Spending watchdog reveals true cost of public pay-offs

JUST 1200 high-earning public-sector staff shared £224 million in pay-offs worth on average £187,000 each, the spending watchdog has found.

Bodies such as the Scottish Government, councils, the NHS, police and fire services spent £561m on redundancy and early retirement packages for more than 14,000 staff in the past two years, according to the Accounts Commission.

The majority of packages averaged less than £50,000, but 8.3% averaged in excess of £100,000 and accounted for more than 40% of the total expenditure, the Commission found.

Early release can save money but the commission wants more transparency about their costs and conditions.

A former chief executive of West Dunbartonshire Council was hired for five years but given a pension for nearly nine years’ service, the commission said.

Concerns have also been raised about retired staff returning to their post, such as Strathclyde Fire and Rescue chief fire officer Brian Sweeney.

The commission said employers must ensure packages do not cost more in the long run, do not deprive the organisation of vital staff and do not unfairly deprive staff of employment rights.

The issue is particularly relevant with the merger of police and fire services and colleges.

Direct public-sector employment has dropped by 40,000 since 2009, with early departures accounting for about half and the rest retiring through age and health, or moving to other jobs.

The report states: “In the two years 2010/11 and 2011/12, more than 14,000 public-sector staff accepted some form of early retirement or redundancy, at an initial overall cost of £561m.”

The commission said that, while early departures can be cost effective, there is a price to pay with some organisations unaware of the true costs to revenue budgets or to pension funds.

It added: “Dumfries and Galloway Council has recently announced an intention to place restrictions on the future recruitment of individuals who have accepted any form of early departure. Early departure schemes are an important tool for public organisations.

“They are not a way of rewarding staff and should not be seen as an entitlement.”