Millions more spent on hiring temp staff

Oldham Council is still spending millions on agency and temporary staff, despite warning of 100 more redundancies.

In six months to October the authority spent £3.2 million with 61 recruitment agencies.

They range from one company which earned more than £1 million for supplying staff each month, to one which supplied one social worker.

They cover permanent posts during recruitment, and for short term demand, mainly in children, young people and families, and environmental services departments.

In May, unions criticised the council, which made over 400 jobs redundant last year, for spending £5 million in 2008/9 on temporary, agency and interim staff.

If the current spending pattern continues it could be £6 million this financial year.

The figures have been revealed by the GMB’s regional officers, and Peter Duckworth the GMB convenor for the council said: “This is something we keep raising and asking how much it costs.

“Some people have been in temporary posts for years, and the council does not appear to be getting to grips with this.”

Wendy Bradbury, the chairman of Unison, the largest council union, added: “It is a shame that money like that is going to agencies when it should be going to full-time staff.

“Staff morale is quite low because because people are unsure whether or not they will have a job or or whether they are going to get down graded. They would like a bit of certainty.”

Councillor Lynne Thompson, cabinet member for finance and resources, said the high levels of temps were due to wide-ranging restructuring and for posts which may no longer be required at the end of it.

She added: “We have several senior temps working in our financial services department, helping us to completely restructure and redesign our finance systems and services from the bottom up. In the longer-term, this will save money. Many duties currently carried out by staff may no longer be necessary as part of the efficiencies and changes they are making.

“We are confident that agency costs will decrease next year because most of the major remodelling work will be completed.”