29.03.19
Wolverhampton council to force staff to take unpaid leave in bid to slash wage bill
Wolverhampton council has agreed plans to make staff take unpaid annual leave over the Christmas period as the struggling council tries to slash its wage bill.
The City of Wolverhampton Council’s cabinet has approved recommendations to adopt a new National Joint Council (NJC) pay model which will see the majority of its staff get a two per cent pay rise from April 2019.
But the changes will require employees to take a mandatory three days paid leave between Christmas and the New Year.
Somerset County Council attempted similar plans in 2018 with plans to force staff to take two days unpaid leave over Christmas in order to save just under £500,000.
But following a fierce backlash, the authority wrote to employees saying it would not be progressing with the scheme after it was rejected by trade union members.
Wolverhampton Council says the pay model, drawn up following consultations with Unison, Unite, GMB, NUE, Prospect and AEP unions, will help the council cut £2m from its wage bill.
Member ballots undertaken by the Unison and GMB unions voted 69% and 70% respectively in favour of the proposals.
Val Gibson, cabinet member for governance, said that an agreement has not been reached with Soulbury union officials with negotiations ongoing, but stressed that “no employees will suffer any detriment by moving to the new model.”
A report to the cabinet said: “With the exception of ‘essential’ and ’emergency’ services for all employees, the period of mandatory unpaid leave will be fixed as three days that fall between the Christmas and New Year Bank Holidays.”
The specified days will be determined annually by the council and employees required to provide emergency services will be provided with compensatory leave.