A woman employed to protect the reputation of the city council has revealed that the authority is “bringing her down” in an online video.
Jillian Burns, who is tasked with promoting the image of the authority in her role as a press officer, made the comments in an expletive-riddled public video on picture-sharing app Instagram.
Unions have warned of plunging staff morale as part of the council’s massive restructure programme which was launched to save £125million in five years.
Council bosses insist that the savings are needed to protect services into the future.
The council has confirmed that 370 posts will go through transfers and not recruiting for vacant roles as well as offering voluntary redundancies and early retirement.
But Ms Burns blasted the move in the video.
She said: “I have come to some realisations this week, my full time work is bringing me down.
“Like loads of people I work at the city council and I’m told on a daily basis that I might be up for redundancy, might not be up for redundancy and you know what? It’s such a sh** environment to work in.
“I work with a really cool team but the feeling that someone else has control over your life and that they’re playing a game sucks.”
Ms Burns added that she felt as if someomne was “messing” with her on a daily basis.
Her comments come on the back of union leaders warning of a “pressure cooker” environment and low staff morale at the council.
The number of instances involving council staff taking time off work for psychological reasons, including stress and depression, increased from 51 in December to 77 in February.
A Unison spokesman said: “We know that many of our members are struggling with the impact of work on their mental health.
“The job cuts at Aberdeen City Council are having an impact on stress and anxiety, with morale at an all-time low. We are currently in consultation with the council about their proposals.”
Opposition SNP staff governance spokesman David Cameron said: “It’s all too evident that staff morale has been badly impacted by the uncertainty caused by the drive towards the new operating model.”
