lep.co.
uk
Grit teams to
lose standby
pay in review
Review of winter maintenance bonuses
HIGHWAYS staff could
lose thousands of pounds
in pay despite being con-
gratulated for their work
gritting Lancashire’s roads.
The Evening Post under-
stands that, as part of the coun-
ty council’s current pay review,
winter maintenance staff may
lose their bonuses and standby
allowances, paid out when they
are on call during winter spells.
The gritting of roads is undertak-
en by a core number of workers, al-
though this is supplemented by vol-
untary arrangements for extra pay.
The county council said it was ex-
amining the “special payments” as
part of a review.
Les Parker, Lancashire branch
secretary of union UNITE, said:
“(For some) the winter gritting is a
voluntary task undertaken by em-
ployees for the benefit of the people
of Lancashire and it’s sad to think,
with one hand, they are congratu-
lating them on a job well done
while, on the other, the authority is
attempting to reduce their pay and
allowances with regard to this work.
“I wonder what Geoff Driver
would say if gritting drivers refused
to carry out this voluntary act.”
Carol Lukey, the county council’s
Free football coaching for children during half-term holiday
BRUSH up on football skills dur-
ing the half-term holidays with free
coaching.
SLIGHT RETURN: A police officer directs traffic in the snow following a crash in Fulwood on Tuesday
by Chris Visser
chris.visser@lep.co.uk
branch secretary for Unison, said:
“Unison is negotiating on behalf of
its members to make sure they get
the best deal.”
Clive Giddings, head of human
resources policy at the county coun-
cil, said: “Our gritting crews deserve
to be congratulated for their excel-
lent work during the recent extreme
weather.
“Our equal pay review is about
making sure we employ people on
an equal and fair basis.
“We are currently consulting with
trades unions on pay and terms and
conditions for the 30,000 of our staff
affected by the equal pay review.
“Emergency call-out and stand-
by payments are among a number
of special payments being consid-
previous
stories
lep.co.uk
● Complaints on gritting
total 9,000
● Gritting to be slashed
by a quarter
Tesco is offering skills sessions at
the Lancashire FA Headquarters
in Leyland on Thursday, February
Evening Post, Friday, February 5, 2010 9
Fans get chance
to be TV voice
YOUNG football fans in Preston are being in-
vited to put their football commentating skills
to the test.
The hunt is on to find Britain’s next top
commentator, with the help of Sky Sports’
Martin Tyler.
He said: “Commentary involves a lot of
technique which can be learned, but the main
requirement is a love for football and a pas-
sion for talking about it.”
The competition is being run by visitbirm-
ingham.com and Aston Villa FC and is open
to anyone under the age of 16.
Prizes include a media tour and hospitality
passes for Villa Park and an action-packed
family weekend away.
● Go to www.visitbirmingham.com for
more information.
ered as part of the review, but we
have not yet reached the stage of fi-
nalising any proposals in order to
be able to begin communicating
and consulting on them with our
staff.”
County Coun Driver said: “It’s
obviously not a voluntary act (for
some) because it’s part of their job,
but we do thank them and we are
grateful for all the work they’ve
done.
“We’re doing our best to min-
imise the impact of the job evalua-
tion. The exercise hasn’t finished
yet, so I don’t know what the im-
pact will be on individual groups of
employees.
“A lot of those bonuses are going
but what we’re hoping to do is wrap
it all up in their pay so the impact is
minimised.”
In a recent letter sent to ‘all win-
ter maintenance staff’, Mr Fitzger-
ald wrote: “The leader and I want to
let you know that we and the rest of
Lancashire County Council are
united in our admiration for you
and your colleagues and that we are
proud of the outstanding job that
you are doing.”
Gritting staff, including 150 qual-
ified drivers and 40 supervisors,
worked for up to 38 days straight
during the recent cold snap which
produced the worst weather in Lan-
cashire for 30 years.
18. The sessions run from 10am-
2pm and 1pm-3pm. To book a
place, visit www.fa-tesco-skills.co.uk