Social Protection staff complain about ‘scruffy’ colleagues

Workers at the Department of Social Protection have complained some of their colleagues look "scruffy", and that a lack of an appropriate dress code creates an unprofessional image.

The concerns are contained in a hard-hitting internal report on transforming the culture of the 7,000-strong department, which also found that there seems to be a “reluctance to tackle poor or underperformance in a consistent or meaningful way”.

The report by Axiom Consulting Partners says “anecdotal evidence also seems to suggest ‘problem members of staff’ are moved from one area to another to minimise their impact and share the burden, rather than underlying issues being addressed directly”.