COUNCIL bosses in Worcester have come under fire for leaving vacancies empty - with the payroll expected to end up 'underspent' by £142,000.

Worcester City Council says due to recruitment problems in some departments and changes to some of its structures, the current financial year will result in big savings from jobs left unfilled for weeks on end.

For the three months of July, August and September alone a whopping £40,000 was saved from vacancies being empty and for the entire 2015/16 financial year, the forecast is for pay to end up £142,000 underspent.

But some councillors are questioning the tactic, saying it damages morale among the current workers.

National research done in October revealed how councils nationwide take twice as long as private companies to fill jobs, with recruitment firm Omni RMS estimating that it costs taxpayers £437 million a year in "productivity gaps" as other staff cover for them.

The city council's big saving was debated during a meeting of the performance, management and budget scrutiny committee last night.

Councillor Richard Boorn, Labour's finance spokesman, said: "The thing that really strikes me is this 'employment drag' figure.

"We are kidding ourselves when we say 'this is saving us money', I think we're actually costing ourselves more in efficiency costs.

"The administration is keen on following private sector business models, so why are we not using a private business model with this?

"It amazes me."

The research from Omni RMS, which was mentioned at the meeting, revealed that the average time for a council to fill a job was 55 days, compared to 28 days in the private sector.

Finance officer Mark Baldwin pointed to a report for the committee which mentioned some issues filling jobs.

It says the largest underspend was in the cleaner and greener department, which handles various services like bin collections, park maintenance and cremations.

The department's empty roles is expected to account for £129,000 of that figure, with the report mentioning a restructure in the arboriculture team which has left some vacancies.

A "high level of staff turnover" among parking wardens is also cited as a factor.

There are also vacancies in economic development, planning and the internal audit service.