Public sector pay moved to the frontline in the battle over economic management this week, after council employers warned staff to expect 0.5% rises, and senior Conservatives challenged Whitehall's 'excessive' multi-year settlements. Local Government Employers published its formal pay offer for 2009/10 on 6 April, offering 0.5% at a time when RPI inflation is zero per cent. The Unite union dismissed the offer as 'deplorable', while Unison warned its members were 'struggling to make ends meet' during the recession. Heather Wakefield, Unison's head of local government, claimed 'most local authorities budgeted for an increase of between 1.5% and 2%'. But LGE sources said town halls had been forced to recalculate budgets as the recession took hold.
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