No Compulsory Redundancies – local government briefing Jan 2016

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No Compulsory Redundancies in Scottish councils
A UNISON Scotland briefing

No Compulsory Redundancy Agreements
No Compulsory Redundancy Agreements are good for staff and employers. If staff are not worrying about their jobs they are more able to contribute positively to developing new ways of working. Positive industrial relations lead to less adversarial workplaces which mean a more productive workforce. Retraining and redeploying staff retains skills and knowledge. It’s a much fairer way to treat people who did not cause this crisis in public finances.

Improves Morale
A no compulsory redundancy agreement improves industrial relations, it builds trust by removing the threat of losing your livelihood. This is better for both staff and management’s morale. The agreements help support an ongoing positive industrial relations environment which means positive less adversarial ongoing working relationships between staff and management which is essential when you are facing funding cuts at this level.

Involves staff positively in designing and delivering new ways of working
Staff who are not worrying about their jobs and their futures are more able to contribute positively to developing new ways of working to improve and maintain services. Developing solutions to protect the public as much as possible form these draconian cuts to local government funding means that everyone has to work together. Driving change requires teamwork and innovation across organisations knowing that those who want to can be redeployed means that staff at all levels are willing to contribute and participate in developing innovative ways of working

Maintains and Improves Productivity
Positive industrial relations leads to less adversarial workplaces which mean a happier more productive workplace both during these tough times and beyond. Services need to continue through the change process. Knowing that you are not under threat of redundancy means staff at all levels can concentrate on delivering services rather than worrying about their futures. Public services rely on people going “above and beyond” putting users at the centre of everything they do. We know from our surveys that members are already working extra unpaid hours to meet demand. This means that they need to feel secure about they and their families’ futures so that they can cope with the stress and long hours that public service delivery requires of them

Retains Skills and Builds a Flexible Workforce
Retraining and redeploying staff retains skills and organisation knowledge. This also means you have a bigger pool of staff that is flexible and able to work in a range of roles. Staff then have a better “whole organisation” view of their work and its place in the wider aims of their own team and local government as a whole. This means they are better able to navigate complex organisations and therefore to deliver services to the public in a holistic manner rather than a silo based process.

Fairness
Lastly it is a much fairer way to treat people who did not cause the crisis in public finances, and you can be more reassured you are not creating real hardship.

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For further information contact UNISON Scotland’s Campaigns and Bargaining team on: 0141 342 2811