Unions representing BBC staff have reacted angrily to a 1% pay offer, describing it as "completely unacceptable."
Technical and admin staff and journalists will now be consulted on the offer with unions expecting "strong opposition", adding that median pay at the corporation will soon have fallen 8% behind inflation in the last five years.
Gerry Morrissey, general secretary of the technicians' union Bectu, said: "This is a clear attempt by the BBC to make staff pay for last year's bungled negotiations over the future level of the licence fee.
"We can't accept a further cut in living standards for members, when the BBC has already taken tens of millions of pounds out of staffing costs by cutting 4,000 jobs, and watering down pension rights."
Michelle Stanistreet, general secretary of the National Union of Journalists, said: "Given all the sacrifices that BBC staff have made in the last year it is insulting to be offered a rise that falls 3% short of the current inflation figure."
A BBC spokesman said: "We have put forward a 1% pay offer which we believe is realistic in the tough economic climate.
"It ensures both a minimum increase of £400 for the lowest paid staff and is fair to those who have previously had their pay frozen for three years.
"We felt that the joint unions demand, which was equivalent to a 5.9% pay rise, was unrealistic."