Council tells union it won't reduce services to pay for shorter week WIGAN Metro will be happy to negotiate a 36 hour working week by 2003.

But the outcome depends on an agreement over how to find nearly £1m. of savings needed to pay for the cost of bringing staff hours down from 37 hours.

Once again bosses have stressed they are not prepared to chop jobs and services to the public to pay for a cut in the working week.

Council and trade union chiefs met this week in a bid to resolve the long-running dispute over how to implement the national "Single Status" agreement in Wigan.

Following the meeting, attended by Wigan Metro Leader Peter Smith and cabinet member Brian Baldwin, the council has now tabled proposals to continue negotiations towards a standard working week for all employees.

Cllr Smith said that in view of the council's serious financial problems this year he could not agree to withdrawing a letter asking staff who at present work a 36 week to sign a new 37-hour contract until management was sure that the savings could be found.

In a letter to union negotiators he said: "The only way we can achieve certainty in the outcome of the negotiations is to continue with the process we previously decided on while talks continue.

"This is especially important in view of the very serious financial problems the council is currently facing, and the fact that we intend to do everything possible to protect the services we deliver and the jobs of our employees.

"If we successfully negotiate jointly agreed savings then I guarantee we'll issue new contracts putting everyone on 36 hours."

Cllr Brian Baldwin said: "Implementation of single status is a moral and contractual obligation on local authorities. Our budget problems are horrendous this year and we've got to find savings that don't reduce services to our residents or affect the jobs of our staff.

"We've responded positively to the trade unions and we've suggested areas where successful negotiations may achieve the necessary savings.

'We were disappointed to hear the trade unions tell us at the meeting that they still intend to ballot for industrial action, since in our view this is so obviously unnecessary.

'If we do manage to agree on ways to cut the working week, then no-one who has signed the current offer of a compensation package in exchange for a 37-hour week will be disadvantaged."