Kirklees Council jobs under threat as crunch bites

Jan 16 2009 By Barry Gibson

JOBS are under threat at Kirklees Council because of the housing slump.

Both the unions and the authority fear jobs may have to go as the demand for new homes dries up.

Union official Paul Holmes fears up to 30 of the 170 workers in the planning and building control departments could lose their jobs – and fears more could go as the recession continues to bite.

And a leading councillor, Clr Andrew Palfreeman, admitted the drop in revenue could lead to job losses.

The warning comes as new figures show unemployment in Kirklees is up by more than 2,000.

Mr Holmes, Kirklees Unison branch secretary, said: "It’s a big problem because of the drop-off in business caused by the credit crunch. We would oppose any compulsory redundancies but if it’s done on a voluntary basis then we would talk about it."