GIVING the civil service a pay rise of between 9.76 and 10.66 per cent may seem mean to the civil service unions, whose previous pay awards have also been below their own expectations. But it will seem perfectly justified to the rest of the community,whose salaries and wages are decided by the market. Talk of ''fireworks'' will elicit as little public sympathy as last year's empty strike threats.
The unions argue the Government owes them back pay. Because the results of the pay trend survey, on which their salary increases are based, were trimmed over several years, they are now claiming an additional 3.5 per cent to make up for lost ground. Few private sector employees would expect back pay. The more fortunate might hope to share in the success of their company in a good year. But others may have to accept pay cuts or lose their jobs if the company founders.
There are good reasons to ensure civil service pay and conditions remain attractive. It would be a mistake for the Government to reduce officials' financial and social standing relative to the private sector to the point where it becomes impossible to attract new talent or keep existing staff. This year the Government has indeed returned to the pay-trends yardstick and is not allowing relative pay to erode further.
However, an award of back pay would fuel an inflationary wage spiral. The Patten administration seems less determined to stamp hard on inflation than its predecessor. Civil servants are not being asked to tighten their belts for the fourth year running. But they are expected to understand it is healthier not to regain the weight lost in their enforced diet of the past three years.
