Blackburn with Darwen Council bosses slammed for re-hiring former staff (From Lancashire Telegraph)
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Blackburn with Darwen Council bosses slammed for re-hiring former staff
3:33pm Friday 3rd February 2012 in Darwen
TOWN hall bosses have been slammed for re-hiring former staff weeks after handing over redundancy packages at taxpayers’ expense.
Last year Blackburn with Darwen Council axed around 1,000 jobs, making around 100 compulsory redundancies as part of £33million spending cuts.
It is understood one member of staff, a market supervisor, was made redundant last June and given severance pay, but then re-employed as a road sweeper within weeks.
Council chiefs said employees who were made redundant were free to apply for externally advertised jobs once a minimum of 30 days had passed after their departure.
But critics said such a practice would be unlikely in the private sector, and accused the council of failing to ‘get the best’ out of taxpayers’ money.
Sources at the town hall confirmed that in the past 18 months there had been a ‘handful’ of cases where former staff had been re-hired after being paid redundancy packages.
A spokeswoman for the TaxPayers’ Alliance said the council should have done its utmost to find other roles for the employees before giving them severance packages.
She said: “What the council has done might be within the rules, but it does not seem to be in the spirit of getting the best out of taxpayers’ money.
“A lot of councils have to find millions of savings and that will mean some redundancies, but it is clearly not good value for taxpayers’ money to make people redundant and hire them back in other roles.”
Staff made redundant by Blackburn with Darwen Council are paid a maximum of 30 weeks’ pay in severance.
Coun Andy Kay, executive member for resources, said: “Of course, as in any organisation, some vacancies have subsequently come up in front-line services which needed to be filled.
“We have tight recruitment controls which mean any such opportunities are retained for any suitable staff remaining at risk of redundancy.
“If vacancies are not filled internally by staff at risk of redundancy, we would recruit externally but it would not be right for us to bar anyone, especially those with previous experience and skilled employees from applying for and obtaining these positions.
“If an employee was made redundant and was then re-hired within 30 days they would not be entitled to redundancy payments and we would consider them to have continuous employment.”
“Alternatively if the break in service is beyond 30 days their service with the council is broken and they would be treated as a new employee.”
Comments(30)
expat pop
says...
4:36pm Fri 3 Feb 12
Management dysfunction.
happycyclist
says...
4:50pm Fri 3 Feb 12
expat pop wrote:That's the real issue. Putting people through the stress and worry, and forking out thousands in redundancy pay.
why were they made redundant if vacancies were likely to occur, or available, in the near future.
Management dysfunction.
There are too many people in management positions who lack any management skills whatsoever.
It's great that some of them have got their jobs back, but you do have to question why they were released in the first place. A similar thing happened at the DWP a couple of years ago, with one manager allegedly getting £90k and then being re-hired within 12 months, albeit at a couple of grades lower than he was.
CapitaBackHander
says...
5:03pm Fri 3 Feb 12
Not likely to happen in the private sector? Probably correct as they would run up 550 million pounds worth of debt and then decide to make redundant 500 employees and when the bank eventually pulls the plug they would just go into administration leaving the work force and creditors in debt.
Progressive Penguin
says...
5:27pm Fri 3 Feb 12
.
This person wasn't re-employeed in the same role so I don't see the big issue.
.
Having worked for BwDBC as a temp and not being able to apply for the job I'd done very successfully for almost a year so an internal 'at risk' person with a 60% skillset match could have the job I find it difficult to believe that the council didn't make every effort to place this individual in an appropriate role before they were paid off
outofyourmind
says...
6:42pm Fri 3 Feb 12
peely
says...
7:03pm Fri 3 Feb 12
if you,re really high up in the pecking order normally you would get promoted just before you decide to take your gold plated pension and then when you actually call it day you get a better pension and then re apply for your old job back !!! Cushty !!
Rogi
says...
8:51pm Fri 3 Feb 12
outofyourmind wrote:Really - Are you taking the ps*s?
I know no one cares what i think. But this is about politics. Get rid of those that dont kiss ar*e, and then offer them there job back.( CLASSIC ) They'll kiss your feet for ever.( just tell them you got them their job back?)sweet. PLUS its easyer to hire more ethnic's to look good!. As an equal rights employer.( I bet they rehired more ethnic than british? )
What do you mean?
Rogi
says...
8:54pm Fri 3 Feb 12
louderfasterlonger wrote:Quite right - it doesn't make sense. What's your point?
Employment descrimination - is descrimination in hiring, promotion, job assignment, termination and compensation.
Descrimination against hiring a person on the basis that they previously worked for you does not make sense.
living the end times in BB1
says...
8:56pm Fri 3 Feb 12
peely wrote:The council practice some very strange handshakes when it comes to the employment skulduggery schemes.
