Southwark (Parliament Politics Magazine) – Southwark Council spent £420,000 on temporary call centre staff to address repair issues, dipping into reserves to reduce residents’ phone wait times.
Last year, the labor-run Southwark had to draw from reserves to pay the six-figure salary of the temporary staff, who are in charge of calling back residents who had concerns.
Why did the Southwark Council introduce the temporary call centre staff?
The so-called “call back staff” was introduced by Southwark to cut down on lengthy phone wait times as operators on the other end gathered data from several departments to address problems.
The council had to use departmental reserves to pay for the additional staff because the new employees were not included in the annual budget.
During an overview and scrutiny meeting on Tuesday (January 21), Cllr. Stephanie Cryan, cabinet member for finance, disclosed that the council had been hiring temporary call centre workers for 18 months.
When Labour councilor Sam Foster questioned why it didn’t seem “logical” to budget for the additional workers, Cllr.
Cryan defended his decision to pay for them out of reserves.
She said:
“The actual departmental reserves are covering it. My worry is if we say ‘let’s budget more for it’ then I’m going to have to find a corresponding saving somewhere [else].”
Cllr. Cryan went on to say that she anticipated the callback workers would be eliminated as the council’s repairs service improved in subsequent years.
She said:
“The idea being that as the repairs improvement plan embeds more and more, the ‘right first time’ increases and the productivity increases in terms of jobs, that actually that resource is no longer needed. And that’s why it’s done on temporary staff rather than permanent staff.”
In response, Cllr. Foster stated that he continued to view the budgeting arrangements as “illogical.” However, he went on to say that he agreed with Cllr. Cryan’s contention that included staff-related expenses in this year’s budget would result in “other issues.”
In order to ensure that repair requests are handled effectively and that homeowners receive timely updates on the status of their repairs, the new call centre employees are entrusted with getting in touch with residents who have reported problems.
Many residents have been frustrated by the backlog of maintenance requests, which this project seeks to improve and reduce.
As part of its strategy for handling repair requests, Southwark Council allows people to book flexible appointment times for non-emergency repairs, such as morning, afternoon, and school run intervals.
Residents can use the council’s online systems to check the status of their requests and report repairs by phone or email. The expenditure on call centre employees is an aspect of a larger plan to raise the general effectiveness and responsiveness of the council’s repair services.
How are UK councils tackling rising costs and dependence on temporary workers?
The cost of recruiting temporary workers has been rising for local authorities in the UK; this trend is a reflection of larger issues with workforce management and financial restraints.
As of March 2021, 45.3% of local government employees were engaged under temporary or casual contracts, a significant departure from the 26.2% of employees on permanent contracts.
About 78% of municipalities struggle with recruitment and high staff turnover rates, which contribute to this reliance on temporary workers.
In certain councils, initiatives to lessen dependency on temporary employees have found promise.
For instance, North Yorkshire County Council was able to cut its temporary worker expenditures from £4 million to £250,000 by centralizing the hiring process and developing a close working relationship with local recruiters.
Temporary staffing has a substantial cost impact. Slough Borough Council, for example, spent tens of thousands of pounds on temporary workers in just three months, with some positions paying up to £1,100 per day. The amount spent on agency labor has been high nationwide; according to previous statistics, since 2004, these expenses have come close to £1 billion.
In addition to saving money, this strategy increased service quality and staff stability. The general trend is still difficult to follow, though, as many councils are still struggling financially, making the switch from temporary worker arrangements problematic.