Bedford Borough Council’s Liberal Democrat and Labour administration has been slammed for breaching its own pay policy by failing to backdate monies owed to care home staff for payment of the ‘Living Wage’.
In April 2014 the Council’s 6 care homes, which had been managed by Bupa, were transferred back under the Council’s control. In the same month the Council implemented a policy to pay its staff the ‘Living Wage’ of £7.65 instead of the statutory National Minimum Wage of £6.31.
Later in the year it emerged that the care home staff had still not had their pay increased in contrast with other members of staff.
Following questioning by Conservative Leader Cllr Stephen Moon, the Labour Portfolio Holder said that regulations prevented the Council from simply giving the staff a pay rise. This proved to be incorrect when the Council’s head of Human Resources wrote to Cllr Moon in February 2015, admitting that the Council was keeping costs down with a view towards finding an external manager for the care homes.
The care homes have since remained under the Council’s control but it was not until February that the staff finally received their pay increase. At Wednesday’s meeting of Full Council the Conservatives put forward a motion to request that the care home staff receive a backdated payment for April 2014 – January 2015. This was refused by the Mayor and the Liberal Democrat and Labour Groups.
Following the meeting, Cllr Moon said:
‘It is disgraceful that important, low paid and vulnerable council workers are being treated this way.
‘Time and time again we were wrongly told that the Council’s hands were tied in not being able to pay the Living Wage to the staff but the reality was that it was a deliberate and cynical commercial decision.
‘The Labour Party have done this because they have pledged allegiance to the Mayor. I would call it selling out.’