Express & Star

Walsall Council in new bid to cut jobs

Every council worker in Walsall is being offered the chance to apply for voluntary redundancy as the authority looks to axe more staff to save £67 million.

Published

The council needs to save the money over the next four years.

Letters are being sent out to the authority's 5,000-strong workforce giving them chance to apply for redundancy.

This year the council is already losing 97 staff and 50 have already gone. The exact number of new job cuts is still to be decided.

Members of the Street Pride team are among those being asked to come forward for voluntary redundancy as part of a restructuring of the service.

Those in the team, which tackles fly-tipping and graffiti, are being asked to express an interest in redundancy or early retirement by October 5. There is no fixed timescale for workers in other departments to apply.

Council leader Mike Bird said the council was battling with one of its most difficult budgets to date. "What we are looking at is a horrible situation with the budget this year," he said. One of the things we're looking at across council services is voluntary redundancy.

"This won't just won't be confined to Street Pride.

"We will see if other council workers want to put their name forward for it too.

"We want to see are there people who want to take voluntary redundancy, there are people coming near to retirement age."

The budget for the year ahead is currently being drawn up with a consultation period taking place.

Bosses have already warned they could be facing a £10 million cut in Government funding for 2012.

By Catherine Dalton

Sorry, we are not accepting comments on this article.