Lesedi Local Municipality’s (LLM) workers have been awarded with three extra days of paid leave this festive season, a move that will cost rate payers millions.
The decision to give the entire work force of the municipality more time off was done with the objective of ensuring they would return to work in 2017 with renewed energy following a very disappointing year. According to officials, morale at LLM has reached an all-time low.
“Our service delivery was very poor,” LLM Mayor Lerato Maloka on Wednesday confirmed at the final council meeting of the year.
Despite protest by the Democratic Alliance council rubberstamped this decision with the African National Congress insisting that it would boost morale.
“This may be a financial loss, but that loss can be recuperated if our workforce returns with renewed energy,” mayoral committee member of corporate services Simon Moremi said.
“We need to look at the bigger picture as morale has never been this low. We want to see them (the workers) working extra hard in the new year,” Moremi added.
The DA highlighted that the already cash strapped municipality had not budgeted for this paid vacation.
LLM confirmed that its offices would remain open as was the case in previous years and that there should be sufficient emergency services personnel during this time.
