Council’s jobs score scheme under attack

FURIOUS council workers are protesting that a job evaluation consultation is pointless — because there’s no indication of what their salary will be.

Oldham Council is carrying out the scheme to harmonise pay scales with final scores forming the basis of a new pay and grading structure.

Information has been sent to each employee about how the score was calculated and they can appeal. But workers say they are completely in the dark until they know what their wages will be.

Peter Emery (57), of Dunwood Park Courts, Shaw, has been caretaker of St Mary’s Primary School, Rushcroft Road, Shaw, for more than 10 years.

He said “We’ve all been sent these forms by the council with our new grades on but we haven’t a clue what the grades mean — there’s no salary figures, they’re absolutely pointless.

“It’s so confusing. All this useless paperwork sent out by a council that’s supposed to be saving £17 million — they’d have done better to wait until they knew what our money was gong to be.

“Everyone’s form is different too. I’m employed directly by the school so I’m not even allowed to appeal, but my cleaner, who’s employed directly by the council, has to have her appeal in to me by the end of the week.

“But how can she appeal against a salary when she doesn’t know what it’s going to be? The trouble is, if they cut our money — and it isn’t great to start with — all the extras that we do will go out of the window.”

Another worker said: “You can appeal against the score but not the salary, but we are not being told the salary we will receive before the time to appeal runs out. What a fix!”

Labour leader Councillor Jim McMahon has written to chief executive Charlie Parker to formally request an extension to the appeal deadline.

He said: “Now more than ever it is essential for staff to feel valued and that their views are being taken into account and addressed.

“Given the high number of complaints it is clear that the deadline needs to be extended.”

At last week’s full council meeting, council leader Howard Sykes said he would be sympathetic to any extension request.

The evaluation sent to staff looks at 13 factors, including the knowledge and skills necessary to do the job as well as the demands and responsibilities, with each given a score.

It states: “Job Evaluation is about measuring each job accurately, it is not concerned with pay. Pay and other terms and conditions will be negotiated with the trade unions later.”

In Bury almost 1,200 council staff were told their gradings meant a pay cut, some of up to £7,500 a year.