Union slam Kirklees Council as ‘Orwellian’ for hiring new managers

PICKET LINE Unison workers have protested in the past about Kirklees Council budget cuts.

Unison said new posts were being created at the same time the council is refusing to pay the ‘living wage’ to 1,600 of its staff who earn less than £7.65 per hour.

Kirklees branch secretary Paul Holmes said: “It is truly Orwellian – the more austerity you have, the more highly paid managers you need to make staff redundant, cut their pay and conditions and ensure services are removed.”

A Kirklees Council spokeswoman said: “The head of transformation post replaces a higher grade post. The chief service officer post is the result of the successful Bloomberg bid and is being funded by external sources.”

She also confirmed that the adult services roles were part of a restructure and will see no additional spending.

The current director of public health is retiring later this year and needs to be replaced.

The living wage is being considered by councillors, she added.

The posts include:

Director of public health, commissioning and adult social care - £110,000-£121,000.

Director of public health (to be appointed, in addition, if the above post is filled by a ‘non-qualified’ public health officer) - £80,000-£92,000.

Head of transformation - £48,000-£50,000.

Head of community health and social care - £50,000-£56,000.

Chief service officer - £63,000-£73,000.