Surge in Number of TfL Staff Paid Over £100,000
Mayor's spokesperson says it is necessary to raise pay to get '‘the best talent'
City Hall Conservative Nick Rogers say level is ‘outrageous’
June 2, 2023
The number of Transport for London (TfL) staff members paid more than six figures has risen by 28 per cent in the last year, it has been revealed.
Some 766 TfL and Crossrail employees earned more than £100,000 in 2022/23, compared with 597 in 2021/22.
The rise was dubbed “outrageous” by Conservatives at City Hall, who said “huge pay packets” were being awarded while Mayor Sadiq Khan “begs for bailouts” from the Government.
TfL points out that the pay awarded to TfL’s Commissioner and chief officers is still “significantly below the market level” and that it is “vital to attract and retain the best talent” in an increasingly competitive jobs environment.
The increase in staff members earning more than six figures was in large part attributed to the fact that several employees saw their pay jump in line with inflation.
But Nick Rogers, City Hall Conservatives transport spokesperson, said: “It is outrageous that so many TfL staff are on six figure salaries, which are being funded in part through Sadiq Khan’s Ulez [Ultra low emission zone] tax raid on charities, small businesses and low income families.
“While the Mayor pleads poverty and begs for bailouts, he is giving out huge pay packets and gold-plated pensions to his senior TfL staff. It is simply unacceptable and Londoners deserve so much better than this.”
A spokeswoman for Mr Khan responded: “During a cost-of-living crisis, the Mayor stood by his commitment to deliver a fair pay rise for TfL staff.
“In a highly competitive market, TfL should be able to attract and retain the very best talent, including the technical skills and experience to undertake hugely complex projects, which are essential to continuing to deliver a world-class transport network for Londoners and supporting jobs and economic growth in London and whole country.
“The Ulez is not designed to be a money making scheme and within a few years, as compliance increases, it will make a net loss – any net proceeds are ringfenced and reinvested into London’s transport network.”
No bonuses were paid out at TfL this year, in line with the conditions set out by the Government as part of their funding deal with the organisation. Any bonuses assigned to employees will not be paid until the organisation has reached “financial sustainability” – which it hopes to achieve during the current financial year.
A TfL spokesman said, “TfL is a complex organisation that is central to the success of London and the UK – supporting many millions of journeys each day and engineering and building major projects like the Elizabeth line, the extension of the Northern line to Battersea, the expansion and modernisation of Bank station and the extension of London Overground to Barking Riverside.
“Through the hard work of our staff, three years of freezing pay levels for senior managers and reducing the number of executive posts, we are now expecting to achieve an operating surplus in 2023/24, meaning our revenues now cover the costs of running the existing transport network.”
The highest amount of pay was given to Jim Crawford, Crossrail’s Chief Programme Officer, who earned £499,447.
That earning includes some £191,088, which was awarded to him as “compensation for loss of employment”, when Mr Crawford left the role in January 2023.
TfL’s spokesman said: “Jim Crawford took over responsibility for Crossrail Ltd following the departure of Mark Wild, and was also heavily involved with ensuring that the Elizabeth line successfully launched in May 2022.
“He left TfL on 31 January 2023 and his compensation for loss of employment reflected his length of employment within Crossrail.”
TfL’s Interim Commissioner, Andy Lord, earned some £363,680. The Commissioner’s base salary of £355,000 remains the same as last year.
Noah Vickers - Local Democracy Reporter
Like Reading Articles Like This? Help Us Produce More This site remains committed to providing local community news and public interest journalism. Articles such as the one above are integral to what we do. We aim to feature as much as possible on local societies, charities based in the area, fundraising efforts by residents, community-based initiatives and even helping people find missing pets. We've always done that and won't be changing, in fact we'd like to do more. However, the readership that these stories generates is often below that needed to cover the cost of producing them. Our financial resources are limited and the local media environment is intensely competitive so there is a constraint on what we can do. We are therefore asking our readers to consider offering financial support to these efforts. Any money given will help support community and public interest news and the expansion of our coverage in this area. A suggested monthly payment is £8 but we would be grateful for any amount for instance if you think this site offers the equivalent value of a subscription to a daily printed newspaper you may wish to consider £20 per month. If neither of these amounts is suitable for you then contact info@neighbournet.com and we can set up an alternative. All payments are made through a secure web site. One-off donations are also appreciated. Choose The Amount You Wish To Contribute. If you do support us in this way we'd be interested to hear what kind of articles you would like to see more of on the site – send your suggestions to the editor. For businesses we offer the chance to be a corporate sponsor of community content on the site. For £30 plus VAT per month you will be the designated sponsor of at least one article a month with your logo appearing if supplied. If there is a specific community group or initiative you'd like to support we can make sure your sponsorship is featured on related content for a one off payment of £50 plus VAT. All payments are made through a secure web site. |