Taking walks while working from home and getting a vaccination while self-isolating are among complaints made about council workers during the pandemic.
The local authority received 15 complaints made by whistleblowers and members of the public between January and August this year.
An allegation that a staff member attended for a Covid vaccination while they were meant to be self-isolating was upheld – with the council moving to a formal investigation and disciplinary action.
Another complaint was made over who was being prioritised for vaccinations but the probe found this to be unfounded.
Meanwhile, an allegation over an employee enjoying walks while working from home was dismissed.
Management concluded that staff have been encouraged to work flexibly and confirmed there had been no downturn in the worker’s performance.
West Dunbartonshire Council was also tipped off over an employee’s use of their work vehicle and time spent away from work. A report has been prepared with recommendations for improvement.
Two members of staff have also been accused of carrying out “homers” in untracked vehicles using council materials stolen from other jobs.
The investigation into this is currently ongoing.
Four outstanding cases have also progressed, with recommendations made after an allegation that materials were being misappropriated by a member of staff and sold on.
The details are contained in a report which went to an audit committee meeting last week.
The council’s internal audit department operates a confidential reporting system, which is open to staff and members of the public.
Councillor Daniel Lennie questioned officers on the system at the meeting and asked whether it protected staff from malicious complaints.
He said: “It’s very important that we are open with the public and this report highlights that.
“Do we have anything in place to deal with malicious complaints for people targeting a council worker?
“It’s very stressful to be under investigation, especially when you know you haven’t done anything wrong.”
Andi Priestman, audit manager, said: “We have the whistleblowing process and the majority are anonymous.
“It’s very difficult where it’s anonymous to take any action.”
However, she said disciplinary action would be considered if a malicious complaint was made by a council worker whose identity was known, adding: “If a complaint is seen to be malicious there could be potential disciplinary sanctions. Thankfully we tend not to have too many of those cases.”
Councillor Karen Conaghan said: “It’s good we are undertaking this work but we have to take it in context and realise that every time something is proven, it’s a small instance someone has behaved in a way we would not want them to.
“Our staff go above and beyond. Yesterday I was speaking to somebody who on their day off went out their way to help a tenant with an issue.
“They did it because they love their job and have a great concern for people in the community.
“That’s how our staff are on the whole.”
