SENSITIZATION WORKSHOP ON THE SINGLE SPINE PAY POLICY ORGANISED BY CIVIL SERVANTS’ ASSOCIATION

VENUE: ERATA HOTEL, EAST LEGON – ACCRA

TO BE FACILITATED BY:

RESOURCE PERSONS FROM THE TECHNICAL COMMITTEE ON CIVIL SERVANTS’ SALARY LEVELS AND OTHER RELATED

ISSUES

FEBRUARY, 2009

PREREQUISITES OF A GOOD SALARY STRUCTURE Internal Equity

How Government, as Employer, values jobs within the public sector in relation to each other while also considering the value of jobs within public sector institutions in relation to each other.

External CompetitivenessWhere the salary structure of the public sector is in comparison to the private sector, also considering where the salary structures of each public sector institution is in relation with each other.

AffordabilityThe structure must be affordable to the Employer and can not exceed what they can afford to pay.

SimplicityThose whose salaries will be established by the structure must be able to understand it.

TransparencyThe structure must be able to be administered in a straightforward and transparent manner with established guidelines.

FlexibilityThe structure must be flexible enough to accommodate changes, when needed, without redoing the entire structure.

DecompressionThe structure should be sufficiently decompressed to recognize and compensate for the difference in job content from the lowest to the highest levels of the structure.

Advantages: enables those with special skills to be recognized and rewarded Disadvantages: The greater the decompression the greater the gap between the highest and the lest paid worker

DIFFERENT TYPES OF SALARY STRUCTURES IN THE PUBLIC SERVICE

- ‘A’ Range Salary Structurei.e. A1 – A130later A1 – A154

- Ghana Universal Salary Structure (GUSS)

22 Levelsi.e. level 1 – level 22

CS – GUSS GES – GUSS

-

Other Salary Structures Used by some subvented

organizations:-

e.g. Ghana Broadcasting Corporation,

NAFTI, Ghana Tourist Board Ghana News Agency

A’ RANGE SALARY STRUCTUREMode of Construction

Define the minimum point Add Different absolute numbers at various

points on the structure

- Institutions using the ‘A’ Ranges

e.g. Ghana Police Force

Prison Service

Fire Service etc.

Limitations of the ‘A’ Range

Step increments are in absolute terms and result in lower percentage increases for those on higher levels.

Increments do not take account of those in higher tax brackets.

- Was the ‘A’ Range a Single Spine?

THE GHANA UNIVERSAL SALARY STRUCTURE

Mode construction Institutions on the Guss Advantages of Guss How does the Guss become

a single spine structure?

PRINCIPLES UNDERLYING THE SINGLE SPINE PAY POLICYEquity

- Transparency

- Participation

- Improvement in level of salary

- No worker to be worse off

- Reducing time for Negotiations

Conversion onto the Single Spine Pay Structure (SSPS) would be based on the grading structure or classification.

- Total compensation package for public sector workers.

What happens to allowances and other benefits?

POLICY FORMULATION

The Points to note in the Single Spine Policy Formulation

are as follows:

1. Single Spine Policy as an Agenda Discussions with stakeholders 2004 –

2005

2. Development of the Single Spine Structure

Principles underlying the spine Job Descriptions

Job EvaluationService ClassificationsPreparation of Reports on

the Single Spine Pay Policy- Job evaluation- Classification- Single Spine salary structure excluding actual figures

Submission of final Report by the Consultant

4. Submission of Cabinet Memorandum to the Executive

5. Stakeholders’ comments

6. Acceptance of Amended version

7. Negotiations with Unions/Associations

on:-

(a) the increments within the structure

(b) the minimum pay that should be accepted for the …..

(c) allowances that would continue to be paid

(d) principles that should underline the conversion on the Single Spine Pay Structure.

Conversion onto the Single Spine Pay Structure

9. Test – Run of the Conversion10.Process of dealing with

implementation problems.

End of PresentationThank you