Dorset County council under fire for 'staggering' staff pay offs (From Dorset Echo)

Not surprised in the slightest, they continue to sort themselves out at every turn treating the tax payer with nothing but contempt. If it was a private company using its own generated profits for payoffs then it would be a much different story. No doubt some of the redundant will be rehired some time in the future and they can get double hand out. The continuing mismanagement of public funds is criminal, no wonder we have little faith in the ability of civil servants to serve in the public's best interests anymore.

So this is why they can't afford to keep libraries open, bus services running etc. Why didn't these people, if they're all over 55, retire instead, surely that would of been cheaper. I'll bet anything that one of them was the previous Chief Executive David Jenkins. Someone I know who works at DCC is taking redundancy, having a week off, then going back in the same job but under an agency, costing lots more. Madness. They look out for themselves as per usual.

See the Echo on Feb 24 2012

Coun leader Angus Campbell said:

“Our senior management costs have reduced by about 10 per cent in last year as part of our work to restructure functions and services.”

Just see who left and its a good chance that they were part of the 'Gravy Train' presided over by your Councillors.

Of couse it's a ridiculous sum of money to be spent in making a few redundancies, but why is it necessary for people to know the names of those who received the pay-offs? That's a step too far, and an invasion of people's privacy. They've done nothing wrong have they?

It seems to me many vindictive individuals just want to see them hounded by an Echo-infused lynch-mob, simply because they worked for the Council.

I think that some of the comments here are a bit misguided or misinformed.

Firstly, I would guess that the regulations of the contract of employment they signed stated what the terms of their redundancy and voluntary retirement were. Do we know if any of these people had much of an option to stay?

I wonder if any of us put in the same position as these people would make the same decision? It is very easy to make negative comments about something when you dont have experience of it.

While I m not enamored of the way the local councils operate, I wonder if this country was not so wasteful in a number of other areas of public expenditure, that we may not be able to put the money in our local services that a number of us would like to retain.

Just a thought!!!

Bailey25 wrote:
So this is why they can't afford to keep libraries open, bus services running etc. Why didn't these people, if they're all over 55, retire instead, surely that would of been cheaper. I'll bet anything that one of them was the previous Chief Executive David Jenkins. Someone I know who works at DCC is taking redundancy, having a week off, then going back in the same job but under an agency, costing lots more. Madness. They look out for themselves as per usual.

And, if you were offered the same opportunity as this person you would turn it down?

Nobody has any business telling someone else here that complaining about this fiasco is misguided in some way.

That supercilious tone makes me suspect that the person that commented is connected in some way. If so - you should be ashamed of yourself. You are a disgrace, and how you sleep at night knowing you have defrauded the very people you were meant to serve is mind boggling.

There is no justification for these payments in any way. Just because they legally hold water is absolutely irrelevant.

The truth of the matter regarding the spending cuts by the council is that there is a core of board level employees protecting their gold plated employment deals, massive pensions, swinging the axe in every direction except where it's really needed.

The publics services as well as wider council employment are being sacrificed at the cost of these scurrilous individuals and their career assets. They are a plague on our society and should be held criminally responsible.

The public are 100% justified in wanting to name and shame those ex employees involved as well as those current employees that arranged it. It's a clear and total misappropriation of public money at a time when not a single public amenity is without some charge or other. These people make me sick the way they squirm and wriggle to avoid the spotlight like cockroach. We should name and shame them so they are forced to do the right and honourable thing and dissolve the payment deals.

louiscox wrote:
Nobody has any business telling someone else here that complaining about this fiasco is misguided in some way.

That supercilious tone makes me suspect that the person that commented is connected in some way. If so - you should be ashamed of yourself. You are a disgrace, and how you sleep at night knowing you have defrauded the very people you were meant to serve is mind boggling.

There is no justification for these payments in any way. Just because they legally hold water is absolutely irrelevant.

The truth of the matter regarding the spending cuts by the council is that there is a core of board level employees protecting their gold plated employment deals, massive pensions, swinging the axe in every direction except where it's really needed.

The publics services as well as wider council employment are being sacrificed at the cost of these scurrilous individuals and their career assets. They are a plague on our society and should be held criminally responsible.

