FAIRNESS is one of our underpinning values as a party – and something I’ve had huge amounts of correspondence about over the past two weeks. Our Council is working towards making sure that their staff are on the right pay scale for the job that they do. On the surface this sounds perfectly legitimate.

However, we’ve been getting letters and emails from staff telling us that when they were interviewed and received feedback, as part of the review, they were assured that they were on the right scale - only to find out later that they would take a cut in pay. I’ve also been told that they are not allowed to represent themselves or be represented at their appeal re loss of salary. I’d been led to believe that all salaries that would drop, would be frozen for three years so that any staff (and the ‘Council’ didn’t think it would be many) could get used to the prospect of a drop in pay or apply for a job else where or apply for a better job where they are. Now I’m told, by worried staff, that this may not be so.

There has also been discussion between us as Lib Dem Cllrs – to find out what we all think and Richard (Cllr Baum) has put our concerns and questions together to the Head of Personnel. We await replies. Meanwhile I have been asking the staff who have been contacting me if they are receiving and following the advice of their Union and if they feel that their Human Rights are being infringed as they cannot be present at their appeal, to contact the Commission for Equality and Human Rights in Manchester.

The overall outcome for our Tory-led Bury Council is that they have lost the goodwill of their staff as so many are aggrieved – is that a positive way forward?