One in six Cork City Council staff earning over €20k in overtime and allowances
Cork City Hall. Picture: Chani Anderson @capturesbychani
The local authority spending watchdog has expressed concern at the level of overtime and allowances in Cork City Council, with one in six of its staff receiving in excess of €20,000 each in such payments in 2021.
A report by the Local Government Audit Service (LGAS) has revealed that Cork City Council paid out a total of €12m in overtime and allowances to 999 employees in 2021 — an increase of €130,000 over the previous year.
The figures show that 242 council employees, out of a total staff of more than 1,500, each received over €20,000 in overtime and allowances in 2021.
The LGAS said it had already highlighted the levels of overtime and allowances paid to staff in previous audits.
However, it noted that a review of allowances was still ongoing when the latest audit was conducted.
Council figures show overtime payments increased to €6.5m in 2021 compared to €6m the previous year.
The LGAS acknowledged that new overtime policies had been approved by council management in November 2021, resulting in a decline in overtime payments in some sections of the local authority.
“Notwithstanding same, given the high levels of overtime and allowances still being paid, strict management and oversight is required to ensure these costs are closely managed,” the report noted.
In reply, Cork City Council chief executive Ann Doherty said the council had introduced a revised overtime policy to strengthen controls in relation to the approval and working of overtime.
Ms Doherty said the policy was being reviewed and refined “on an ongoing basis”. She said “significant work” had also been completed in relation to a review of allowances paid to employees, with strengthened controls.
Ms Doherty pointed out that vacant positions across the organisation were, in many cases, required to be covered by overtime.
The LGAS said the most significant increase in overtime was recorded in the fire services section of Cork City Council.
The LGAS audit showed the total amount paid out in overtime and allowance for the city’s fire service in 2021 was €4.3m — up from €3.9m in 2020.
Following a dispute between firefighters represented by the Siptu trade union and council management over interim arrangements, including the payment of overtime in late 2021, the Labour Court ruled last year that the recruitment process to fill vacancies for retained firefighters (who work on an on-call basis) at the fire station in Ballincollig should be expedited as a matter of urgency.
However, the Labour Court did not recommend Siptu’s proposal to maintain staffing levels on an overtime basis while the recruitment process was ongoing.
The audit noted that interim overtime payments ceased at the end of November 2021.
It also highlighted how a strategic review of the council’s fire and building control department by external consultants was commissioned by the local authority in late 2020 to assess the degree to which its resources and delivery of services was future-proofed to meet the demands of the city.
The audit said the review was published last June, together with a 36-month roadmap to implement 20 recommendations.
“Management should ensure that necessary actions are taken,” said the LGAS.
Ms Doherty confirmed that recruitment to reinstate the retained fire service in Ballincollig was progressing, while the implementation of the recommendations of the strategic review were due to start at the end of last year.
The audit report showed Cork City Council recorded a surplus of €60,000 in 2021, which increased its general reserve balance to just over €1m.
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