Public sector employees appear to feel more satisfied, committed and motivated than their counterparts in the private sector, according to a new survey.

The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development also found that central government worker satisfaction levels fall significantly shorter.

The poll came on the day that the government published plans to overhaul the civil service pension scheme, a change that could further impact on relationships between employer and employees.

Government Response: Cabinet Office

Cabinet Office minister Ruth Kelly said: "A range of proposals intended to modernise the civil service pension arrangements while reaffirming our commitment to the principle of a good quality defined benefit pension scheme with a substantial proportion of the cost being met by the employer."

"To ensure the financial sustainability of the civil service and other public service schemes, we propose to raise the pension age to 65.

"We also want to reflect better the contribution made throughout an individual's career in the civil service, and propose to do this through basing pensions on earnings in each and every year of service.

"Fairness is the key theme running through the proposals. Fairness between civil servants and fairness in the relationship between those working in the public services and those, who, ultimately, fund them."

Party Response: Liberal Democrats

David Laws, Liberal Democrat Treasury spokesman, said: "It is vitally important that with a rapidly aging population the government reviews the public sector pension schemes including the issue of retirement ages.

"Many people in the private sector have been hit by the recent crisis in the pensions industry, and it is wrong to expect taxpayers to sign a blank cheque for public sector pensions

"But the challenge is to secure a good quality and affordable public sector pensions scheme, rather than seeking to reduce public sector pensions to inadequate private sector provision levels.

"It is vital that the government fully consults with public sector employees, sensitively handles transitional issues, and gives employees genuine choice, including the flexibility to make higher levels of personal contributions to protect and secure good retirement benefits."

Stakeholder Response: CIPD

Mike Emmott, CIPD employee relations adviser, said: "Our latest survey shows that motivation amongst public sector employees has been steadily increasing over the years and employees are now eight per cent more motivated than private sector staff.

"This significant turnaround maybe a reflection of the fact more funding is going into public services and better line management. A good line manager can help motivate staff, reduce absence, improve productivity and retain staff. It makes good business sense to ensure line managers are trained to motivate, communicate and engage with employees."

"Our key findings demonstrate that public sector workers report slightly higher levels of loyalty to customers and clients than their organisation or supervisor. Both local government and NHS report high levels of supervisory leadership, and the NHS scores particularly high on offering flexible work practices.

"The story in central government has always been most concerning, with particularly low levels of trust and satisfaction. This year's survey shows a continuing negative picture for central government.

"Indeed central government employers have lots of work to do, they need to work with their line managers to ensure they have the relevant training to motivate staff.

"The CIPD report, Understanding the People and Performance Link, shows that line managers have a major impact on employee engagement and performance."

Stakeholder Response: FDA

FDA general secretary Jonathan Baume said: "It is only a matter of time before the government applied the same central conditions to all other public sector workers.

"The government wants our members to accept what is likely to be an inferior pension, and the proposals allow government a free hand to increase civil servants' contribution rates whenever they like. Those who lose most will be the most able, experienced, high-performing managers who are responsible for driving the government's modernisation agenda across the UK.

"They are also those most likely to be poached by the private sector who will always find ways to reward their best talent. Undermining these managers' pension expectations is no way to recruit or motivate these key government workers.

"Today we have only seen a bare outline of the government's proposals. We anticipate extremely difficult and lengthy negotiations ahead, and we will be acting closely with unions in the civil service and wider public sector over the coming weeks and months."