GMB attacks council bosses' 'gravy trains'

Public-sector union GMB said a study of published accounts for 151 county councils, London and metropolitan authorities in England showed that 129 chief executives were paid more than £150,000 a year in 2009-10.

A list of the 10 highest-paid chief executives over the period has also been drawn up.

Cumbria head Peter Stybelski received the largest sum at a huge £464,114, over £100,000 more than second-highest earner Gerald Jones, chief executive at Wandsworth, who raked in £356,891.

The other high earners were all in the top half of the £200,000 bracket in the study of 151 county councils, unitary authorities, London and metropolitan boroughs in England.

GMB national secretary for public services Brian Stutton said: "Council workers will be sickened to learn how much their bosses are creaming off and the levels of their bosses' pay.

"This is at a time when councils say they are hard up and are slashing jobs and services while telling staff to put up with a pay freeze. These same chief executives have had the gall to say their lowest-paid workers will not get any pay rise this year."

He added that top council jobs are "the best of all gravy trains" as many are made expensively redundant one day and pop up in another job the next.

The study comes as Scottish National Party (SNP) figures released on Thursday showed that 102 top executives at Glasgow council were set to receive an average redundancy package of £128,000.

Internal figures revealed that, while £13 million is being dished out to executives in redundancy and early retirement, the council is cutting services.

The party argued that the council's £127m set aside for big wigs' redundancies would be better placed in protecting public services.

The SNP opposition leader on Labour-controlled Glasgow City Council James Dornan said: "Paying out this kind of money while threatening to push up council tax and cut services is obscene."