30/10/2009 - Staff survey results

Staff at Cumbria County Council have voted that the authority offers improved job security and that they find their roles interesting.

Findings of the new 2009 staff survey of county council employees show some improvements on the most recent full staff survey conducted in 2007. 

According to the new figures, the number of county council employees who felt secure in their jobs increased by 5% to 69%. The percentage of staff who agreed that their job was interesting and rewarding remained the same as 2007 at 80%. 

There were 2524 employees who took the time to fill in the survey - a response rate of 26.5% which is a significant improvement of 17% on 2007.

Despite an unprecedented change across the authority over the last two years there has been only a small rise in staff who believe the council has deteriorated. 

The staff survey contained a range of questions that can be used to measure attitudes on the various aspects of council’s performance - commonly called performance indicators. Between 2005 and 2007 51% of these indicators showed significant positive improvement, 46% showed no change and just 3% saw a decline. 

Comparing this year's results with those from 2007 shows 22% again showed significant positive improvement, 71% showed no change and 7% saw a decline. The figures show that the council has either maintained or improved performance in 93% of performance indicators, an important achievement during two years which have seen significant change across the council.

This shows a general slowing of progress, although obviously as performance improves further improvements will become more difficult.

Council Leader Jim Buchanan, said: "Since the last survey in 2007 the council has been going through a period of considerable change, during which most organisations might have expected staff engagement to decline.

"But our scores have remained steady and in many areas continued to make significant improvement. Given the scale of change we have experienced this should be considered a very positive achievement.

"There are, of course, areas where we can improve having seen performance drop, but we are very conscious of these issues and are taking forward action to address them –at a corporate level and within service areas."

The 2009 staff survey identified seven key areas for action as a result of the findings. 

These were:

- Ensure staff are better informed of changes to the authority

- Tackle bullying, intimidation and harassment

- Focus on improving staff perceptions of corporate management visions for the authority

- Tackle the drop in job satisfaction and percentage in staff who believe performance is improving

- Ensure that the Better Places to Work scheme addresses staff satisfaction with their working environment

- Tackle the different performance between directorates

- Ensure staff issues with appraisal system are dealt with.

Figures have also been released for each directorate with an average of 80% of staff across all areas saying they had friendly colleagues. 

Areas where directorates came out less favourably included opportunities for career progression with, on average 28% of staff satisfied with this. 

Safer and Stronger Communities, which includes Cumbria Fire and Rescue Service, Cumbria Trading Standards, the Resilience Unit and the Community Unit, were lower than the overall average when their staff were asked about their overall satisfaction with their job, 45% compared with 60%, and 15% of staff said that their directorate management team has a clear vision for the directorate, compared with an average of 34%.

However, staff in this directorate said they were happier than most with their pension scheme, 74% compared to 69%, and their annual leave, 69% compared to 65% on average across the directorates.

Cumbria’s Chief Fire Officer and Corporate Director of Safer and Stronger Communities, Dominic Harrison, said: "It is very clear from this that there is considerable dissatisfaction within the Safer and Stronger Communities directorate, but this comes as no surprise as we are in the process of taking forward an unprecedented programme of modernisation and change to the fire and rescue service.

"We are challenging working practices which have remained unchanged for many years and I am sure we can all understand why staff are unhappy and reluctant to let go of ways of working which have served them well over time. But just because change is unpopular doesn’t mean it is wrong and I am prepared to make hard choices where we have to."

Elsewhere in the council there was a drop of 7% in staff who were happy with their work place, from 66% to 59%, and a 4% decline in staff happy with their pay levels, down from 54% to 50%, and employees who said they were informed about what was happening at the council fell from 54% to 48%.

Bullying remains an issue for staff and although figures for staff who claim to have been bullied or harassed in the last 12 months rose by 1% from the 2007 figure of 19%, those who experienced this and then reported it rose 4% to 52%.

ENDS

Media enquiries to Media Officer Chris Little on 01228 226335