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Addendum Agenda - Ordinary Meeting – Tuesday 26 April 2022 Page 0 |
MM22.8 Mayoral Minute - Valuing Council Employees
HPERM Ref: D22/166500
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That Shoalhaven City Council: 1. Formally recognises the value of its workforce and commits to not outsourcing any work that is currently undertaken by the permanent workforce - including permanent part time employees. 2. Continue the practice of converting employees who have been on fixed term employment contracts for extended periods to the permanent staff where those roles are deemed ongoing and recurrent funding is available in the budget.
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Details
Shoalhaven City Council undertakes a vast array of services through its workforce and in particular its outdoor workforce, including (but not limited to) mowing, horticultural and tree services. These services have been traditionally undertaken by Council employees and over the years the level of professionalism and qualifications of staff in these roles has risen considerably.
All roles within Council are performed by our committed and dedicated staff with our workforce being held in very high regard by the elected Council. Shoalhaven City Council staff are proud of the work they do and have worked tirelessly to create an efficient and effective service for the community.
Recently it was brought to Councillors’ attention that toilet cleaning was an additional task that had been given to outdoor staff as part of the duties within their precincts. This task isn’t one that many of our skilled outdoor staff prefer to do as they would rather dedicate their time and efforts to their substantive duties. Through workplace consultation with staff, it was suggested that toilet cleaning could be better serviced through a specific contract and given the amount of maintenance backlog the city is experiencing due to the multiple effects of natural disasters, keeping our outdoor staff focused on their primary duty provides far better outcomes.
The proposal presented to Council identified that savings from the contract were not insignificant and those funds could be spent directly on other maintenance work, including roads maintenance. However, the awarding of the contract has raised concerns with some staff that there is further consideration being given for ‘outsourcing’ of work currently performed by Council staff.
This Mayoral Minute is to confirm to our staff that there is no intention from this Council to outsource any work that is currently undertaken by the permanent workforce (including permanent part time employees) - just as Council was committed to retaining our workforce during the early days of COVID 19 where we deployed many people into other roles.
The Minute also confirms that Council will continue the practice of converting employees who have been on fixed term employment contracts for extended periods to the permanent staff where those roles are deemed ongoing and recurrent funding is available in the budget.
When the current short contract for toilet cleaning is completed in two years’ time, and Council has had the opportunity to tackle some of the big repair issues that multiple natural disasters have wrought on the city, it will be the right time to reconsider this arrangement.
Right now, our City needs our attention and the right people to do that are the staff of Shoalhaven City Council, who have given above and beyond in service, continuously over the last 2 plus years of significant challenges. We appreciate staff efforts in all areas, which haven’t gone unnoticed in these challenging times.
I commend the recommendation to you.
