Geelong council has stood down 576 employees indefinitely after extending its current service closures until “further notice”.
City Hall made the “difficult decision” in line with state and federal directions, according to chief executive officer Martin Cutter.
“We are committed to supporting our employees through this and the best way we can do that is to keep as many employees as possible working,” he said.
“We are providing opportunities to employees who have unfortunately been impacted by these service closures to take on other roles, to help the City deliver essential services for the community.
“For example, we have already redeployed employees to the delivery of Meals on Wheels, which keeps our at-risk volunteers safe and continues an important and valued service to the community.”
City Hall recognised the significant personal impact for employees affected by the closures, Mr Cutter said.
In response the City was enabling employees to bring forward access to next year’s annual leave entitlements, he said.
He also outlined the following commitments from council to support impacted employees:
• Where possible, City Hall will keep employees employed. Employees who can perform their role from home will be directed to do so immediately.
• Employees who are unable to perform their role from home (including casuals) will be stood down and paid their rostered hours for the 14 days directly following the closure. For some this has already occurred. This will also apply to any future service closures in other areas.
• Employees will be able to draw down on their annual leave and long service leave entitlements. Employees will have the option at taking their leave at half pay.
“The City has also established a dedicated employee support hotline and online hub to provide support, information and resources to employees during this time,” Mr Cutter said
“The City is seeking clarity regarding the JobKeeper subsidy.”
