Staff away day 'worth the money'

The council came in for press criticism

The head of Fife Council has written to the Scottish media defending the decision to send staff with poor sickness records on an away day.

A number of finance workers with stress problems had been sent to a four-star hotel at a cost of £1,000.

In his letter, council chief executive Douglas Sinclair said the £86-per-head cost bore comparison to any one day training course.

Mr Sinclair said the authority made "no apologies" for investing in its staff.

He said: "As a responsible employer, we agreed to fund a development day that would help staff identify the causes of stress and how to deal with stress.

We make no apologies for investing in our employees to provide the best service we can Douglas Sinclair Fife Council chief executive

"This is no different from us providing physiotherapy for a member of staff who had a physical ailment."

Mr Sinclair said Fife Council's absence rate was 5.7%, equating to a 15% improvement over the last three years.

The letter continued: "A number of reports also alleged that the council has a £246m deficit.

"This is a gross misrepresentation of the actual situation and is wholly irresponsible reporting. It is also irrelevant to the development day."

The chief executive said that contrary to popular belief, working for a local authority was not a "cushy number".

He added: "Next financial year Fife Council is looking to make approximately £28m in efficiency savings, rising to £47m in 2007/2008.

"This brings a number of challenges which staff have stepped up to and if this causes stress, we will do all we can to alleviate that stress.

"We make no apologies for investing in our employees to provide the best service we can."