Continuity and Change: Public Sector Pay Review Bodies, 1992–2003

The recommendations of the public sector Pay Review Bodies, covering 1.5 million public servants and a paybill in excess of £50 billion, has had growing economic and political importance from 1992. This article examines the period from 1992 to February 2003 and demonstrates that the Review Bodies frequently recommended pay increases which were higher than government wanted and, recently, significantly higher than settlements across the economy. On pay reform and pay structure issues, the article explains why the Review Bodies were generally more cautious. The Pay Review Body system now looks likely to take new paths due to the 2003 Agenda for Change agreements in the NHS and the increasing workload of some Review Bodies, which is putting the traditional system under strain.