Fears for Welsh rural service

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Welsh employment support service “treats staff with contempt”

Staff running the Welsh Government’s Business Wales service – the outsourced rural regeneration agency – have been left fearful for their terms and conditions, and even the viability of the service itself, in the wake of changes introduced by incoming contract provider Antur Teifi.

Prospect has written to Welsh Minister Edwina Hart to highlight its fears, not least of which is Antur Teifi’s decision to make 96 staff redundant as soon as the contract starts on 4 January 2016.

Staff transferring from the current providers to Antur Teifi have been told that the company will not:

  • tell them what their salary or job descriptions will be from 4 January
  • allow staff with local government pension arrangements to remain in that scheme, as permitted by pension legislation
  • cover additional travel costs arising from the move to an office in St Asaph, which in some cases adds an extra 70 miles per day and could exceed £5k in additional travel costs
  • recognise trade unions.

Prospect negotiator Tony Hammond said: “The company has said it plans to increase employment in Wales by more than 10,000 jobs over the next five years. But that claim seems precarious given the company’s first action is to launch a massive compulsory redundancy programme on statutory terms.

“Suggestions that it plans further economic, technical or organisational changes are creating further unrest. Not only do staff have no idea what their salaries or job descriptions will be in the New Year, but they have been given no information about how the redundancy selection process will operate.”

Hammond said questions also remain over how the service will be delivered. “We are calling on the minister to intervene urgently.

“It seems incredible that a support service designed to provide employment opportunities for small businesses in rural Wales, often on a face-to-face basis, is unwilling to pay travel expenses or guarantee that advice is available in the Welsh language, merely stating ‘speaking Welsh is a bonus’.

“Action is needed now to ensure the contempt Antur Teifi has shown to the staff providing the service doesn’t extend to the quality of the support it provides.”

For further information contact:
Tony Hammond   0151 728 9028 (w) 0771 351 1711 (m)  [email protected]
Katherine Beirne   020 7902 6625 (w)  07753 933174 (m)  [email protected]