COUNCIL chiefs have devised an action plan for improvement following the results of an employee opinion survey.

The research exercise is carried out every three years, with workers at the local authority giving their views on a range of topics.

This year's saw a response of 32 per cent.

Municipal Buildings bosses say the results 'on the whole present the council in a good light' but they noted that there are 'areas to which particular attention should be paid with a view to encourage improvement'.

The report states: “Scores above 70 per cent indicate that we are performing very well as an employer.

"Anything below 70 indicates issues that we need to look to improve for employees.

“For example only 60 per cent said that they had received recognition or praise for their good work, therefore improvements could be made with little effort and at no cost in our general work culture for managers to acknowledge employees hard work and efforts.”

Staff also raised complaints about communication, with 50 per cent of respondents saying they'd heard important information through gossip.

The questionnaire also covered sexual harassment, with one per cent of employees experiencing it in the form of offensive language from colleagues or managers.

Bosses say a new Dignity and Respect at Work policy will help raise awareness of the issue and provide an avenue for employees to raise issues formally.

Other areas for improvement included senior managers making time to meet their staff, carrying out return to work interviews and hosting consistent team meetings.

A number of positive aspects were highlighted, with 88 per cent of employees saying they had a clear understanding of their aims and objectives and 90 per cent understanding that their own performance affected the the council's.

Just over three quarters of the surveyed workforce said they were satisfied with their physical working conditions.

A rate of 90 per cent were satisfied with health and safety precautions and 93 per cent found managers and supervisors to be approachable and supportive.