FEARS that staff at Aberystwyth’s Careers Wales office could be facing compulsory redundancy have been played down this week.

Unison has warned that 60 jobs are under threat at Careers Wales, with the Welsh Government slashing funding for the organisation in a decision the union insisted was “counterproductive”.

But Richard Spear, the chief executive of Careers Wales, said the organisation was hoping to avoid compulsory redundancies and was currently consulting on a voluntary redundancy scheme. A spokesperson insisted that compulsory redundancies were unlikely.

Jeff Baker, Unison’s regional organiser, criticised the Welsh Government’s decision to cut funding saying it would have an impact on people accessing help to find work.

He said: “The government’s plans don’t make any sense. You have a great success story in Careers Wales, which helped 75,000 people of all ages find work last year, yet multi-million-pound cuts to its budget are devastating the organisation.

Mr Spear said: “An anticipated reduction in our overall funding for 2017/18 and a need to make further savings has resulted in a budget shortfall for the organisation."

“All options are being explored to address this shortfall. We will attempt to make the required savings via a voluntary early release scheme.

“A formal 30-day consultation has now commenced and we are working closely with Unison and staff to ensure that the process is managed with openness, transparency and fairness.”

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