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Why work for us

Why work for us

Financial

Competitive salary with annual pay rises
Financial wellbeing offers and support including affordable borrowing, an educational platform and savings accounts.
24-hour financial advice from our Employee Assistance Programme.

Pensions

The UK’s largest pension scheme in local government, offering the option to save for retirement with tax relief on contributions – so it doesn’t always cost what you might think.
Ways to top-up your benefits, including shared cost salary sacrifice, meaning more savings on National Insurance and Income Tax.
Pension is based on your salary and how long you pay into it.
The LGPS provides a secure and guaranteed income every year when you stop working.
Life cover – three-times your salary as a lump sum if you die in service.

Recognising hard work and determination

Annual ‘Awards for Excellence’ Staff Awards to celebrate our staff’s diverse talent and dedication.
Annual Long Service Awards for staff celebrating 25 and 40 years of service.
We’re proud of the work our staff do. We celebrate achievements and share photos, stories and projects regularly though internal communications. This sees the entire Council, along with our partners, coming together to recognise each other's work.

Wellbeing

26 days (+5 extra days after 5 years) annual leave.
Buy up to 10 extra days of leave a year.
Opportunities for hybrid working.
Active travel support with cycle to work scheme as well as on-site changing and shower rooms and storage.
24-hour health and wellbeing support with access to qualified counsellors or practitioners, including legal support.
Free flu jabs and eye tests.

Discounts

A range of reduced-cost travel passes covering buses and Metrolink trams.
Cycle to work scheme, offering a loan through salary sacrifice, potentially saving over 35% off the cost of a new bike and accessories.
Save up to 25% on airtime plans with O2 and 20% on sim plans, mobile broadband and handset plans with EE when taking out a new contract.
Reimbursement for eye tests and flu vaccines.

Family and Carers support

Enhanced maternity pay.
10 days paid paternity leave.
Parental leave support.
Unpaid emergency leave support.
Family friendly policies supporting fostering, adoption, and caring responsibilities.

Development

A full induction programme to help you get off to the best start.
Apprenticeships available all the way up to degree level qualifications.
Development opportunities to enable you to progress your career.
A wide variety of roles and internal recruitment, helping you try different careers and apply your skills in new areas.

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

We’re committed to doing everything we can to create ‘a place where everyone can be themselves and thrive’.

Our ambitious and award-winning Workforce Equality Strategy (2021) sets out how we will make sure that our workforce fully reflects the rich diversity and talent of our residents and communities at all levels.

It will make sure that we have a zero-tolerance approach to any form of discrimination and quickly make changes to address issues. We know Manchester is a diverse and vibrant city, and our workforce should reflect the people it provides a service for.

A diverse workforce brings different perspectives to an organisation, leading to creativity, innovation and representation. You can expect to see us showcasing and celebrating our diversity across our communications with real-life personal and professional stories, along with opportunities to get involved in a range of staff equality network groups and events.

We’re committed to increasing the representation of Black, Asian and minority ethnic and disabled employees at all levels of the Council. We have introduced targeted leadership programmes using coaching, mentoring and shadowing opportunities; we are also developing a workplace (adjustment) hub to provide advice and information on supporting staff with disabilities.

We’re committed to having a workforce with the skills and confidence to deliver inclusion both at work and in services, and we want you to be part of that journey.

Disability confident

As a Disability Confident Leader, we support staff with physical or mental-health conditions, a disability or neurodiversity. We will offer you a guaranteed interview if you consider yourself to be disabled and meet the minimum requirements for the role, but you also have the option to opt out of the scheme during the application process, if you wish.

Our workplaces are accessible by design, and workplace adjustments we make include providing aids, adaptations and equipment. These, combined with our flexible working policies such as disability-related leave, enable our staff to perform their role, thrive and be their authentic self in work.

Equality networks

Our staff also chair and run a number of equality networks that are open to all colleagues. We currently have the following groups:

LGBTQ+
Disabled Staff
Race Equality
Women’s Equality
Pregnancy & Parenting
Mental Health
Neurodiversity
Over 50s
Young People

To demonstrate our commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion in our workforce we offer a guaranteed interview scheme if you:

are in – or have ever been in – the Armed Forces
consider yourself to be disabled or if you have a long-term health condition
are currently looked after by a local authority or a care leaver

Armed Forces Covenant

We are also a signatory of the Armed Forces Covenant and committed to supporting members of the Armed Forces community, recognising and remembering the sacrifices they have made. The Covenant ensures that veterans, reservists and serving personnel face no disadvantage throughout the recruitment process.