Toilet turnstiles provide maximum flow capacity while causing minimal disruption
The future of public toilets is being discussed across an entire county as a local authority looks to save £1 million. Cornwall Council wants a complete overview of the service as part of an overall programme of budget savings in efficiencies over the next four years. The council will also be examining the possibility of charging for the use of public conveniences or closing sites where there is a strong case to do so.
Dads and mums who do not send their children to school could face fines of hundreds of pounds. Portsmouth City Council prosecuted four parents in one day for this offence.
A senior union official has criticised the way an electronics giant is seeking to close one UK depot and open another. Unite’s Peter Hughes said: “Bosch had a dedicated workforce at Miskin who have been let down very badly.” A spokeswoman for Bosch Group pointed out the locations at Miskin and Worcester operate within very different market sectors.
As a protest over wages, pensions and working conditions, tanker drivers are to vote on potential strike measures, possibly as soon as next month. A vote in favour of action would raise the prospect of disruption in supplies to petrol stations in a repeat of blockades a decade ago.
A hospital unit which treats patients with acute illnesses who require further rehab before they go home or into a care home will close its doors permanently over the next few weeks. It will affect in the region of 60 staff at Wesham Hospital in north-west England when compulsory redundancies and voluntary redundancies are implemented.
GMB national officer Brian Strutton claimed the size and speed of local council job cuts due to reduced central government funding could be unprecedented. The union said thousands of notices have already been issued to public sector workers saying their position is "at risk", and many more would soon be sent out.
The maker of popular snack brands such as Jammie Dodgers has identified a "challenging" environment as a reason for cutting 70 jobs. Burton’s Foods, which has sites nationwide, will consult with employees at its south Wales factory and said that the impending redundancies were "deeply regrettable".
A judicial review has been sought over Whitehall staff lay-off payouts, with union officials arguing that the government was breaching a European human rights convention. However, the union said civil servants stood to lose tens of thousands of pounds should the changes backed by the government go ahead.
The Exmoor Society, a local charity which works to protect and enhance the landscape at the famous park, has expresses worries over future job losses there.