Local councils are struggling to recruit and retain staff as a result of the government’s pay cap, a new report is warning.

Research from Unison has revealed that 70% of HR directors and managers in local government said they sometimes had problems recruiting people with enough skills and experiences. The majority (88%) also said the pay freeze was making it difficult to recruit and retain staff.

One in four also said they expected to keep fewer staff than previous years despite 31% saying they were ‘unsure’ if they had enough staff.

‘The findings raise some serious questions about the future of our public services in the years ahead, not just in terms of quality of the service and care they are able to provide, but also how safely staff are able to do so,’ said Dave Prentis, Unison’s general secretary.

‘Capping pay and keeping it significantly lower than wages in the private sector hardly makes the NHS and local government the attractive and rewarding career option it used to be. If action isn’t taken soon to tackle the emerging recruitment crisis, our public services will become places where no-one wants to work, and that would be terrible for both patients and local residents alike.’