Church of England vicars have become the latest group of workers to demand a pay rise in the face of the cost of living crisis, as Unite’s general secretary, Sharon Graham, claimed they were among the “working poor”.
More than 2,000 clergy and lay staff represented by the union have submitted their first ever official pay claim, asking for a 9.5% rise in the annual stipend, which stands at £26,794.
The C of E’s remuneration and conditions of service committee is scheduled to meet on Monday, and has invited Unite to make a submission about its members’ pay and conditions for the first time, after lobbying by the union.
Graham said: “Like all workers, Church of England clergy are struggling with the cost of living crisis. While many will argue their work is a vocation, the simple truth is that on their current rewards they are among the working poor.”
The stipend is funded by contributions from congregations, but Unite is calling for additional central funding to be made available. It points out that the church commissioners’ investment fund, which supports the work of the church, is worth more than £10bn.
Sam Macinnes, a vicar in Horsham and a Unite activist, said: “The whole principle of clergy remuneration is that you’re given enough to be in a comfortable state where you can fully give yourself to your ministry and support and care for your communities, which more and more clergy households are unable to do at the moment.
“The demands of pastoral ministry are getting ever greater, but if people are worrying about whether they can feed and clothe their families, how are they going to be able to give that support to others?”
Dioceses can set their own stipends above the minimum, which was increased by 5% in April. Vicars are also usually given a house to live in, though Macinnes points out that these can sometimes be draughty or poorly maintained.
The remuneration committee will make a recommendation to the Archbishops’ Council, which meets in September and will then make a final recommendation to the General Synod, the church’s governing body.
A review of clergy remuneration was carried out in 2020 and 2021, and found that the overall package – including a house and payment of bills such as council tax – amounted to about £50,000.
“We consider that this should be adequate for most clergy and is generally an appropriate level of remuneration,” the report said.
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The church provided £3m in extra funds to dioceses to make hardship payments to clergy last May, and another £15m in October to help churches with energy bills.
A Church of England spokesperson said: “Our clergy provide unstinting spiritual, pastoral and practical support to their communities on a daily basis.
“We know they make this huge contribution against a backdrop of a cost of living crisis both for them and those they minister to.
“We are mindful of this, and of issues of affordability for dioceses, in the deliberations over the annual recommendations for the minimum and benchmark stipend levels.”