At the end of the day why should the council worry, it isn,t their money and they,re not accountable to shareholders so c,est la vie - they get away with it and its trebles all round !!
if you,re really high up in the pecking order normally you would get promoted just before you decide to take your gold plated pension and then when you actually call it day you get a better pension and then re apply for your old job back !!! Cushty !!
shovelit
says...
9:18pm Fri 3 Feb 12
Rogi
says...
9:28pm Fri 3 Feb 12
peely wrote:"At the end of the day why should the council worry, it isn't their money"
At the end of the day why should the council worry, it isn,t their money and they,re not accountable to shareholders so c,est la vie - they get away with it and its trebles all round !!
if you,re really high up in the pecking order normally you would get promoted just before you decide to take your gold plated pension and then when you actually call it day you get a better pension and then re apply for your old job back !!! Cushty !!
No. It's ours. And the council are accountable. Cuts have to be made in the budget, which is what has been done.
Then one or two people are re-employed because they are good at their job, but the people who maybe aren't so good are not re-employed - they are replaced with someone better. Which is a good thing.
CapitaBackHander
says...
9:28pm Fri 3 Feb 12
shovelit wrote:Books don't balance in the private sector!
It looks to me as if the council officials have been trained by Fred The shred. It is not there money so they do as the like with it. Look after number one, two three and four ect. These people would not last six months in the private sector where the books must balance
You can't have it both ways, people complaining against i.e. bankers bonus's and now complaining that a council employed people it knew were capable of the job. Private sector offers better pay for those that can do the job to a high standard.
shovelit
says...
9:34pm Fri 3 Feb 12
Rogi
says...
9:45pm Fri 3 Feb 12
shovelit wrote:What do you mean?
The private sector does not offer better pay that has been proved. And the last Labour goverment made sure the pensions were worse as well
Caoimhe
says...
10:13pm Fri 3 Feb 12
Caoimhe
says...
10:28pm Fri 3 Feb 12
Good call
says...
11:14pm Fri 3 Feb 12
shovelit wrote:No, private sector workers made sure they had crap pensions by keeping quiet and not rocking the boat over the quality of their pensions because they were too scared.
The private sector does not offer better pay that has been proved. And the last Labour goverment made sure the pensions were worse as well
woolywords
says...
3:09am Sat 4 Feb 12
used to get up int twilight..
'n down pit afore the Sun were up..
What does it matter that the Council rehired staff on lower wages?
I wish that somebobdy would hire Bob, that was at Training2000 when I was there...
Instead of forcing me to endure the sight of him, sat in the same seat, every effing day, 5 days a week, sat supping beer, while flog I my nuts off.
Useless, waste of space, gets an extra tenner a day, for being a drunk.
Am in the wrong job.
Why the flock should I bother my borlocks about what the council hires, as long as it hiring people?
Somebody in the dole office, should get the same bus as me, see this ham-shanker, every sodden day.
If dole only lasted 6 months, instead of the life-time-acheivemen
t-award that it is, I'd be an happier man.
I nearly beat someone to death, for saying it's 'Bob a job week'..for lying.
And if you, like me, get the Darwen bus, why not play, spot the Bob with no job, as the bus stops right outside the pub.
Who is the mug?
written at 3am, Satday morn. doing my job.
I'd bet you a pound, if we could afford the squander of it, he'll be sat there, large as life, sat suppin'.
Am so depressed, am near homicidal,
these tablets aren't working.
rant over, carry on. I need a wee.
woolywords
says...
3:26am Sat 4 Feb 12
man runs into pub, snaps Bob neck.
DHSS announces job losses.
Police seek help in lost tracker dog.
LT releases blurry video of attacker.
you wish..
see you on Monday, Bob, with no job.
aint life grand...
C'mon Gromit, it's cheese on toast for tea.
woolywords
says...
3:39am Sat 4 Feb 12
They made me pay full fare.
I told him that it's a Police dog,
and is working undercover.
Gromit didn't help, by licking him.
The driver only gave me £20.
Costs me more on Cantabury Street!
leelancs
says...
8:52am Sat 4 Feb 12
louderfasterlonger
says...
9:13am Sat 4 Feb 12
Rogi wrote:The point is, you apply for a job and expect to be judged on merit alone.
louderfasterlonger wrote:Quite right - it doesn't make sense. What's your point?
Employment descrimination - is descrimination in hiring, promotion, job assignment, termination and compensation.
Descrimination against hiring a person on the basis that they previously worked for you does not make sense.
ie/ experience, skills, work record.
What's not to understand Rogi ?
louderfasterlonger
says...
9:39am Sat 4 Feb 12
I have worked in companies where someone has been made redundant one week and taken back on a week later as a contractor or consultant.
As the largest employer in the area, BwDBC is unique - large turnover of staff, staff employed through funding from other organisations or through government / EEC initiatives. When the funding stops, then so do the employment positions.
