Scottish councils axe 28,000 jobs in seven years

More than 28,000 council jobs across Scotland have been slashed in the last seven years, according to new figures.

The figures show a total of 28,142 full-time equivalent (FTE) jobs have been axed by cash-strapped councils since 2010.

Trade unions said local services were “bearing the brunt of austerity” and branded the new figures as “staggering”, amid fears authorities were poised to shrink even further.

The data shows wide variances between authorities.

In Glasgow, almost 3,000 jobs were lost since 2010, while 1,044 were cut from the City of Edinburgh.

Dave Watson, head of policy and public affairs at trade union Unison Scotland, said: “These job losses highlight the of cuts on local government, which impact on both services to the public and the local economy.”

A Scottish Government spokesman said: “While the recruitment of staff is clearly a matter for local authorities, council workers continue to benefit from the Scottish Government’s no compulsory redundancy policy – and we are the only government in the UK to give that guarantee.”