ANGRY staff have hit out at Salisbury District Council chiefs over what they see as the "insensitive" timing of a pay rise to top officers.

The award to the four members of the council's management team - understood to be an inflationary rise of two to two-and-a-half per cent - has been made as part of a review of the officers' terms and conditions of employment.

It was approved under special delegated procedures and rubber stamped during a confidential session of the policy and resources committee last week.

But staff facing salary losses of thousands of pounds as the result of a freeze on their pay over the next seven years accused councillors and chief officers of insensitivity.

One disgruntled council worker said: "We don't begrudge the management team getting more money. But we consider it unfair to award the rise so soon after approving a jobs evaluation scheme that will see a third of the rest of the staff suffering salary losses of between £3,000 and £8,000."

"There is a lot of anger and disillusionment," another worker said. "Last year the council received its Investors in People award which, quite frankly, is now just a joke."

Council chief executive Richard Sheard said: "I deliberately asked for the review of my conditions to be deferred until completion of the jobs evaluation process - from which the management team was exempt."

Mr Sheard said most had benefited from the jobs evaluation scheme, which was aimed at bringing salaries into line with other leading regional employers.