Hospital cuts jobs to clear debts

Administration and clerical workers will lose their jobs

A hospital is making 29 staff redundant as part of a financial recovery plan to clear an £11m budget deficit.

The job cuts at the Queen Elizabeth ll Hospital in King's Lynn are said by managers to be equal to 20 "full time equivalent" posts.

The number is significantly lower than originally feared, a spokesman said. Estimates in May were that between 65 and 85 staff might lose their jobs.

Staff affected are mainly clerical and administration workers.

Redundancies were lower than original estimates because some staff reduced the hours they work, others have retired or left and their posts have not been filled, or in a few cases jobs have been combined.

Help and support

All redundant employees are free to apply for all vacancies at the hospital during their notice period and many are expected to be redeployed, the spokesman said.

Director of human resources, Amanda Lyes, said: "We have been working closely with the staff representatives to find ways of keeping the number of redundancies as low as possible.

"We are also giving all our staff as much help, information and support as possible."

Union representative Ron Glazebrook said: "Even one redundancy is too many but the financial position of the hospital trust is such that a reduction of staff costs has to be a key part of any financial recovery plan.

"Unison is grateful to have had the opportunity of working together with the hospital Trust to reduce the original figure of anticipated redundancies down to this final level."

The hospital spokesman said that under the current plan the hospital will achieve month-by-month break-even by October and annual break-even by the end of the current financial year next March.