Earlier this week TSB announced changes to the pay progression for Grade B members of staff. Those new entry salaries are good news for the small number of newly appointed staff who will benefit from the changes. But what about everyone else in TSB?
The overwhelming majority of Grade B members of staff will not benefit at all from the changes agreed by the TSB appointed unions, Accord and Unite. Accord, rather desperately, called it “Good News Tuesday”. Many long-standing Grade B staff will have spent years in TSB building up their skills and knowledge but that’s not been reflected in their salary increases over the last few years. When it comes to pay, those staff are going backwards and the pay differentials with new staff are being eroded all the time. What is TSB doing for them? Northing? One member of staff said:
“At first it looked good news and seemed everyone was getting a pay rise. I thought at last TSB are recognising the hard work we are doing, but then I looked at what was actually being said and the numbers. From my understanding only staff earning less than £21k will get any increase. The only staff earning less than £21k, in my opinion, are fairly new to the business or staff who were underpaid in the first place. So this is actually a slap in the face for those long serving staff who have stood by TSB through migration. I have been with TSB for years now and won’t receive any increase at all yet someone who joined TSB fairly recently will, in some cases, get a considerable increase. It has taken me years to get to my salary level but it doesn’t seem TSB care about that. I don’t mind anyone getting a pay increase at all and I’m pleased for those who are, but yet again TSB have forgotten about long serving, loyal staff who have stood by TSB through thick and thin, and mostly thin because pay increases have been terrible for years and in some cases non-existent. Most of the long serving staff in my boat now feel really let down and feel like our loyalty, experience and years of service means nothing to TSB. I just thought TBU should know how we are feeling. Like I said good for those getting a rise but what about the rest of us and we are expected to take on more and more so we should be getting something?”
Members will recall that just a few months ago TSB imposed pay increases of just 0.75% for all grades B-F: the lowest pay increases for any staff working in financial services. Accord was so scared of losing the financial support it gets from TSB, that it wouldn’t even say whether it supported the pay increase or not. Even taking into account the minimum increase of £200, all TSB staff received salary increases less than the cost of living. And at the time those pay increases were being agreed, everyone knew that inflation was going to increase even before the salary increases become effective, making the shortfall even worse.
The rate of inflation is currently running at 2.9%, which means that yet again, TSB salaries will be increasing more slowly than the rising cost of the goods and services staff use every day. Is that something to celebrate? No, it’s not. TSB should be reviewing all salaries now.
Members with any questions or further information on this issue should contact the Union’s Advice Team on 01234 716029 (choose Option 1).