Kildare County Council is to lay off 79 workers over the next two months as part of the Government’s plan to reduce payroll costs in local authorities by 3 per cent.
The council said 48 staff on fixed-term contracts have been issued letters advising them that their contracts will not be renewed after the end of January.
A further 31 workers whose contracts expire in February and March will also be issued with non-renewal notices.
A spokesman for Kildare County Council said the affected staff will come from all areas as the “vast majority of these people can be assigned to any department”.
He said the move comes as the council looks at "new ways of handling services" following the Government cuts.
Last July, the Government ordered local authorities to reduce payroll costs by 3 per cent by the end of 2009 and to halve the money they spend on consultants advising on projects other than infrastructure and housing programmes.