It is therefore inevitable that in a situation where 20% of the workforce is made redundant, a good number of exemplary employees will leave. Is it not then unsurprising that these people are re-hired into other positions as they arise or as further funding is secured.
I don't see any employment laws being breached here, can't see any moral reason why an unemployed person shouldn't be hired on merit, and certainly don't see any objections from the unions.
Although, it would have been pertinent for the LT to ask for a union statement to complete this non-story.
district01
says...
1:19pm Sat 4 Feb 12
It’s just a make believe party from what Tony Blair and his toe rag not at all friend Gordon Brown invented. One wanting fame and fortune for himself which he definitely excelled at and the other fame and, well I’m not sure really what he was there for?
Backed by the work away from home Jack Straw. The undeniably self important one who has made his career and fortune by sitting on a ‘safe’ supposedly ‘Labour’ seat of Blackburn that no longer exists. The sooner we all realises these facts the better!
But what else can you expect from a Blackburn with Darwen Tony Blair ‘new’ council still pretending to be a ‘Labour’ party?
The sooner we get a credible ‘Labour’ party back the better. The important question is - when will that be?
CapitaBackHander
says...
7:30pm Sat 4 Feb 12
district01 wrote:Do you want to take your blinkers off and read the story and then make a comment that is even slightly related. Why not just come on here and shout I am a raving Tory and will type sh1t to prove it. Forget the story as mentioned just above you - nothing to it!
You have had a Tony Blair ‘new’ party council in Blackburn for many years so what else can you expect? It’s just a make believe party from what Tony Blair and his toe rag not at all friend Gordon Brown invented. One wanting fame and fortune for himself which he definitely excelled at and the other fame and, well I’m not sure really what he was there for? Backed by the work away from home Jack Straw. The undeniably self important one who has made his career and fortune by sitting on a ‘safe’ supposedly ‘Labour’ seat of Blackburn that no longer exists. The sooner we all realises these facts the better! But what else can you expect from a Blackburn with Darwen Tony Blair ‘new’ council still pretending to be a ‘Labour’ party? The sooner we get a credible ‘Labour’ party back the better. The important question is - when will that be?
woolywords
says...
6:55am Sun 5 Feb 12
apart from Global Warming,
mutually assured destruction,
the Mayan calender ending,
the lack of gritters,
dog poo everywhere,
traffic jams to/from Ewood,
burglars, muggers and joggers,
car parking prices,
chocolate prices doubling,
AND
not only that,
next doors' cat!
(it has noisy sex)
what excuse can he give today?
district01
says...
12:35pm Sun 5 Feb 12
CapitaBackHander wrote:Well, anyone who believes that the present opposition party is still what has always been referred to as a ‘Labour’ party is deluded beyond belief.
district01 wrote:Do you want to take your blinkers off and read the story and then make a comment that is even slightly related. Why not just come on here and shout I am a raving Tory and will type sh1t to prove it. Forget the story as mentioned just above you - nothing to it!
You have had a Tony Blair ‘new’ party council in Blackburn for many years so what else can you expect? It’s just a make believe party from what Tony Blair and his toe rag not at all friend Gordon Brown invented. One wanting fame and fortune for himself which he definitely excelled at and the other fame and, well I’m not sure really what he was there for? Backed by the work away from home Jack Straw. The undeniably self important one who has made his career and fortune by sitting on a ‘safe’ supposedly ‘Labour’ seat of Blackburn that no longer exists. The sooner we all realises these facts the better! But what else can you expect from a Blackburn with Darwen Tony Blair ‘new’ council still pretending to be a ‘Labour’ party? The sooner we get a credible ‘Labour’ party back the better. The important question is - when will that be?
In response to your comment suggesting that I am a raving Tory. I have always been a Labour supporter and will always be so. Unfortunately the present opposition party that was produced by Tony Blair and supposedly carrying that honourable ‘Labour’ banner bears no resemblance to what it was hatched from. It took me two years after I had voted for Tony Blair to realise that it was simply a Tony Blair party and all that he did was definitely not ‘Labour’. If anyone is a raving Tory then he definitely deserves that title and all that we have now are his children carrying on his bad work.
We need a credible opposition and there is the problem. We don‘t have one!
district01
says...
12:42pm Sun 5 Feb 12
dom jolly
says...
10:44pm Sun 5 Feb 12
outofyourmind wrote:well said, spot on
I know no one cares what i think. But this is about politics. Get rid of those that dont kiss ar*e, and then offer them there job back.( CLASSIC ) They'll kiss your feet for ever.( just tell them you got them their job back?)sweet. PLUS its easyer to hire more ethnic's to look good!. As an equal rights employer.( I bet they rehired more ethnic than british? )
louderfasterlonger says...
4:00pm Fri 3 Feb 12
Descrimination against hiring a person on the basis that they previously worked for you does not make sense.