Well,
well, well.
For
the first time that I can remember, staff at the ICO are striking for two days
in protest over their pay rates, which are apparently lower than those for
equivalent jobs in the civil service, often by several thousand pounds per
year. What I do know is that the pay of many staff significantly increases when
they transfer to the private sector to deal with privacy issues from the
perspective of the data controller, rather than the regulator.
The
people I meet that work at the ICO are clever, sophisticated, and knowledgeable
about the law. They are also realistic about how the law works in practice.
Many are also battle weary. It can’t be an easy job, facing what must often
appear to be a tusamni of dreary news, of battles yet to be fought, and lack of
much positive feedback from individuals and organisations that are grateful for
the advice and assistance that has been supplied.
I
do accept, of course, that I have only met a small proportion of the ICO’s staff.
In
my lifetime, the world of work has changed. Jobs are no longer for life. Job
mobility is here to stay. The fact that we love our job is no longer a reason
for an employer to feel obliged to continue to employ us. The mindset at work
has to change.
But
this works both ways.
As
employers recalibrate the relationship they have with their workers, staff are
also free to consider their own positions. Indeed, they need to take a greater
degree of control over their careers.
Staff
that are unhappy in their current roles should seriously consider leaving them.
Employers,
in these awful financial times, are less inclined to offer pay rises simply
because staff want more money. What is more pressing is the cost of a
replacement employee. If high calibre candidates are only available at a higher
cost, then market forces should raise the salaries available to suitable staff.
If
the impending “Diregulation” finally makes its way through the European
parliamentary institutions, then staff with different sets of skills may be
required at the ICO, as the regulator’s role will undoubtedly change.
So,
pay rates within ICO teams will continue to differ. And not everyone in every
team will receive the same type of bonus – or annual increase, for that matter.
If
there is a (relatively) silver lining to this unhappy state of affairs, I
understand that staff within the Ministry of Justice, the ICO’s sponsoring
department, probably feel even more unhappy about their lot than those plucky
folk in Wilmslow.
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