DCC ‘robustly reject’Gransha jobs axe

Town Clerk Sharon O’Connor has written to the Health and Social Care Board (HSC) and the Health Minister Edwin Poots to register the Council’s “robust rejection” of the proposal to relocate the 60 jobs.

A proposed new shared services model - currently under consideration by the health authorities - suggests the creation of four Centres of Expertise, with the HSC preferred option locating payroll in Belfast, human resources (recruitment and selection) in Armagh, finance payments in Ballymena and the finance income function in Omagh.

But Derry City Council have strongly opposed the proposed move describing it as “disappointing.”

The Council has also written to the Health Minister calling on him to designate Gransha Park as one of the four proposed Centres of Expertise.

Now in a letter to the HSC Ms O’Connor has outlined why the proposed shake-up makes no sense as an efficiency measure and how it will adversely affect young mothers who work in the existing Londonderry office.

She argues that moving the jobs from Londonderry will result in higher costs than keeping them here.

“Derry City Council would highlight that based on the information provided within the consultation document that the lowest cost in terms of capital costs and the second lowest running costs, per Whole Time Employee (WTE) can be achieved by utilising the Gransha site as a centre of excellence,” she argues.

“It is noted that capital costs for the proposed centres of excellence ranges from £5000 per WTE to £25,210 per WTE as compared £3,395 per WTE for the Gransha site, and annual running costs can be as high as £657 per WTE as compared to £187 per WTE at Gransha,” she adds.

She also points out that the proposed rationalisation will have a major impact on young mothers working at Gransha.

“Seventy-eight per cent of the employees affected by the introduction of shared services are female,” the letter reads. “The HR and Finance Directors and managers noted that the fact that the majority of the impact of workforce will be younger female members of staff who have caring responsibilities.”

She continues: “The planned relocation of jobs from the Gransha site will have a disproportionately high adverse impact on these workers due to the potential for significantly increased/unsustainable travel to work distances.”

Announcing the consultation on the shake-up in December the Health Minister said: “Modernisation is key to delivering better services. The Business Services Transformation Project will improve efficiency across the health and social care sector enabling us to provide a more effective service for the people who need health and social care.

“This project will provide common business services across the HSC. This potential to share expertise, improve performance and standardise processes cannot be underestimated. Shared services and the new technology already procured will save both time and money that can be transferred to the front-line.”

Shane Devlin, BSTP Programme Director said: “The consultation will help establish how best to take the next stage of the programme forward. Affected staff will have the opportunity to discuss how the proposed changes in location will impact on them individually and discuss these with their line manager and HR department.”