FOR CONSULTATION FINAL VERSION (as at 26th November 2010)
Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council
Local Government Services (“Green Book”)
Workforce Strategy Collective Agreement 2010
Parties, Definitions and General Provisions
1.1 This is a Collective Agreement (“the Agreement”) between Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council (hereinafter described as “the Council”) and its recognised trade unions under the National Joint Council for Local Government Services (“the Green Book”), being GMB, UCATT, UNISON and UNITE (hereinafter described as “the Trade Unions”).
1.2 It is the Council’s intention that the provisions set out in this Agreement should also apply, as appropriate, to teaching and support staff employed directly by schools, together with those employees who are within the scope of the Soulbury Agreement, the JNC for Youth & Community Workers, the JNC for Chief Executives and the JNC for Chief Officers. The Council will continue to work with recognised trade unions for these categories of employee, along with School Governing Bodies where appropriate, to introduce the changes required at the earliest opportunity.
1.3 The Council and the Trade Unions hereby agree to the introduction of a revised Local Government Services Joint Trade Union Side voting system to replace the current arrangement and to more accurately reflect the respective levels of trade union membership within the Council. Each Trade Union will be entitled to the following votes in relation to any matter which it is proposed be the subject of an Agreement between the Council and the Trade Unions, with a majority of the total votes available being required to gain support for any proposed decision:
§ UNISON 5 votes
§ GMB 3 votes
§ UNITE 1 vote
§ UCATT 1 vote
Further details of the Joint Trade Union Side’s arrangements are set out in Appendix A to this Collective Agreement.
Principles and Purpose
2.1 The Council and the Trade Unions agree that the purpose of this Agreement is to:
2.1.1 Address the measures identified herein in such a way so as to be better able to sustain and/or improve the public services that the Council provides;
2.1.2 Work together effectively to reduce the costs of these services to reflect the substantial real terms reduction in the level of Aggregate External Finance (AEF) allocated to the Council in the medium term, as set out in the UK Government’s Comprehensive Spending Review announcement of 20th October 2010 and the Welsh Assembly Government’s budget and provisional revenue support grant settlement announcements in November 2010;
2.1.3 Protect, to the maximum extent possible, and for as long as possible, the Council’s workforce from compulsory redundancies – a Joint Statement to this effect is set out in Appendix B;
2.1.4 Reaffirm the willingness of all parties to this Agreement to address and mitigate the challenges presented by the cuts to public expenditure in a collaborative manner between employer, employees and their respective representatives.
Commencement and Duration
3.1 The individual provisions of this Agreement may be commenced immediately upon signature of this Agreement or as soon as practically possible thereafter; but in any event, all provisions will have effect no later than 1st April 2011.
3.2 Unless otherwise stipulated, the measures identified in this Agreement will be valid until 31st March 2012.
3.3 The Council agrees to formally review the position in relation to such changes, jointly with the trade unions, if the level of Aggregate External Finance (AEF) allocated to the Council is restored to 2010/2011 levels in real terms.
Safeguarding Employment / Voluntary Redundancy Scheme
4.1 The Council and the Trade Unions agree that the introduction of a Voluntary Redundancy (VR) Scheme (opened for Expressions of Interest from Monday 8th November 2010 until Monday 29th November 2010) in line with the decisions of the Personnel Committee on 13th October 2010, is an appropriate and timely measure which will assist the Council to start to reduce one element of workforce costs.
4.2 The Council and the Trade Unions hereby agree to work together to protect, to the maximum extent possible and for as long as possible, the Council’s workforce from compulsory redundancies. It is recognised that this may not be possible in relation to employees employed under the auspices of School Governing Bodies and those employees whose posts are wholly or substantially funded from special or specific grants from third parties and which are reduced or discontinued by those third parties during the period covered by this Agreement. However, the Council will use its best endeavours to redeploy employees so affected or assist them with seeking alternative opportunities within the Council or elsewhere.
4.3 The Council will also continue to:
§ restrict as far as is possible the recruitment of employees from outside of the Council to permanent posts;
§ review the use of agency workers, with the objective of reducing overall usage; and
§ ensure that the trade unions are engaged in these review processes in a meaningful way.
4.4 It is agreed that a Procurement Agreement will be introduced on the basis set out in Appendix C.
Pay/Remuneration
5.1 To protect, to the maximum extent possible and for as long as possible, the Council’s workforce from compulsory redundancies, the Council and the Trade Unions hereby agree as follows:
5.1.1 Building upon a previous proposal from a trade union and on a temporary basis for a period of 12 months – from 1st April 2011 to 31st March 2012 - a “pay contribution” will made by all employees within the scope of this Agreement on the basis of a 2.0% reduction in the monetary value of each spinal column point as at 1st April 2011. This will be offset by the equivalent of £250 per annum (for a full time employee) for spinal column points 4 to 24 inclusive, i.e. those employees being paid at a rate of less than £21,000 pa. See Appendix D for further details.
5.1.2 Appropriate arrangements will be made, with individual employees where necessary, to ensure that the measure set out in paragraph 5.1.1 does not adversely affect the payment of LGPS pension benefits to any employee within the scope of this Agreement who may retire during or following the operation of this Agreement.
