Should Public Sector pay be more closely related to performance? This is the question that the CIPD recently put to its' members on their website. The result from the Poll was 83.17% saying YES it should.

So most of us seem to agree and believe that if performance related bonuses were used in the public sector it would help drive up standards, reduce waste, and achieve higher levels of performance, both individually and organisationally. How is it then that whenever I see anything reported about bonuses being paid out, especially in the public sector, there seems to be an outcry? We are quick to judge and complain when bonuses are paid, despite the fact that the pay has been based on agreed performance measures, and it is what, in theory we want.

So why is the theory and practice so different? In theory we like the idea that people will be paid on results. That if they don't perform well, they won't get a pay rise and won't be rewarded for failing to deliver. But in practice what seems to concern us most is how do we know the bonuses are deserved? How do we make sure the performance measures are the right ones? And, most importantly of all, do we trust the leadership of public sector organisations to have the skills and integrity to manage performance effectively and only award bonuses when they are truly justified? This seems to me to be the most crucial challenge we need to face. In the current climate, public sector leadership is coming under greater scrutiny and unless we equip our leaders to use performance related pay effectively we will be doing more harm than good by introducing such systems.