Wellington City Council is bulk-buying leaving cards as it turns over almost a quarter of staff per year, but insists staff retention is improving.

The council's current staff turnover rate currently sits at about 22 per cent per year and was dropping steadily, council chief executive Kevin Lavery said.

A State Services Commission survey showed turnover in the wider public sector was 11.1 per cent in 2016.

Councils around the Wellington region have released, after an official information request, details of gifts given to staff and councillors.

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At the Wellington City Council, almost half of the 270-odd leaving gifts were for departing staff. Some of those single items were bulk-buys of leaving cards.

Council chief executive Kevin Lavery said staff turnover was currently at about 22 per cent.

"The turnover rates have been steadily dropping in recent years.

"We typically have about 300 resignations each year, which is acceptable for a large organisation with about 1500 staff."

Christchurch City Council has a current staff turnover of 13.3 percent, though did not measure for fixed-term and casual staff.

Dunedin City Council had nine per cent staff turnover, and Auckland Council's turnover was 15.2 per cent, though both only included staff leaving voluntarily.

Hamilton City Council's most-recent figures show that, for all staff working 10 or more hours per week, staff turnover was just over 19 per cent.

According to Lavery, Wellington's council worked hard to reduce staff turnover, but this was challenging.

"Especially in a strong economy when we typically lose staff to employers who are able to offer better wages and salaries.

"The city council has a lot of staff in casual or short-term employment – for example pool lifeguards or staff involved with events or short-term projects.

"There is always high turnover in these positions – so that tends to make it difficult to get our overall turnover below 20 per cent."

The gift figures supplied by councils showed that, at Greater Wellington's Regional Council, long-serving councillor and chair Fran Wilde was given a leaving gift of an enamel pewter plate and flowers, with a total value of $262. That cost was shared by ratepayers and colleagues chipping in.

That compares with the $500 ratepayers put towards a $541 bracelet for a people and customer general manager , who got her leaving gift after 10 years of service.

Wilde said the discrepancy did not bother her and she did not take the position for the leaving gift.

Upper Hutt City Council was, when occasion called, also notably generous shown by the $516 iPhone it gave one retiring staffer, and two framed fantail pictures with plaques it gave two other retirees, with values of $269 and $303.

Hutt City's figures show little extravagant spending though, when gifts were given, flowers were the ones of choice.

At Kapiti District Council, a large proportion of the gifts were to commend jobs well done.

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