Results from the United Kingdom’s annual Public Service People Survey show staff engagement at a new high as officials worked on responding to the COVID-19 pandemic and making good the UK’s departure from the European Union (Brexit).
The twin challenges placed heavy demands on digital and data professionals, with key Brexit programs, such as the EU Settlement Scheme and new arrangements for the UK border, relying heavily on major new IT infrastructure.
The pandemic required the urgent construction of a range of new tools and services, such as the National Health Service COVID-19 contact-tracing app.
The People Survey data, which was given an unusually low-key release by the Cabinet Office, also showed pay satisfaction among Public Servants at its highest level in the survey’s 12-year history when responses were submitted in October and early November last year.
While the closing date for responses came three weeks before Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak confirmed a 12-month pay freeze on all but the lowest-paid Government employees, Mr Sunak had been warning of the need for pay restraint for several months at the time of the survey.
The proportion of Public Servants who felt their pay adequately reflected their performance rose to 40 per cent, up from 34 per cent the previous year.
The figures also showed a sharp rise in aspects of diversity among Public Service leaders and managers, with rapid growth in the proportion of ethnic minority and disabled officials.
They showed that 9.1 per cent of senior professionals were from an ethnic minority background in 2020, an increase of almost three percentage points (from 6.3 per cent) from 2019.
Representation of people with a disability among senior officers also improved sharply, from 5.1 per cent in 2019 to 7.3 per cent in 2020.
London, 14 May 2021
