Suggestions that home workers pay should be reduced on account of the fact that those who work from home don't incur the costs of commuting, have been dismissed as illogical.
Home Workers Pay
Earlier this weeks, the Daily Mail reported that a 'senior Cabinet minister' had told them that civil service home workers pay should be cut. The Cabinet minister stated: "People who have been working from home aren't paying their commuting costs so they have had a de facto pay rise, so that is unfair on those who are going into work...If people aren't going into work, they don't deserve the terms and conditions they get if they are going into work."
The Cabinet minister reportedly added that workers should be "keen to get back to normal" and that: "I think people who want to get on in life will go into the office because that's how people are going to succeed."
Nevertheless, the Government has been quick to dismiss the aforementioned Cabinet ministers suggestion. The Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, Kwasi Kwarteng, told BBC Radio 4 that: "I think flexible working is something that is here to stay...I think it's up to employers and employees to come to their own arrangements, depending on the needs of the company, the needs of the business. I don't think it makes sense to have a government diktat telling people exactly how many hours they're going to spend in the office and exactly how many hours they're going to spend at home."
Moreover, a Downing Street spokesperson added that they had no plans to reduce home workers pay. The spokesperson stated: "No. We have no plans for that approach."
Illogical
New research conducted by Factorial in response to the suggestions that home workers pay should be reduced has shown that had average pay kept pace with the increasing cost of train fares, then average pay would be £6,000.00 higher than it is today. This is because train fares have increased by 44% over the last 11 years, whereas average pay has increased by only 18%. Had average pay increased by 44%, then it would now be £711.00 per week, not the £586.00 that it is now.
Reacting to the research, the CEO of Factorial, Bernat Farrero, stated: "There is clearly a disparity between the cost of commuting and the average wage, which is why calls for remote workers to be docked wages are as unfair as they are illogical. Only looking at the past 10 years, and only the cost of a train ticket, we can see how the cost of commuting has grown exponentially compared to the average wage. This is even without considering the extra costs of home working, such as heating and office equipment."
Nevertheless, not everyone commutes by train, and this example is not reflective of what the average increase in commuting has been over the last 11 years across the board. Moreover, petrol and diesel prices are roughly the same now, as they were in 2013. Accordingly, those commuting by car will be spending no more on fuel costs now, compared with 2013. Furthermore, many workers either cycle or walk to work.
A 2019 report by Lloyds Bank found that the average annual cost of commuting back in 2019, just prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, was £795.72.
Moreover, as we highlighted in a previous article, new research has shown that hybrid working has led to an increase in productivity.
Reaction To Suggestion That Home Workers Pay Should Be Reduced
Responding the Cabinet ministers suggestion that civil service home workers pay should be reduced, the general secretary of the trade union, the FDA (formerly The Association of First Division Civil Servants), Dave Penman, stated: "Civil servants will be appalled by these quotes from a minister not brave enough to put their name to them. Whilst civil servants deliver key services in the most extraordinary of circumstances, some ministers appear more interested in creating a phoney war for cheap headlines."