5.1.3 If it is agreed in due course through regional or national negotiations that a payment of £250 pa, or any other sum, be made in respect of the 2011/2012 financial year, it is agreed that the offsetting arrangements of £250 pa described in Appendix D will be adjusted/removed, in whole or in part, on a basis determined by the Council to prevent the Council being required to meet this cost twice;
5.1.4 It is noted by the Council that the provisions set out in paragraphs 5.1.1 and 5.1.3 above are dependent upon the introduction of the Procurement Agreement referred to in paragraph 4.4 above.
5.1.5 Linked to 5.1.1 above, for the same period, the Chief Executive will voluntarily make a pay contribution on the basis of 3% of pay as at 1st April 2011;
5.1.6 Pay protection (in accordance with the Council’s Management of Change Partnership Agreement) to be varied in terms of the scope of the pay protection offered (see Appendix F), together with a reduction in duration to 12 months.
Premium Rates of Pay/Revised working hours, including annualised hours
6.1 The Council and the Trade Unions hereby agree that:
6.1.1 All overtime working on weekdays will be paid at time plus 30%; all overtime and unsocial hours working on Saturday and Sunday will be paid at time plus 30%; see Appendix G for further details.
6.1.2 The Council and the Trade Unions further agree that it is important from an affordability point of view that overtime is only worked when essential and when the extra costs involved are fully justifiable, with both parties to work together to achieve this aim.
6.1.3 By no later than the end of this Agreement, the arrangements described above in 6.1.1 and 6.1.2 will be supplemented by the introduction of new working hour rota arrangements, annualised hours contracts and other associated changes, through negotiation and agreement with the trade unions, which will seek to reduce the incidence of overtime and unsocial hours working, wherever feasible and always having regard to service delivery needs. The Council will ensure that this provision is implemented in a fair and reasonable manner within all service areas, in full consultation with the Trade Unions. In the absence of such an agreement by 30th September 2011, the new arrangements required will be the subject of independent arbitration.
Allowances/Fees
7.1 The Council and the Trade Unions hereby agree the cessation of:
7.1.1 Essential user car allowance payments and all other car allowance payments currently in operation and the introduction of a standard car allowance mileage rate of 40 pence per mile (for first 10,000 miles pa) in line with the rates identified by HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC); see Appendix H for further details. A review will be carried out by no later than 30th September 2011 of the requirement by the Council for specific postholders to provide the use of a personal vehicle for business travel purposes. Additionally, the Council and the Trade Unions will seek to reduce, by working together, the current total of 3.3 million miles of business journeys miles travelled each year by at least 10%;
7.1.2 The payment by the Council of any fees which may be announced by the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA) in due course, such fees to be borne by the employees / job applicants who will be registered with the ISA; see Appendix I for further details; and
7.1.3 The current disturbance allowance payment scheme [1], subject to any existing commitments to individual employees being honoured until the agreed expiry date of existing payments, and the introduction of a revised disturbance allowance scheme with a reduction in duration to 18 months and which also takes into account the provisions of the mobility and flexibility clauses referred to in 8.1.2 below and Appendices J and L of this Collective Agreement.
8.1 The Council and the Trade Unions also hereby agree the introduction of:
8.1.1. The revised standby payments set out in Appendix K; and
8.1.2 The mobility and flexibility clauses set out in Appendix L, to be applicable to the current administrative boundaries of this Council, Bridgend County Borough Council and the City and County of Swansea to maximise the efficient and effective delivery of Council services and facilitate the Welsh Assembly Government’s objective of greater collaborative working between local authorities and across the public sector.
8.1.3 The revised disturbance allowance scheme will apply to such journeys as set out in Appendix L.
Recommendations to the Workforce/Enacting the Agreement
9.1 The Council and the Trade Unions hereby agree to recommend the terms of this Agreement, individually and collectively, to the workforce in the context of any ballot(s) of their respective memberships that are deemed necessary by one or more Trade Union. It is also agreed that all such ballots would be completed and the results declared by no later than Tuesday 21st December 2010; and
9.2 Following the completion of the above process., the Council will convene a meeting of its Personnel Committee to consider the terms of this Agreement by no later than 13th January 2011.
9.3 Whilst this Agreement will be applicable, at the time of its enactment, to all NPT Council employees within the scope of the Agreement (see paragraph 1.1), it is agreed that all provisions of this Collective Agreement will be discontinued in relation to those employees who will transfer to NPT Homes shortly prior to the transfer to NPT Homes taking place, subject to the transfer taking place prior to 31st March 2011. Pre-Collective Agreement pay and conditions of service will then apply on transfer.
Implementation and Monitoring Arrangements
10.1 The Council’s Chief Executive will put in place suitable arrangements to ensure that all officers of the Council who have a responsibility for implementing this Agreement are made aware of the need to do so in a manner which fully and properly reflects the intentions of the signatories to this Agreement.
10.2 The Council’s Head of Human Resources will arrange for this Agreement to be included as an agenda item on a quarterly basis for meetings of each Directorate’s Joint Consultative Group.
10.3 It is agreed that the Council will consider introducing a mechanism which will limit the impact of the changes set out in this Agreement on an individual employee where evidence is provided to demonstrate that the impact over a sustained period of a combination of a number of measures arising from this Agreement is considered to be both unforeseen and unreasonable, having regard to all relevant circumstances. The Head of Human Resources will be responsible for putting in place, and operating, appropriate arrangements to consider the merits of any such case/s arising.
Duly authorised for and on behalf of the Council
…………………………………………………. [Name & Title]
Date:…………………………………………...
Duly authorised for and on behalf of GMB
…………………………………………………. [Name & Title]
Date:…………………………………………...