Almost 400 States of Guernsey employees are earning at least twice the island’s median salary, according to new figures.
Released yesterday afternoon in response to questions from Deputy David Goy (pictured top), the data shows that 389 States-funded roles are paid £85,000 or more, at a time when median earnings in Guernsey stand at £42,672 – meaning those staff earn double, or more than double, what a typical islander takes home.
The figures were published as part of a formal written response from the Policy & Resources Committee, which was asked to set out how many senior or leadership roles fall above the £85,000 threshold and where they sit across government.
Taken together, the combined annual base salary bill for these 389 roles is £43.4 million, accounting for 12% of the States’ total annual payroll, according to the response.
Where do the highest earners sit?
The largest concentration of roles earning more than £85,000 is within Health & Social Care, which accounts for 88 posts above that level.
This is followed by:
- Corporate Services (82 roles)
- Education, Sport & Culture (65 roles)
- St James’ Chambers (34 roles)
- States Trading Supervisory Board entities (30 roles)
- Policy & Resources (29 roles)
Smaller numbers are spread across Home Affairs, Economic Development, Environment & Infrastructure and other service areas.
The data also shows that 62 individuals earn more than £140,000, while a further 52 earn between £120,000 and £140,000, and 101 are paid between £100,000 and £120,000.
More than just politicians and top managers
The Committee stressed that these figures do not relate solely to traditional ‘top management’ roles.
Instead, they include staff appointed at Senior Officer Grade 3 or above, or equivalent grades across 14 pay groups – covering doctors, nurses, teachers, emergency services, lawyers, surveyors, accountants and other specialist professional roles.
The response notes that workforce data is not formally categorised by “management” or “leadership”, but that senior officer grades generally reflect either leadership responsibility, market-rate professional skills, or both.
Push for greater transparency
The new data arrives against a wider backdrop of scrutiny over public sector pay, and affordability pressures facing households, with median earnings having risen by 5.3% in nominal terms but falling by 0.7% in real terms over the year to June 2024.
The new civil service pay figures were released alongside a commitment from Policy & Resources to improve transparency around public sector pay and structures.
The Committee said work is under way to publish clearer, more user-friendly information about leadership roles, staffing and accountability, with an initial update expected by the end of the second quarter of this year.
While some high-level salary information is already published in the States’ annual accounts, the Committee acknowledged that current reporting makes it difficult for the public to fully understand how senior pay is distributed across government.
