Pay in the Northern Ireland Civil Service - Year Ending March 2023

The Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA) today published a report providing an overview of pay statistics for the Northern Ireland Civil Service (NICS). The statistics relate to basic pay, and the emphasis is on 2023, though some trend information covering the period 2013-2023 is also presented.

In considering the findings, it should be noted that any increases in pay can be due to normal progression up a pay scale (for those who are not at the maximum of their scale) and changes to pay scales. Differences in median pay do not mean one group is paid less than another group, differences are a result of the staffing profile of the NICS. All staff in the NICS are paid the same according to grade.

The key findings are as follows:

• The overall pay award for the NICS for 2022 was an increase of £552 to the majority of NICS pay scales. In addition, AA and Industrial 1 staff were revalorised and moved onto a single pay point of £21,053.
• The average (median full-time equivalent) basic pay of NICS staff is £29,258, which is a 1.9% increase on the median pay in 2022.
• The majority of staff received an increase in pay of 2% to 3.9% between 2022 and 2023. Increases in pay can be attributed to normal progression up a pay scale (for those who are not at the maximum of their scale) and changes to pay scales.
• There continues to be a gap between male and female pay in the NICS – the median pay for females is 4.1% lower than the median pay for males. The primary reason for the gender pay gap is because a higher proportion of females are in lower paid grades.
• With regard to community background, there is a gap between Protestant and Catholic pay in the NICS. The median pay for Catholic staff is 1.0% lower than the median pay for Protestant staff. Just as for gender, so for community background, differences of this kind can arise from a range of factors including differing proportions of staff in lower paid grades.
• The report is available on the NISRA website at Pay in the Northern Ireland Civil Service - Year Ending March 2023

Notes to editors: 

1. The reference date of this Pay Statistics report/bulletin is March 2023.
2. If salaries were ranked from the lowest to the highest, the median would be the middle value. A brief explanation of why we use the median is available at Pay in the Northern Ireland Civil Service
3. In the case of a part-time member of staff, full-time equivalent pay is the pay they would have if they worked full-time.
4. All media enquiries should be directed to DoF Communications Office, telephone 028 9081 6724 or email dof.pressoffice@finance-ni.gov.uk. 
5. The Executive Information Service operates an out of hours service For Media Enquiries Only between 1800hrs and 0800hrs Monday to Friday and at weekends and public holidays. The duty press officer can be contacted on 028 9037 8110.

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