Following campaigning from Unite, the Council is improving how it staffs Waste and Cleansing by
- reducing the proportion of agency staff
- improving the recruitment process for agency staff going for full-time jobs.
This is a significant result for the workforce in Waste and Cleansing.
The promise from the picket
During last year’s strike it came to light how many agency staff were in Waste and Cleansing across the Council. Our estimate put it at around 30-40%, with some areas being staffed almost entirely by agency staff.
We listened to your concerns about this and promised we would see agency use reduced in Waste and Cleansing.
The Council is now reducing agency staffing in Waste and Cleansing to 10-15%, using agency workers only where suitable—such as for cover or seasonal work—rather than having long-term agency workers that really want a council contract.
Management and HR in the area have made good on their commitment to in-house provision of services and improved the recruitment process for these roles. This means that workers that previously couldn’t get mortgages, loans etc. due to their precarious working arrangements now can.
Recruitment
Recent recruitment to full-time positions saw a significant number of agency staff recruited to council contracts. There will be on-going monthly tranches of recruitment offering agency staff the chance to apply for a full-time position and the Council are looking into offering rolling recruitment opportunities.
The previous ‘competency-based’ style of interview, which is used across the Council, has been replaced with a situation-based one, which is more suited for this area of work. This makes sure that those that know how to do the job from experience can show this at the interview.
Victory for the workers and people of Edinburgh
This is a significant win for Waste and Cleansing workers. It ensures that there is an experienced and supported team in place to service the needs of the city, while providing additional benefits to the local economy as a result of the financial security won by these changes.
Agency or temp worker in Waste and Cleansing?
Key an eye on myjobscotland for permanent positions, these will be coming up over the next few months.