NEWPORT City Council is inviting its employees to apply for voluntary redundancy in a bid to balance the budget for next year.

The authority confirmed it has invited its employees to consider the move amid hopes Newport can avoid compulsory redundancies as it looks to set its budget for 2014/15.

It is currently unknown how many redundancies the authority is looking for. Councillor Mark Whitcutt, cabinet member for human resources and assets, said: “We are making every effort to limit the impact on our employees while facing the reality of huge budget cuts.” Newport council said the protection of front-line services remains the council’s priority and any application for voluntary redundancy will be assessed based on its impact on services.

Workers are also being offered the opportunity to consider alternative arrangements such as reduced hours and phased retirement, while internal redeployment opportunities will also be looked at.

The authority employs around 6,454 people and has an annual revenue budget of around £300 million, but faces having to make savings of nearly £10 million next financial year. Conservative councillor Matthew Evans, leader of the opposition, said while he understood the rationale behind the request, he thought it was regrettable to send it out shortly before Christmas.

He said: “I would have preferred it if they sent them out in the summer, to give people time to plan ahead, or in the new year, when people tend to consider job changes anyway.”

Newport council is not alone in looking at having to cut jobs as austerity continues to hit local authorities across Wales.

Earlier in the year it emerged that as many as 140 Blaenau Gwent home care staff could lose their jobs amid council cuts.

Torfaen’s cabinet member for resources, Anthony Hunt, said in the summer that he couldn’t rule out jobs cuts at the council, while more recently Caerphilly council’s deputy leader, Cllr Keith Reynolds, said it was difficult to say whether compulsory redundancies could be avoided.

In Monmouthshire, 18 staff at Deri View Primary School in Abergavenny were made redundant as part of cost-cutting measures which saw 41 teaching staff posts go across the borough.

Steph Davies, branch secretary of UNISON Newport City, said: “We are aware there are going to be considerable changes, and we are going to be consulted in the next few weeks.”