Union’s job loss figures challenged

According to an analysis of official data by the GMB there were 211,800 people employed in the third quarter of 2012, including those working in schools – down from 243,600, at the beginning of 2010, a drop of 13 per cent.

The GMB claimed the council which had seen the largest exodus of staff was North Yorkshire County Council, losing 4,427 staff over the period, followed by Leeds with 3,627 and 2,451 in Doncaster.

GMB regional secretary Tim Roache said cuts were “a disaster for local communities and for those workers who have lost their jobs”.

But North Yorkshire said the true figure was 1,855, including 500 staff who had moved from council-run schools to academies, which didn’t represent job losses. The GMB appeared to have included supply and relief staff on “as and when contracts”.

Councillor Carl Les said they took issue with the GMB’s sums, but the end result of down-sizing was a “leaner and more efficient” council.

Andrew Allison, from the TaxPayers’ Alliance, said: “Fewer staff does not automatically mean reduced services. More efficient ways of working can and have been found by councils across Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire.”