Maximum Wage to end short term bonus culture

Today Plaid became the first political party to back calls for a maximum wage.

A motion put to the Plaid party Conference in Llandudno will seek to bring about an end to the short term target culture that has contributed heavily to the current economic crisis in Britain.

The maximum wage motion, put forward by Plaid’s Westminster MPs, would ensure a greater balance between the amount paid to high earners and that paid to ordinary staff.

The move also comes following a timely call from the chairman of Goldman Sachs, Lloyd Blankfein, to ban multi-year guaranteed bonuses throughout the banking industry.

Plaid MPs have worked with leading think tank Compass to launch a campaign calling for a High Pay Commission. The establishment of such a body would examine the issues which led to the crisis in the financial sector and relating to excessive pay of executives in public and private companies.

Plaid’s Adam Price MP said:

“The differentials in pay between staff in successful economies such as Sweden are significantly lower than those in the UK and other countries that adhere to the Anglo-American model. It is important in setting out a long term approach to dealing with the recession and stabilising the economy that this imbalance is addressed.

“Passing this motion through Conference today has really highlighted how forward thinking Plaid is. Establishing a High Pay Commission could mean a ground-breaking change in the banking culture and proves that Plaid is in tune with key industry figures and widespread public opinion who are feeling the real impact of the recession bought about by this reckless culture. Gordon Brown’s government is meanwhile playing catch-up and failing to take decisive action to address such unfair practises.

“The motion is designed to tackle the culture of reckless quick fix practices. Instead of bonuses being paid on short term results it will establish the principal of long term development and growth being rewarded.

“Those rewards should also be shared amongst all members of society and not just the privileged few.”

Gavin Hayes, General Secretary of Compass added:

“It is fantastic that Plaid Cymru have adopted a ‘maximum wage’ policy as part of their manifesto. The Compass YouGov polling on attitudes to high pay released earlier this week confirms the public also want tougher action to curb excessive pay - with 63% support for a High Pay Commission which would consider ideas such as a maximum wage.

“It’s also clear that the British people don't just want rhetoric from politicians they demand concrete action, it is therefore a positive step that Plaid Cymru have shown boldness in adopting this policy and it’s high time the other parties caught up.”

(Cab Office) Britain's professions becoming more socially exclusive

INDEPENDENT PANEL PUBLISHES FIRST REPORT ON ACCESS TO THE PROFESSIONS

The Panel on Fair Access to the Professions, led by Alan Milburn MP, has today published a first research paper highlighting key trends and issues in access to the Professions.

The report identifies where progress had been made to widen access to professions such as law, medicine, media, publishing, Civil Service and banking for young people but also identifies where barriers still exist.

The research report finds that many of Britain's professions have become more socially exclusive and that, as a consequence, bright children from average income families, not just those from more disadvantaged backgrounds, are missing out on a professional career.

Amongst its key findings the report says:

* Over half of professional occupations like law and finance are currently dominated by people from independent schools which are attended by just 7% of the population

* 75% of judges and 45% of top civil servants were independently schooled

* A typical professional born in 1958 came from a family which earned 17% more than the average family income; but by 1970 the family income gap between those who went on to pursue a professional career and the average family had risen to 27% with journalism and accountancy seeing the biggest rise

* Lawyers who were born in 1970 grew up in families 64% above the average family's income and for doctors the figure was 63%

* By contrast the teaching, academic and cultural professions saw a decline in numbers who had grown up in families with above average incomes

The report stresses that this data reflects entry to the Professions as it was in previous decades. It also stresses the social pattern may be changing as recent evidence suggests that the link between family background and levels of educational attainment is being weakened. In addition many professions have taken action to address access issues and the report points to progress, for example, on narrowing the pay gap between male and female professionals.

Panel Chair, the Rt. Hon. Alan Milburn MP said:

"This research report is in an important piece of work that will give the Panel a solid basis for making our recommendations. It shows that, whilst progress has been made, there is still a long way to go to ensure that all young people get a fair crack of the whip when it comes to pursuing a professional career.

"It is shocking that despite the best efforts of many professions they seem to have become more not less socially exclusive.

"Bright children from middle class families as well as those from poorer backgrounds are missing out on top professional jobs.

"Many professions are working hard to put this right but their efforts need to be intensified.

"Both the Professions and the Government have to do more to widen the talent pool if Britain is to recruit the estimated 7 million new professionals we will need by 2020."

The research report identifies five key entry steps where support can be targeted:

1. Young people's aspirations: Only 1 in 5 young people from average backgrounds and 1 in 8 young people from poorer backgrounds currently aspire to be a professional. This compares to 2 in 5 young people whose parents are already in the Professions.

2. Careers and development support for young people: 7 in 10 young people are unhappy with the careers support they receive, whether through Connexions or schools.

3. Work experience in the Professions: Over 9 in 10 young people who have been interns say that it helped raise their aspirations and improved their CV, and 4 in 5 employers recruit former interns. However, a disproportionate number of internships are in London and the South East.

4. Recruitment & Selection: 7 in 10 of the top graduate employers target only 20 of the 1

67 UK universities.

5. Flexible routes for entry and progression: There has been a long term decline in the non-graduate routes into the Professions. Today, only 27 of the Times Top 100 Employers accept alternative entry routes, such as non-graduate entry.

The Fair Access Panel was commissioned by the Prime Minister to review the processes and structures that govern recruitment into the professions, and make recommendations to both the Government and the Professions on action that will improve access for all.

The Panel will publish a further report summarising evidence from professional bodies and other stakeholders, including from the Panel's national Call for Evidence, before it makes its final recommendations in the early summer.