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Author
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Message
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Cllr David Alston
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Tuesday 22 June 2010 10:01:24 am
Strand 1 - Is the Council right to want a pay freeze for staff? [Topic now closed]
Budgets for all our services are to be frozen, except for the provision made for costs of staff and energy. Salaries and wages are negotiated at Scottish level and we have made it clear that we want to see a pay freeze for at least one year. This would avoid £4.9m of extra costs each year, and £9.9m if the pay freeze was extended to two years. A pay freeze in times of inflation would in real terms be a cut. Further Potential Savings to 2013 = £9.9m
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David MacLean
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Thursday 24 June 2010 12:45:09 am
pay freeze for staff
I think a pay freeze is the best option as the alternative is job losses given that a large proportion of the councils costs are wages. Would this be a freeze for all staff or would the lowest paid be protected as suggested yesterday by the Westminister Government? Is this achievable as councils negotiate through COSLA or would all LA's need to agree to this or can Highland decide independently together with the Unions to this proposal? Highland Council must be the largest employer in Highland and if there were redundancies on a large scale whole families could be out of work given the range of services that HC provide. A pay freeze must be a better option.
DM
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David MacLean
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Thursday 24 June 2010 12:52:41 am
staff pay
Has HC looked at the number of teachers or indeed other employees that are in post being paid at a higher pay scale than their present job description requires. I don't mean "ring fencing" but they may have stepped down from a post but their pay continues as before?
DM
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Tracey R
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Thursday 24 June 2010 8:23:51 am
Pay Freeze
I agree with a pay freeze for all employees. I work in the private sector and am on not much more than the minimum wage and I have not had a pay rise for the last 2 years and may not get one this year. I have also had work benefits and hours cut so yes I agree with the the pay freeze its time the public sector came into line with the private sector. I also think some of the top paid people in the public sector should be taking a pay cut.
Tracey
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Andrew James
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Friday 25 June 2010 8:40:24 am
Slightly off topic.......
The Council needs to look critically at some working practices. Recently new cleaners were appointed to 2 very small local primary schools. Both cleaners had to endure (and I use the word advisedly) a 3 day training course covering such topics as how to put rubbish in a bin and how to safely use a vacuum cleaner.......
I'm sure the answer will be along the lines of "duty of responsibility to train staff", "Health & Safety" etc, but actually, neither of these are acceptable.
This is a blatant waste of money and demeaning to the newly recruited staff.
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Colin Potter
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Friday 25 June 2010 9:28:50 am
Strand 1 - Is the Council right to want a pay freeze for staff?
Yes. Why stop there? Anyone earning more than £50k should take a pay cut. In the real world they are well paid compared to the rest in what is essentially a poor rural region if you look beyond Inverness. However, those earning less than £20k should get a pay rise in line with Westminster thinking.
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James Campbell
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Friday 25 June 2010 12:29:05 pm
Counci pay freeze...
Council staff ought to be entitled to an increase in pay, subject to improved productivity and performance. We currently have a rigid organizational structure with absolutely no innovation or dynamism in service delivery. Senior council officials ought to be looking at way to save front line services like our community centers, by cutting back on layer, upon layer of middle managers. The private sector went through this process over ten years ago, so why has it taken the public sector so long to increase it's productivity?
James
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anony man
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Saturday 26 June 2010 4:18:46 am
Pay freeze
As the recent budget appears to have imposed a pay freeze on many workers this may now be an irrelevant question.
Whilst many Council employees are very well paid, there are a large number who are not graded at appropriate levels and yet continue to give a level of service and dedication to the Council which is more often than not, not appreciated.
At the most senior levels (eg Service Directors), I don't know if salary levels are in line with some national agreement, but it has to be said that they are generally at an obscene level (current Social Work ad...over £100k, is a case in point)
anon
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Margaret Mackay
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Monday 28 June 2010 8:39:18 am
Pay freeze for staff
The staff earning over £20,000 per year should be put on a pay freeze for at least 2 years
Maggie
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Anon Anon
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Tuesday 29 June 2010 3:56:43 pm
Pay Freeze
It is essential that we keep as many people in a job as possible and if a pay freeze over a couple of years is the best way forward then lets do it but it has to be equal across all staff and Councillors etc.
That said there is a real need to look at the working practices within the public sector generally. Having worked in the public sector for many years I can honestly say there is significant room for improvement and that includes the Councillors.
Anon
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JACKIE COLLINS
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Tuesday 29 June 2010 7:50:25 pm
PAY FREEZE
I THINK IT IS A DISGRACE THAT SOCIAL WORKERS ARE GETTING PAID £34K A YEAR AND A NURSE WHO DOES ALL THE WORK OF A SOCIAL WORKER AND MORE GETS A SALARY OF £21K. YES THE PAY FREEZE IS WELL JUSTIFIED AND IT SHOULDNT JUST BE FOR 2 YEARS BUT FOR SEVERAL!!!!!!!
J
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Anon Anon
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Thursday 01 July 2010 12:52:09 am
Pay freeze
No bonuses exist in local government unkike the private sector who caused the recession. Why attack staff who are already being offered 1% this year, nothing next year and 0.5% in 2012. Why are teachers allowed 2.5% this year and will they be subject to a pay freeze - on past espereince no they will not.
Lets look att he perks enjoyed by councillors and remember staff like soiclal workers etc, home care workers, street cleaners, refuse collection get none.
Not surprised
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