Union denounces council worker ‘easy life’ as a myth

The
notion of a well paid nine-to-five council worker, who can sit back and wait
for promotion is a total myth, according to the union Unison.

In
a survey, released to coincide with a further round of pay talks between unions
and local government, Unison claims that almost seven out of 10 staff have
worked for more than 10 years, but only half had ever been promoted.

The
research shows that more than a fifth of local government staff regularly work
weekends and bank holidays, with split and mixed shifts and multiple jobs all
regular occurrences.

The
union is calling on local government to invest greater amounts in training and
development to help tackle recruitment difficulties.

Almost
80,000 local government staff recently walked out over alleged below-inflation
pay rises and the imposition of discriminatory performance appraisal systems by
the Department of Work and Pensions.

For
an interview with the head of the civil service go to: www.personneltoday.com/goto/22541

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For
analysis of the strike go to: www.personneltoday.com/goto/22243

By Michael Millar