From Donovan Until Now: Britain′s Twenty‐five Years of Incomes Policy

Twenty‐five years on, the Director of Research of Britain′s Royal Commission on Trade Unions and Employers′ Associations (1968) reviews subsequent events in pay and incomes policies, analyses their contemporary relevance, particularly over the need for an“effective incomes policy”. From the starting point of the need for stable internal pay structures, the analysis covers the“cascade effect” of uncontrolled pay drift. Felt‐fair inequities (especially at management levels) are shown as a prime cause of pay inflation and (as a consequence) of high unemployment. Concludes with a four‐point agenda for change which tackles and differentiates the private and public sectors, and concludes with an indictment of performance‐related pay.