Censorship - who knows?
I am tickled to find that reading my blog is an unapproved activity in the Comhairle offices.
Some managers have been told to stop staff from reading this blog, and that some of them are enforcing this instruction from the top.
Why is this happening? Which other websites are unapproved reading? And, who took the decision? (I know the answer to the last one, but why haven't they told the Councillors?)
I suspect the fear comes from the knowledge of the unpleasant facts about the activities of senior staff to which I have access and evidence. But the senior staff should have thought about that before they did what they did.
For instance, why is one department continuing to suffer huge financial losses for reasons that have been pointed out to higher and higher management over a number of years? Councillors have been given a completely incorrect picture with the real facts hidden, and I suspect that internal and external audit are unaware of the reports that management received. Want to know more Mr & Mrs Councillor, or will you accept the reassurances that you don't need to know - or can't know - about the real situation. More to follow on this one fairly soon...
Some managers have been told to stop staff from reading this blog, and that some of them are enforcing this instruction from the top.
Why is this happening? Which other websites are unapproved reading? And, who took the decision? (I know the answer to the last one, but why haven't they told the Councillors?)
I suspect the fear comes from the knowledge of the unpleasant facts about the activities of senior staff to which I have access and evidence. But the senior staff should have thought about that before they did what they did.
For instance, why is one department continuing to suffer huge financial losses for reasons that have been pointed out to higher and higher management over a number of years? Councillors have been given a completely incorrect picture with the real facts hidden, and I suspect that internal and external audit are unaware of the reports that management received. Want to know more Mr & Mrs Councillor, or will you accept the reassurances that you don't need to know - or can't know - about the real situation. More to follow on this one fairly soon...
10 comments:
Sounds exciting.
Come on Angus is it not about time you let us know what you claim to know or is it all bluff. Your posts "enjoying hospitality" 7/3/2010, "Postman doesn't knock at all" 15/2/2010, "Council tendering process" 12/1/2010 and "Dysfunctional organisations" 8/12/2009 all promise jucy revalations but we so far nothing.
CnES staff in "Purdah" until at least the 7th May. Sounds painful and emotionally cruel for those of the 2000 + employees who wish to participate in the democratic process! More to follow.
I am all for free speech and all that, but I don't want the Council staff that I pay for using their valuable work time reading your Blog in Firms time. I want them to be doing whatever they are paid to do, if they want to read your Blog let them do it when they get home on their own computers in their own time, or they can go to the Library and do it there, unless of course your blog is restricted there, and that would need questioning. If someone is tasked to read your Blog as part of his/her duties at the Council, then I want to know why, as it has nothing to do with the services that the Council is expected to provide.
A while ago many complaints were made on this Blog about the use of Council vehicles being used for the Bacon Butty run, (using the Councils and thereby ours, the Council tax payer's equipment) using the Internet for personal use is in my view exactly the same abuse of equipment and time. In many ways it is no different from the eBay thing, theft, in this case not of materials, but of time.
I am not unsympathetic to Council employee’s plight, they would like to know what is going on as much as the next person, but doing it in Firms time is not on. A Council that I worked for banned all unofficial use of the Internet and email, and rigorously monitored the internet use, it was a sacking offence for any unofficial use found to have taken place, and that included Councillors, although they couldn't be sacked they were hauled before the Chief Executive to explain their actions and be suitable bollocked if necessary. This is what it should be like here and NO exceptions.
A point to ponder say 500 staff have access to email and half (250) of them get 2 personal emails a day and spend 5 minutes reading and responding to each one then that is 41 man hours a day lost to reading and writing private emails. Multiply that up to a week, 208 man hours, a year at say 50 weeks, 10416 man hours. Take £20,000 as a average pay (I'm sure it might be higher) then that is £10.40 an hour. So for 250 staff getting 2 private emails a day on average, will cost the Council and thereby you and me, £108,326! a year in lost time.
I agree with 11.08 am I also think you are bluffing you think you know something but you are to frighted to say and it might be wrong as you hope to be back as a councillor one day and you will have to take your place in the line like the rest of them only one boss in the council a lot of arse lickers follow him.
angus said...
thire is censor ship in the
no
^
council buildings
Cpt Swing, you may also want to do some sums for the fiddle that is known as 'flexi-time'. Very flexi it is too. On the face of it very good for family friendly policies. However its a huge perk and more open to abuse than anything else. Also infuriating for anyone who is trying to manage a department. Staff can earn days, if not weeks off work simply by sitting at their desks gazing at aformentioned e-mails/internet, whilst the minutes tick by. Thirty minute lunches, no problem, just double clock at the dame time and go off to sleep for an hour. Sit at your desk until the wife has the dinner on the table, another extra hour. 'Forget' to clock out for lunch? Ooops, you automatically get deducted an hour, but you have actually spent over two hours doing something or the other, somewhere or the other. It all adds up and then entire departments disappear at the end of the month...because they have to use their flexi. Lose your card, and re-set the system. Perhaps someone can fill in the gaps for the ones I have missed out.
Anyone with nothing else better to do could ask for an FOI on time owed on flexi. Even better than time given away...which translates into cash.
Capt Swing you very much under estimate the amount of time lost to e-mail and the internet.
Add on flexi time where staff stay on after 9 to 5 to gain hours for time off. They have little to do during the day less more after close of play.
I know of cases where staff leave - put the tea on - return to work for an hour or so to use e-mail and on line shopping etc then clock off!
I would estimate at least one hour per employee alone per day on e-mail and God only knows how much more on the internet.
Add the 'flexi hours' gained I would round your figures off to at least £1M per year!
I agree with earlier posters.
If you have evidence of fraud, give it to the police.
If you have evidence of questionable practices, forward it to the relevant statutory bodies.
Otherwise, stop faffing around. We all know that this council is deeply corrupt but your 'flirtation' with the truth is not helping matters.
I, and the other parties who have sourced some of the information, are taking the appropriate steps.
Some of these steps need careful action, and some will take quite long to come to fruition.
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