Working for us
Working for Argyll and Bute Council is varied, transformative and exciting. We have a range of roles which all work together to make a difference to the communities of Argyll and Bute.
Argyll and Bute Council is a Living Wage Employer, which ensures everyone receives a fair wage for the work which they carry out. Our employees are our greatest asset and therefore we provide a range of perks to our employees which can help them at all stages of their lives.
Employees benefit scheme
The employee benefits scheme Vivup is a scheme run by a specialist staff benefit company and offers Argyll and Bute Council employees a wide range of benefits such as:-
- Home and electronics
- Cycle to Work
- Bike shop
- Lifestyle savings
- Travel and leisure
- Gym membership
Work Life balance
Providing a generous annual leave entitlement, starting at 33 days rising to 41 days after 10 years (including public holidays).
Offering a range of flexible working options including; remote working, part time and condensed hours.
Offering a range of leave options to support you at all stages of your life; including family leave (such as maternity, paternity and adoption leave) and career breaks.
Wellbeing
To support our employees, we offer a range of wellbeing support which can help our employees and their families. This includes:
- Employee Assistance Programme to provide our employees and their families counselling support when they require it.
- A cycle to work scheme with a range of bikes and accessories to choose from.
- Discounts on a range of gym memberships, health clubs, leisure centres, boot camps and yoga classes.
- Access to a range of wellbeing support including guidance, policies and advice.
- A range of wellbeing initiatives, guidance and policies to support our workforce when they need it most.
- A number of wellbeing courses and podcasts available on our learning platform LEON.
Pension scheme
Eligible employees (permanent or temporary for more than 3 months) will be automatically enrolled in the Local Government Pension Scheme unless they choose to opt out. The advantages of our pension include a generous employer contribution.
Additional Voluntary Contributions (AVCs)
Employees at Argyll and Bute Council who are members of the Local Government Pension Scheme have the opportunity to pay additional contributions to increase their pension benefits at retirement. By supplementing their pension through AVCs employees make Tax and National Insurance savings at the same time, subject to meeting statutory eligibility criteria. The additional contributions are invested separately in your choice of fund which are managed by Prudential. On retirement, these funds will be able to convert into an additional pension of your choice, a tax free lump sum or a combination of both. Any interest, income or capital gain earned on the AVCs is free from tax while the money is invested in your plan.
Salary Finance Scheme
With higher acceptance rates than traditional lenders and lower interest rates, Salary Finance may be able to help you pay less for your debt and start saving hassle-free. Salary Finance provides access to affordable loans repaid through salary, simple savings accounts and financial education that could help you take control of your money.
Argyll and Bute Council employees have the opportunity to take out a personal loan linked to their salary. The loans can often provide a cheaper way to borrow money, with lower interest rates and higher acceptance rates and there is no need to worry about missing a payment as it comes straight from your salary.
The scheme also provides an opportunity to save money directly from your salary, without any additional charges. The money is deposited in a Yorkshire Building Society account and is protected by the FSCS. You can access the account at any time and is flexible so there is no commitment. You can change how much you save at any time.
Find out more about these options.
Scotwest Credit Union
Scotwest Credit Union is one of the largest credit unions in the UK, existing to provide ethical, competitive and fair financial services to anyone that lives or works within the West of Scotland, Stirling, Perth and Kinross, Dumfries and Galloway or the Scottish Highlands.
Childcare vouchers
Parents can save money on tax and National Insurance contributions by sacrificing up to £55 per week of their salary in return for childcare vouchers which can be used for a range of providers to help working parents make savings on the cost of childcare.
Group Life Assurance
We offer employees a non-contributory Group Life Assurance Scheme, which provides a benefit of one year’s salary to the dependents of permanent employees who die whilst in the service of the authority before the age of 75
Learning and Development
To deliver our services, we need employees who are highly skilled and have opportunities to learn. We are a learning organisation and value the importance of learning for our employees. At Argyll and Bute Council there are a variety of ways we support you to learn and develop new skills. A vast eLearning programme, learning podcasts, a range of employee workshops and an in-house management and leadership development programme are just some of the ways in which we do this.
Working together with Trade Unions
Argyll and Bute Council works closely with Trade Unions. Our joint statement outlines how we will work together.
Trade Union Facility Time
The Council has a responsibility under the Trade Union (Facility Time Publication Requirements) Regulations 2017 to publish information relating to facility time taken by union representatives. These Regulations were laid following the enactment of the Trade Union Act 2016.