Council staff who are fighting cancer and recovering from major operations could see draconian cuts to their sick pay and fears are mounting staff could walk out in protest.

Three Rivers District Council wants to cut occupational sick pay and last night the authority’s Policy and Resources committee agreed to pass the changes on to full council in May.

UNISON has not ruled out strike action and if a strike was to be called, planning staff, housing staff and employees who process benefits would be among those to walk out.

Nalin Cooke, regional secretary for UNISON said: "We do not want to be in dispute with the employer.

"We do not want to take strike action, but they are leaving us no choice."

He told the meeting last night: "Other public sector workers, including the police, emergency service and National Health Service staff, all receive 6 months full pay and 6 months half pay in the occupational sick pay schemes.

"If this proposal is adopted, or recommended by this committee, it would be the worst occupational sick pay scheme that is proposed in Hertfordshire, in the eastern region and I am sure it would be the worst in this country with regards to council workers".

The authority’s own documents suggest if the changes were passed the likelihood of "unhappiness of staff with risk of industrial dispute" would be between "75 per cent and 90 per cent".

The council wants to cut occupational sick pay from six months full pay and six months half pay to three months full pay and four months half pay once employees have worked for the council for more than five years.

After the meeting, Mr Cooke said there was "no reason" for the changes.

He said: "We have one person suffering from an incurable cancer and keeps trying all different kinds of medicines and has been out of work for a long time.

"What do we want to do?

"Do we want her, when she is in her last moments, to be in a position where she has to think about pay?"

Staff who have been at the council for less than a year, receive 1 month’s full pay and 2 months’ half pay.

During the second year of service, employees receive 2 months full pay and 2 months half pay.

There are no proposed changes to these, but the axe will fall on the amount paid out to staff who have worked at the council for more than two years.

Staff who are based at Batchworth Depot, including refuse collectors and street cleaners, are not going to be affected by these changes.

Steven Halls chief executive at Three Rivers District Council: "It is about dealing with long term sickness which frankly takes up a disproportionate amount of resource to manage and to replace and that is what the original proposals have been drawn up to try and address."

Two Liberal Democrat councillors refused to support the proposals until they had seen more information on the changes.

Councillors Stephen Giles-Medhurst and Roger Seabourne sided with Conservative councillors, Ralph Sangster, David Sansom and Kemal Butt and Labour’s Councillor Stephen Cox.

The chief executive will prepare a report before the council will make a decision.