The public are 100% justified in wanting to name and shame those ex employees involved as well as those current employees that arranged it. It's a clear and total misappropriation of public money at a time when not a single public amenity is without some charge or other. These people make me sick the way they squirm and wriggle to avoid the spotlight like cockroach. We should name and shame them so they are forced to do the right and honourable thing and dissolve the payment deals.

I suspect that this might be directed at me -perhaps? Just for information I dont work in the council - neither have I defrauded anyone. I am a normal, hardworking mid range employee, with a signed legal contract of employment which I dont regard as irrelevant. And I am entitled to my own opinion of course.

louiscox wrote:
Nobody has any business telling someone else here that complaining about this fiasco is misguided in some way.

That supercilious tone makes me suspect that the person that commented is connected in some way. If so - you should be ashamed of yourself. You are a disgrace, and how you sleep at night knowing you have defrauded the very people you were meant to serve is mind boggling.

There is no justification for these payments in any way. Just because they legally hold water is absolutely irrelevant.

The truth of the matter regarding the spending cuts by the council is that there is a core of board level employees protecting their gold plated employment deals, massive pensions, swinging the axe in every direction except where it's really needed.

The publics services as well as wider council employment are being sacrificed at the cost of these scurrilous individuals and their career assets. They are a plague on our society and should be held criminally responsible.

The public are 100% justified in wanting to name and shame those ex employees involved as well as those current employees that arranged it. It's a clear and total misappropriation of public money at a time when not a single public amenity is without some charge or other. These people make me sick the way they squirm and wriggle to avoid the spotlight like cockroach. We should name and shame them so they are forced to do the right and honourable thing and dissolve the payment deals.

You have chanced your tune! On another post you were promoting the private sector and how council workers have such a cosy existence. This is a clear example of what happens every day of every week within the private sector, and yes with tax payers money! Don't get me wrong I think this is morally disgraceful but I think it disgraceful full stop. But then again my morals are not selective.

Check out the lyrics to The Show Of Hands song "Arrogance, Ignorance and Greed"

That just about sums it up.


http://www.youtube.c
om/watch?v=1u2ill7yO
Zo

FineDancer wrote:
Of couse it's a ridiculous sum of money to be spent in making a few redundancies, but why is it necessary for people to know the names of those who received the pay-offs? That's a step too far, and an invasion of people's privacy. They've done nothing wrong have they?

It seems to me many vindictive individuals just want to see them hounded by an Echo-infused lynch-mob, simply because they worked for the Council.

You miss the point FineDancer. It is not an invasion of privacy as at the time these people, whoever they may be, were 'PUBLIC SERVANTS', paid for by OUR Council Tax. If a person is a public servant, then when it comes to matters fiscal, particularly in the case of redundnacies, if these are voluntary redundancies, then it is right and propler that the council should inform the people who paid for these pay-offs, the Lcoal Tax payer, what these figures were, and also who received the payments.

Place yourself in the position of being a shareholder in a company, and that company makes massive redundancy payments to senior high ranking officers of the company. You, as a shareholder, have the right to demand from the comapny, the deatils of who received what.

The same has to be true in this case, as the company is Dorest County Council, and the shareholder is 'Local Resident Ltd.'

The council have to justify what it spends our money on, and can not hind behind invasion of privacy regulations, anymore than a PLC compny can. The council, in the end iks answerable to 'US', the mauppets who pay these people their massive salaries.

How many of these senior council officers will get a payrise of about 23% or more this year, but we will not be told, they will just do it, whilst the lowly frontline staff have to live with little or no increase in their pay packets. Government, whether local or national, is, in the main, supposed to be open and transparent, except in a case where such information could endanger national security. But it seems that these days, local and national government can hide whatever they like us, the people.

Thsi is wrong, and we have the right, as a free and democratic society, to demand the names of these people who have received so much of our money without our consent, consent that should have been obtained in the first place from us as we are the paymaster generals in this case - the council tax payer.

The council have to justify what it spends our money on, and can not ***hind*** behind invasion of privacy regulations, anymore than a PLC compny can. The council, in the end iks answerable to 'US', the mauppets who pay these people their massive salaries.

Sorry, 'hind' should = 'hide' - No ones perfect