the police less than they were then getting. He arranged for a management consultancy company to come in and review the job, to see what technical skills were needed and what the role involved. He believed this would give him the information that would enable him to cut the police wage bill. In the end exactly the opposite occurred and the police were given a payrise.
When they took into consideration the high cost of housing and the higher cost of living in Jersey, it was calculated that officers in the island weren’t in real terms, any better off than their counterparts in the U.K.
Bear in mind at the time officers in the U.K. had a rent allowance, which helped them pay their mortgages, whereas in the U.K. they didn’t have this scheme.
I imagine it’s much the same with other States jobs. There are pros and cons involved.
I now live in the U.K. and still work in the public sector, yet my salary is far less than it was in Jersey – my responsiblities are also far less. Housing is far far cheaper and there is a lot more choice as to where I buy my groceries, so I can save a lot of money. I’d say on average I can save between 20% to 25% compared to Jersey.
I tend to agree however with Dungbeetle – those in the higher echelons are perhaps paid a little too much and this is not necessarily commensurate with their skills and abilities.
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Woops – re: rent allowances – I meant they didn’t have this scheme in Jersey. I must get someone else to edit my accounts….failing eyesight I am afraid….age doesn’t come by itself
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A review??
I’m sure it would take no longer than an hour to get this information…then how do you review it??
No doubt this will cost in excess of £200k of OUR money.
I am in shock at how much money PUBLIC money these idiots continue to waste…
We need some new politicians that actually aren’t multi millionaires looking after there friends interests and hopefully they can start doing the best by Jersey.
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Figures from Gov. accounts 2009. 2010 will cost more if golden hand shakes are not itemised but hidden in departments budgets.
£327.490,000 ( yes that is 327 million ) public sector wage bill including pension and social security contributions.
Put into basic terms, divide Jerseys wage bill above by the amount of people approx 90,000 costs each man women and child £3,633 in tax, just to pay public sector wages.
Put another way, an island of 45 square miles, costs £7,250,000 per square mile in wages to run a year.
This is not sustainable by a working population of around 46,000 and dropping. The public sector wage bill has spiralled completely out of control. It is not helped by Ministers, not reining back, but awarding, bonuses, large wage packets to a never ending stream of new managers, and overpaid bosses of quango’s.
These are exactly the areas that the UK Government are looking to reduce and terminate.
Page 44 at
http://www.gov.je/SiteCollectionDocuments/Government%20and%20administration/R%20FinancialReportAccounts%202009%20SH.pdf
Tim South.
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With regard to “imported” senior managers, I always wonder why they would be upping sticks in their own UK areas. Maybe their “sell by” has come up?
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24 SW1 –
With regard to “imported” senior managers, I always wonder why they would be upping sticks in their own UK areas. Maybe their “sell by” has come up?
In my experience it’s because they can rent out their UK homes whilst living rent free in Jersey. For those that stay for a protracted period they can save enough money that hasn’t been spent on rent locally and when their 10 year J cat qualifying period is up buy a local property, still retaining their rented out UK property.
Oh and of course still not having trained a local replacement.
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In response to 13;
The current Members of the PAC are: Senator Ben Shenton (Chairman) Senator Alan Breckon (Vice-Chariman), Senator Jim Perchard, Deputy John Le Fondré, and non-States Members Kevin Keen, Martin Magee and Alex Fearn.
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Shenton is right to question the obscene pay awards to the senior civil service spongers but he is wrong to have waited till the election year to do it. He has had five and a half years to do something about it and nothing has changed, in fact it’s got worse. It’s part of the populist pre-election campaign that one or two of our media friendly senators are engaging in.
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tim south(23)
thanks for the post, makes me wonder.
but would say it makes me fume .
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While there is sense paying top $$ for talent it is fair to say we have lurched from one disaster to another apparently doing exactly that. Now there is a review with the possibility of paying less and attracting worse; not necessarily my view but it has to be a possibility. Maybe the best outcome could be achieved by taking a fresh look at the selection process. Pay the right money to the right candidates – learn from our mistakes.
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Why is the truth always termed here as jealousy?
No one is jealous, just angry at the waste that is till prevalent in the states.
We are paying for it.
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We pay, they reap, and then we pay some more, times over, because the reapers don’t care about us smaller people AND are completely incompetent anyway. (As in Ancient Rome) …Hey, why not bring back slavery and the Colosseum!!?? …Just for their amusement, yes, sounds like a plan! – And we won’t have to get paid!! “I love this” “I love this”
)
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How about the latest proposed appointment for Taxpayers to cough up £2,000–00 A day…!! that’s right 2k a day for Baroness Margaret Ford to chair the states development company sitting round a table with Izatt and co. another quango I view with deep suspicion who already have managed to secure way to much power…given the outrageous wages burden recently revealed,it might be interesting to note that Frank walker’s political spawn P.Ozouf came up with this one, the woman is also chair of the Olympic park legacy co.in effect decides what happens to the property goodies when the games are over..anyone remember what happened after the public had paid for the O2 Arena, sold for a pittance,Quango’s are known for securing projects with the Taxpayers money and then the dealing begins.. now here’s a thing,the Baroness is also chair of Irvine Bay regeneration co,in Scotland, who have just sold a huge amount of coastal primesite up there,.now given how developers are currently raping our island, No..? Look at the hideous development and ruination of Portelet..and it seems so easy to slide these things past Freddie and the dreamers at Planning,in a decade the place could look like Benidorm..question is folks do we want our island to stay looking a place of natural beauty or are we happy to have it ruined…we are the people ..it is up to us what we allow, who you vote for this autumn has never been so important,Alan Breckon please keep an eye on all this manoeuvering.
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Stop advertising our jobs in the UK. There is plenty of talent on this island. But when you get heads of States departments refusing to believe that the skills are here its very difficult to change this attitude.
Jersey has skilled people, use them.
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Cut their wages Jersey can’t afford this luxury anymore.
Zoro very insightfull.
No doubt the rabid right wing establishment supporter, of 101 avatars, will be giving some more fluff on how grand they are.
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32 Zoro – You’re right on target. Ozouf’s proposal to employ Baroness Margaret Ford to head the new States Development Company is quite outrageous.
Having so spectacularly failed as chairman of the Olympic Park Legacy Company, where on God’s earth did he get the idea that this woman could possibly possess any idea of what this Islands and its people could need in terms of vision and development? Not to mention the £80K for 40 days attendance -including a free lunch no doubt…
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no 32. Interesting you should mention the O2 arena. Do you know who the chairwoman of the organisation (English Partnership)responsible for the disposal was?
I really don’t think a fiesty, politically savvy scottish socialist is the correct person to chair the JDC.
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