Author: simon
Council Workers’ Industrial Action: Background (Podcast)
Wednesday, 2nd December, 2009 at 11:12 am, Isle of Wight
Employment, Island-wide, Isle of Wight Council, News, podcast
Yesterday morning, we made our way to County Hall to talk with workers taking part in industrial action.
The IW Council want to remove a car allowance that is paid to council workers who have to use their cars to carry out their work for the council.
Those affected include staff in children services; social workers; planning department; highways; occupational therapy and education.
Previously an annual amount of either £795 (for cars up to 999 cc) and £906 (over 1000cc) per annum was paid to these council staff on a monthly basis to cover wear and tear to the car, the need for business insurances, etc. They also received a mileage rate of 33.6p and 37.1p per mile respectively.
Unison tell us that the council has changed contracts and in place of the previous monthly payment, are proposing to scrap the allowance for anyone not claiming over 6,000 miles per annum and replace it with a slight increase on the mileage rate.
The new rates will be 42.9p per mile and 47.7p respectively.
Mark Chiverton from Unison told us that the Isle of Wight council is the only council in the UK that isn’t paying ‘essential car user allowance,’ while requiring people to use their cars for their council work.
The response from those who will be affected is to withdraw the use of their personal cars for council business. They will use the bus or cars hired by the council to carry out their work.
Here’s the interview we did with Mark Chiverton today
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Reassuringly consistent in their ’shell out more for nothing’ logic.
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It would be great if it became illegal for employers to have contracts which require employees to own something – a car or anything else – before they can have a job.
I didn’t have a car till I was 38, and I only got one because I had to. I got a local government job for which I was considered an ‘essential user’. When I asked for a loan (about £1100, I think it was) to buy one, the financial people said no because I couldn’t afford it… on the salary they were paying me!
But until the day that local authorities provide vehicles for staff who do need to use them, it’s just plain mean of the Isle of Wight Council to take away the essential car user allowance.
How about if the Council bought annual bus passes for all its essential car users? Otherwise they’re just asking Council staff to subsidise the Council.
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How about they invest in a small fleet of electric cars in line with Eco-Island (I know its just a joke policy to distract us)
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They were supposed to be doing that already – seems to have all gone quiet.
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Workers livelihoods under attack
The Ryde and east Wight Trades Council expresses solidarity with workers in struggle to defend their standards.
The IW Council want to remove a long standing allowance paid to council workers who have to use their cars to carry out their work for the council. This attack is coming on top of job losses and further announcements of 200 job cuts in the pipeline.
These so called “efficiencies” are a consequence of the present crisis and recession exacerbated by financial meltdown of the wider economy. The Isle of Wight Council authorities are carrying out their own cost cutting measures to alleviate financial difficulties too. The Council, led by the Tories, have capitulated to the notion that there is no alternative to cost cutting. They even want people to enter into discussion where those cuts can be made. There is an alternative that requires standing up to the government who refuse to fund local government adequately. It requires spending plans that do not hit the workers and people on low income. It requires stop paying the rich with handouts and paying huge executive salaries. The result of the council authority actions is to reduce the amount put into the local economy whereas instead more should be put into it.
Ryde Trades Council believes that the Council cost cutting actions will reduce services and undermine important spending power of an important section of workers. It is exploitative of the remaining workers whose added value will be creamed even further.
The car allowance cuts affect staff in children services; social workers; planning department; highways; occupational therapy and education. These are all important services and infrastructural areas.
Workers are quite rightly refusing to use their cars. The amount lost amounts to a massive £800 per annum, a huge amount against their salaries. Workers will have to use buses and hire cars instead, which is obviously inefficient. It is obvious why there has been such an overwhelming and positive result in the ballot for action.
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Iv heard they have been making people ‘voluntarily redundant’ without any notification. The person only knows when the P45 comes through. It is fair to say they were on a 0hour contracts. Is that legal?
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