Not a perk (From York Press)

Not a perk

11:05am Saturday 8th September 2012 in Letters By Reader's letter

REGARDING the news item about perks for council drivers (The Press, August 31), it should be noted that this isn’t indeed a perk and as it has been custom and practice for approximately 20 years and is part of an employees’ terms and conditions.

This has been reflected in various employees’ pay rates, eg gas engineers working for the authority are paid below the going rate for the industry, but accepted employment on the understanding of home-to-work travel, as stated in job advertisements.

Employees were originally asked by the council to take vehicles home to alleviate parking problems within depots and were taxed directly from wages. The vehicles are not available for private use and are fitted with tracking devices.

Various employees work from home straight to a job and it is proposed to charge them mileage to and from Guildhall.

There may not be any cost saving in these proposals and indeed may increase expenditure, as affected employees may well leave vehicles in the depots, travelling back from jobs earlier to “clock off” on time.

Some valuable tradesmen will surely leave. The only certain outcome from these proposals will be to damage morale and affect public service.

B Golding, Secretary, York & District Trades Union Council (TUC).