A council that has been compensating its staff the equivalent of nearly three days’ pay a year for time spent waiting for a lift is considering scrapping the perk, the Metro has reported.
Rochdale Council has made the benefit available for more than two decades – to compensate staff for the time spent travelling between the building entrance and their desks.
But the perk could be scrapped by leaders of the metropolitan borough council within weeks.
“Flexible working and faster, more reliable lifts mean it’s no longer as relevant,” admitted HR director Stephen Harper.
The benefit was set up after staff complained of 10-minute waits for lifts at the council’s offices, meaning they were late despite arriving at the building on time.
They were given a five-minute daily allowance for time spent travelling from foyer to office.
This is taken out of their 36-hour working week, meaning staff can earn their normal salary for 25 minutes’ less work a week – or 20 hours less a year.
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The benefit was branded ‘absurd’ by Mark Wallace of the TaxPayers’ Alliance.
“This is a classic example of how some councils simply do not live in the real world,” he added.
