Thousands of Derbyshire County Council staff working across social services, children’s services, day centres, libraries, homecare, community services, tourism, and schools are to be balloted for strike action.
Despite having millions of pounds in reserve, the council plans to axe jobs and services without proper consultation in an attempt to deliver a balanced budget, says UNISON.
The union says it has identified a number of ways to avoid the severe cuts being proposed, including finding more efficient ways to provide essential services.
For example, UNISON says half the beds in Derbyshire County Council’s own care homes are empty. Using them to full capacity would reduce the £113m the authority spends on private care places.
UNISON East Midlands regional organiser Dave Ratchford said: “For decades, the union has been consulted about any planned restructures or redundancies. But now the council has abandoned those consultation arrangements and are hell bent on pressing ahead with cutting jobs and services.
“Strike action is always the last resort. Councillors shouldn’t be trying to shut staff out of this crucial process or pressing ahead with these huge cuts without first considering some sensible alternatives.”
Notes to editors:
- Derbyshire has a total population of 803,400, which is expected to increase 13% by 2043. The council’s gross expenditure is £1.6bn. Spending on agency staff has doubled in the past five years to nearly £20m.
- UNISON is the UK’s largest union with more than 1.3 million members providing public services in education, local government, the NHS, police service and energy. They are employed in the public, voluntary and private sectors.
