Call for council workers to get £500 bonus

Politicians want North Ayrshire Council key workers and Covid-19 responders to get £500 to recognise their efforts during the pandemic.

A number of councillors voted to lobby the Scottish government to hand out that amount to local government staff.

It came after First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced all NHS staff would get the bonus.

Irvine Labour councillor Robert Foster lodged a motion at a full council meeting before Christmas asking for every council staff member to get the payment.

It would cost about £2.7 million if every council employee received the payment.

But not all politicians wanted every council employee to benefit.

Stevenston Labour councillor Jimmy Miller was not happy about senior officers potentially pocketing the sum.

He said: ‘I am one of these sort of people that are adverse to giving someone who is earning £150,000 a year £500. ‘I don’t care how hard they work.’

Councillor Foster replied: ‘It is not a huge amount of money we are asking for. It’s not a huge amount of money we are giving people. It is £500. It is a thank you.’

Dalry and West Kilbride councillor Joy Brahim put forward an amendment to the motion calling for the NHS payment to be ‘extended to all Covid-19 responders and key workers across local government and that they are rewarded equally’. The SNP politician’s amendment was carried.

It said the council would support a call from local government organisation COSLA to pay out the reward to council workers involved in the Covid response and key workers.

Local SNP leader Irvine councillor Marie Burns said: ‘Our concern with Councillor Foster’s motion is it would give the £500 payment to every employee of North Ayrshire Council, which we don’t support.’

Payment

Conservative councillors abstained in the vote at the full council meeting. Conservative local leader Councillor Tom Marshall said: ‘The Conservatives believe that only certain employees went above and beyond the call of duty and so deserve extra payment.

‘Most council employees did not lose their job and were paid every week by the public purse – the taxpayer – and were financially secure. ‘This is in contrast to others people who have attempted to run their own private businesses and struggled to stay afloat, others who lost their jobs and others their homes,’ he added.