Job cuts latest: 163,000 council posts 'at risk'

The total number of jobs "at risk" of being made redundant in UK local authorities now stands at almost 163,000, up from 150,000 at the beginning of the month , according to latest figures . The GMB union, which monitors formal notifications made by councils and police and fire services, says the current 162,718 total is based on returns made by 290 authorities. Major job losses anounnced in the last few days include those at a string of Scottish authorities. They include: Edinburgh council (1,200 jobs at risk); Strathclyde police (800); Renfrewshire council (500); South Lanarkshire council (400); and Central Scotland police (374). Significant numbers of posts are threatened at: London borough of Sutton (400); Gwent police (350); and North Yorkshire council (330). Three quarters of local government employers plan to make redundancies, a Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development survey published today reveals. A half of central government departments, and a third of NHS bodies said they planned to delete jobs, says CIPD, typically at a ratio of 1 in every eight posts. The GMB figures do not include the numbers of staff transferred from councils to the private sector as a result of cutbacks. Last week, Birmingham council announced it would shed 7,000 staff of which 3,000 would be outsourced to into a "schools co-operative" Nor do they include staff in charities and the private sector whose jobs are at risk as a result of cuts to council grants and contracts. Around 26,000 charity staff in England will lose their jobs in 2011 , according to Navca, which represents smaller community voluntary organisations. The GMB is still waiting for information from 130 smaller shire district councils in England, from 16 larger councils in England (eight London Boroughs, two Metropolitan Boroughs, one Shire County and 5 Unitary Authorities), 13 councils in Scotland, 18 in Wales and 43 plus other authorities. The GMB's current regional totals for local authorities, as of 14 February, are: North East 9,488 North West 29,812 Yorkshire & The Humber 21,233 East Midlands 11,909 West Midlands 21,504 Eastern 10,176 London 15,390 South East 13,596 South West 11,802 Wales 2,446 Scotland 15,362 National 162,718 You can see the GMB's list of "at risk" jobs on a council-by-council basis, here . For a discussion of how far we should interpret the figures as an accurate predictor of eventual job losses, see my earlier blog post .