Fewer days lost in Town Halls through sickness absence and training courses

Some encouraging trends in the LGA's Local Government Workforce Survey for 2011-12 compared to the previous year.

When you have overmanning in an organisation, such as a local authority, sickness absenteeism is noticed much less.

Bloated staffing levels also encourage a tendency to send staff off on training courses to pass the time. Often the topics will be esoteric with little or no practical benefit. Councillors who have tried to get hold of a housing officer or planning officer or social worker and been told they off on a course to discuss diversity or health and safety will be familiar with this phenomenon.