Scottish Water bosses claiming boozy expenses in lavish taxpayer-funded policy

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Scottish Water bosses are allowed to claim unlimited booze on taxpayer-funded expenses while staff are not, the Sunday Mail can reveal.Union leaders have said the quango’s executives are “living on another planet” while workers are set to go on strike over pay.Scottish Water has previously been slated over the eye-watering wages of senior staff, on top of the lavish expenses policy.Chief executive Alex Plant pocketed £416,000 in earnings and bonuses last year while his deputy, chief operating officer Peter Farrer, made £270,000.

The average ­Scottish Water employee earns about £30,000 a year. Last week employees at the state-owned water company voted for strike action after rejecting a 3.4 per cent wage rise.

They have also implemented an overtime ban and won’t be on standby in case of emergencies.Unison Scotland regional ­organiser Emma Phillips said: “Scottish Water chief executives live on another planet.

They ­already get paid ­astro­nomical salaries.“Why should taxpayers fund lavish expenses for bubbly? Meanwhile staff have to go on strike to get a fair pay rise.”According to the firm’s expenses policy, alcoholic drinks “cannot be claimed and will not be reimbursed as part of an employee’s meal expense, whether through payroll expenses or part of a travel booking”.Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today.You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland.No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team.All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in!If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click