Council workers told to take New Year off

COUNCIL staff will have to take three days of their annual holiday allowance over New Year in a bid to save £85,000.

Employees were told to book days off on December 29-31 in 2009 to allow for the temporary closure of services and buildings. And the move will be repeated this year.

Out-of-hours services will again remain open for emergencies.

Some £3,000 per day was saved by the closure last year. Further savings were made through reduced usage of agency staff.

Councillor Lynne Thompson, Cabinet member for finance and resources, said: “This is the second time we have operated the Christmas closure scheme.

“We found that it proved to be a successful experience for taxpayers and staff alike.

“Some of our services were under extreme pressure during this period — particularly our highways team which was out gritting the roads, and our adult and social care staff, who battled the elements to maintain daily visits to vulnerable residents.

“Despite these additional pressures we found that the systems that were in place worked well overall.

“We have, however, also identified some areas where we can make further improvements and these will be factored into our forward planning.

“Following positive feedback from our staff — and discussions with the trade unions — the Council again anticipates these arrangements will be repeated for Christmas, 2010.”