Interesting - this was on the Radio 4 News the other night.

Couple of questions (forgive me if they're naive, but I really don't know).

Do you think that people further up the food chain in local government are overpaid?

Would it be worth, in two-tier councils, scrapping the lower level?

On the first point Dave, generally, no. The reality is at director, ceo level good old fashioned market forces dominate and people have to pay a market rate. The tiers below that tend to be professionals, architects, lawyers etc and they aren't particularly well paid either which makes recruitment/retention difficult.

On the second point I don't have any experience of two-tiered local government but my instincts tell me that I would scrap the higher level.

My union stated it was a move in the right direction, well they would, I cannot understand why Unions still think New Labour has anything to do with them except of course the donations at election time.

Robert, I cannot see what you think Labour have got to do with it. The deal was signed under a Conservative Government who gave no commitment to funding it..

as a refuse collector in w-ton under single status our bonus will be scrapped taking home less than 10 grand a year after these savage cuts.We will then work to rule leaving the streets to rot in filth if we have to.We are left with no choice.Nobody will listen or help us as everyone ignores the human cost to our families.Everybody hides behind the equal pay laws and treats refuse collectors like the scum of the earth.Roll on the next election

With reguard to the comment from the angry refuse collector i work with the elderly and if i was to make comments like he had people will be up in arms all the low paid workers want is a fair deal and the money that they are due to other workers have had bonuses paid for years and have never complained about getting them,and what are they getting them for? may i ask lower paid care workers have a harder job with more responsibility and still TEN years later are at the bottom of the food chain Something has to change for us and our families.

Let us not lose focus here. The fault clearly lies with the local governments and bedfellows, the unions.The legislation has been in place since the 70's (Equal Pay Act 1970). Now councils are forced to act on it they are just taking from one employee to give to another. Bonus and incentives were set up by the councils. To suddenly take so much money from one to give to another to make up for their own short-comings is scandalous.
The unions have been useless. They have saved the councils thousands by dragging out the inevitable. When all along the councils just push through with there plans. The council which I work for has seen some female administration workers set to lose £9000. These workers have families,mortgages and bills to pay. Councils can't just slice an employees salary and expect them just to continue working. The end result will be bitter employees or a mass exodus. I agree with equal pay but not to the cost of others.The council set up bonus schemes etc. To cancel these and expect those workers, who rely on a bonus to top up there low wage, to carry on regardless is shocking.

The councils will bulldoze through the single status as they do with most things, with the unions by there side. I am canceling my union membership as when I asked for help and advice it fell on deaf ears. I hope those who set to lose the most in my council find a way to recover.

Aberdeenshire council status is nothing short of a corrupt scam. If you question why the rules regarding the implimentation have been broken we end up facing cowardly bullyboy tactics by corrupt managers. Personnel department shy away from dealing with this due to there incompedence. some of us will be taking the councils to court over the dispicable under hand illegal stunts and lies. Its a sad state of affairs that if you appeal they will downgrade you out of spite. Lying bullying managers use the single status as a tool to victimise staff. Aberdeenshire council single status is called the George Orwells single status "Equal pay, some more equal than others" Abedeenshire councils single staus has nothing to do with equal pay its down to what ever corrupt filthy dispical cowardly bully boy lying scum stunts. I urge everyone to stand up to this corruption and take them to court or employment tribural.

I drive for Calderdale Council (WYorks) Loss of my 'salary 2' is going to cost me about 350 a month.For others it is much worse. We were conned into believing the old bonus had been consolidated into our salary. The arrival of 'single status' has demoralised everyone.Our monthly newsletter just tells us what a caring sensitive organisation we work for, nary a mention of wage cuts. 'Everyone different - everyone matters' they put on our vans, you can guess what we think of that! The unions are a waste of space - but they'll compensate me for my pay cut when I cancel my subscription. Do we pay them to do nothing? I always thought unions served the interests of the members? How naive is that? Working class people are feeling angry and disenfranchised all over this country. Election time is coming and the extremists are making encouraging noises in the wings. People I know are listening to them.They have reason.Labour needs to re-engage with that core vote it has taken for granted for so long, before it is too late.

As a refuse collector in sandwell we struggle on the wage we get at the moment when they take away our bonus we will all work to rule and like our friend in whampton leave the streets in a mess people dont realise what we do they think our job is easy and we finish early i would like anyone to come and have a go for just one day including low paid women who think there equal in the job front.funny how the office have all had a restructure we now have more supervisors than bin wagons and why is it white coller workers can take there pensions and leave before they privatise us give me my pension and i will be happy to leave .we refuse collectors dont care anymore weve been treated like the rubbish we put in the truck for far too long

I work for Sandwell LEA in a primary school - we were promised our single status letters on 1st July - I am still waiting and so are many of my colleagues. The classroom assistants, cleaners and lunchtime supervisors have all had their letters (incidentally - all of them after july 1st!) but admin staff are still kept waiting. School staff were promised their letters first so we could raise any issues with our head teacher - so why are we still waiting?