The Disciplinary, Grievance and Dismissal Panel are scheduled to meet to discuss a proposed redundancy and consider excluding the press and public from part of the meeting. The panel will also consider any urgent business.

Officer Redundancy

The panel will consider a report regarding a proposed redundancy and associated severance payment for a Head of Service. According to the agenda, further details about this proposal are in an exempt appendix.

The report pack states that the Director of Environment launched a formal reorganisation within the Highways & Parking and Transport & Travel Service areas. The proposals would delete six Head of Service roles as a cost saving initiative, replacing them with three new positions.

The report recommends that the panel approve the redundancy package in accordance with the council's pay policy statement. The reason for the decision is:

In order to reduce senior management costs and enable a restructure of the Highways & Parking and Transport & Travel Service areas.

The report pack notes that an alternative approach would displace another member of staff and still result in a redundancy payment being required. It also notes that the committee has no discretion not to pay any of the payments as they are all required by contract or statute.

The report pack states that the formal reorganisation in Highways & Parking and Transport & Travel Services form part of the wider reorganisation in Environmental and Residence Experience (ERE) and the cost of redundancy in ERE is expected to be circa £450k which was reported to the Cabinet through the budget monitor reports. The cost of redundancy resulting from the reorganisation is expected to be managed within the corporate resources.

The report pack also notes that a redundancy is a form of dismissal in law and must be affected in accordance with the council's Organisational Change Policy. It also notes that an employee subjected to redundancy is entitled to receive compensation for the loss of employment in addition to a statutory redundancy payment. The enhanced redundancy payment under the council's policy is underpinned by The Local Government (Early Termination of Employment) (Discretionary Compensation) (England and Wales) Regulations 2006.

The report pack states that the council's pay policy states that severance payments of £100,000 or more must be considered and approved by the appropriate Member Committee.

Exclusion of the press and public

The panel will consider a resolution to exclude the press and public from items 8 to 9 on the agenda. The reason given is that these items contain information classified as exempt under paragraphs 1 and 4 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972¹. This relates to information about individuals and consultations or negotiations relating to labour relations between the council and its employees.