The Armed Forces Pay Review Body have just released their 48th 2019 report confirming the pay rise.
The Reports states:
”Our central recommendation is that rates of base pay for the main remit group should be increased by 2.9 per cent from 1 April 2019. The key indicators that influenced our recommendation this year are:
• over recent years, some weakening of Armed Forces’ pay relative to the wider economy;
• average earnings growth was at 3.5 per cent and 5.2 per cent for those in continuous employment in the UK;
• 68 per cent of Service personnel in 2018 did not receive any pay increase as a result of incremental progression;
• Consumer Prices Index (CPI) inflation at 1.9 per cent;
• the need to balance our pay recommendation against overall affordability;
• the failure to meet recruitment targets;
• outflow figures, including Voluntary Outflow (VO), remaining at high levels, yet there is a sustained tempo of operations;
• an increase in the deficit in military full-time trained strength;
• further declines in motivation and satisfaction with pay, with pay increasingly being cited as a potential reason for Service personnel to leave; and
• the importance of our pay recommendation as an indication of the ‘value’ of Service personnel.”
