Colchester Council staff are set to get £465,000 extra in pay rises after an investigation into staff turnover.

The council commissioned Hay Management Consultancy to carry out a £17,500 pay review last year, when staff turnover reached 13 per cent in comparison with 1.5 and 3.5 per cent the year before. This year turnover reached 14 per cent.

Through the review all jobs at the council were evaluated and graded to determine if employees pay reflected current trends.

Some management positions had received larger pay rises as a result of the structural changes. The increased £0.5m cost will be balanced out by a reduction of staff at some levels following the review of the council's management structure.

The management review saw the number of council directors cut from four to three and heads of services from 20 to nine.

Louise Goodwin, head of democratic and organisational services, said the review was not a cost-cutting exercise: "If we can not recruit and retain the correct support staff we cannot do what we need to do within the new management structure."

She added: "The pay review was not about cutting costs, it was about recruiting and retaining our staff.

"We would be having to do this whether or not we had carried out a management review."

She said the new pay structure had been negotiated with Unison and had its support.

However, Unison is concened another reason for staff leaving is being caused by low morale and restrictive career prospects.

The review will be discussed at a meeting of the council's cabinet on Monday.

By Martin Buxton

Reporter's e-mail: martin_buxton@thisisessex.co.uk

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