The team provides strategic development, advice and guidance on workforce issues, undertakes pay bargaining and reward for all employee groups in the local government family.

Spokesperson

The Resources Spokesperson is Councillor Katie Hagmann.

Main policy areas

• Securing affordable and sustainable pay settlements across Scottish local government
• Developing progressive solutions to pay and reward that value, motivate and appropriately reward staff within an affordable cost envelope
• Working to ensure that councils’ employment policies, pay and grading structures, and working practices deliver equality of opportunity and are free of bias, and respond to legislative developments
• Supporting initiatives that add value for councils through a modern and progressive workforce, including shared services
• Helping councils respond effectively to the structural, financial and demographic challenges they face by addressing critical workforce issues
• Positioning Scottish local government as an employer of choice
• Supports effective and efficient governance of the Local Government and Teachers Pension Schemes

Team Functions

The team negotiates salaries, wages and conditions of service for local government employees in Scotland, and deals with industrial relations and employee development issues for all 32 Scottish local authorities. The team develops the national strategic framework for pay, pensions and employment contract activity, while working to develop employee motivation and skills, and promote Scottish local government as an employer of choice.

The Employers' Organisation plays a pivotal role in enabling the strategic leadership, planning, intelligence gathering, and negotiation processes needed to develop a modern, flexible workforce, and to ensure that the overall pay bill is managed in affordable and sustainable ways. That work also includes helping local government address funding issues, while ensuring that employees are fairly remunerated and treated, and that services are delivered.

Advisors

The team works closely with councils and a range of professional bodies such as the Society of Personnel and Development Scotland (SPDS), the Society of Local Authority Chief Executives (SOLACE) and the Association of Directors of Education in Scotland (ADES).

Subscribe to the 2019-2020 Employers’ Function Website

The Employers' Organisation operates a subscription based website which provides councils and external bodies who have subscribed to the website with comprehensive information and guidance on employment issues, pay, and conditions of service for each group of employees in the local government family.

Whether you are working in the third or voluntary sector, an NDPB, an independent school or another organisation that applies local government terms and conditions, this website provides access to as much information as you need, as often as you want.

With unprecedented levels of changes taking place across the workforce, there has never been a more important time to ensure that your organisation has all the information it needs to manage its people effectively. Our database covers all employee groups in the local government family, and gives you access to an unrivalled range of information, including:

• Every circular and related guidance issued through the national collective bargaining process
• All the latest information on pay scales, allowances and cost of living changes
• Downloadable employment handbooks for every staff group in the local government family
• Employers Guidance providing information on new or complex employment issues such as family leave, retirement and TUPE
• A point of contact in COSLA to help you interpret and manage associated employment issues in your organisation

Registered users can access the Employers website here.