TIME-OFF AND FACILITIES FOR ACCREDITED TRADE UNION REPRESENTATIVES
1General Consideration for Time-Off Arrangements
1.1The purpose of time-off for trade union duties and activities is to aid and improve the conduct of employment relations between Derbyshire Dales District Council and its employees, whilst having proper regard to operational requirements of the service.
1.2This document should be read in conjunction with the ACAS Code of Practice on “Time-off for Trade Union duties and activities”.
2Time-Off for Trade Union Representative’s Duties
2.1To operate effectively and democratically, Trade Unions need the active participation of members in certain Union activities such as taking part as anelected representative in meetings of the Branch Executive.
2.2Elected Trade Union representatives can be classified into two groups, ordinary representatives and Branch Officials. The Branch Officials for this purpose are considered to be The Chair, The Secretary and the Health and Safety Officer, who will be nominated by the relevant Trade Unions.
2.3In addition to his/her work as an employee, an elected Trade Union Representative/Branch Official may have important duties concerned with employment relations. These duties will include:
a)Collective bargaining with the appropriate level of management.
b)Informing members about negotiations or consultations with management.
c)Meetings with other Trade Union representatives or with full-time officers on matters which are concerned with employment relations between Derbyshire Dales District Council and its employees.
d)Interviews with and on behalf of members on grievance and discipline matters concerning them and Derbyshire Dales District Council.
e)Appearing on behalf of members before an outside body eg. an Employment Tribunal.
f)Provide support, advice and assistant to members concerning employment relation matters.
2.4Approval will be given for time-off with pay for elected Trade Union representatives to take part in union activities as follows:
Joint Consultative Group or any other negotiating meetings;
Pre-Agenda meetings concerned with the above;
Health and Safety Sub-Committee meetings;
Branch Executive meetings – one meeting per month, of 2 hours duration.
2.5Approval will also be given for a total of 5 days time-off per financial year with pay for ONE elected representative from each union to attend the following:
National Conference,
Derbyshire County Forum,
Regional Council,
Regional Local Committee.
2.6Derbyshire Dales District Council will agree that ordinary elected representatives can have “reasonable” time-off with pay to attend to employment relation matters (as defined in Section 2.3) and Union activities (as defined in Section 2.4). When considering what is reasonable, the amount of time and the number of times should be taken into account, together with any conditions that might apply at the time of the request.
2.7Union Branch Officials are allowed reasonable time-off with pay to attend to employment relation’s matters which are directly related to their office. It is accepted that Branch Officials may require more time-off for consultation etc than departmental representatives. This will be taken into account when Heads of Service consider granting additional time-off. Recording of requests for time-off should be maintained by the relevant Head of Service for each elected representative and no reasonable request for time-off should be refused. If a request is turned down, the matter may be taken up through the consultation or grievance procedures.
2.8Any requests for time-off with pay are to be made in writing to the relevant Head of Service. The Unions will normally give a minimum of 14 days notice in respect of requests for time-off with pay. However, there may be circumstances where less than 14 days notice will be accepted.
2.9The number of ordinary elected trade union representatives will not be more than a ratio of ONE to every 25 union members, with a maximum of 66% of these representatives based at the Town Hall, Matlock.
2.10The Council should take reasonable steps to ensure that a Union representative’s work is covered while they are attending to union duties.
3Facilities for Elected Trade Union Representatives
3.1The Council shall make available the following facilities necessary for elected Trade Union representatives to perform their duties efficiently and to communicate effectively with members, other representatives and full-time-officers.
a)The use of a room as an office, where available, at the representative’s normal place of work.
b)The provision of facilities at the representative’s workplace for secure filing of Union documents.
c)Reasonable access to a telephone.
d)Where available, the use of notice-boards, photocopying and PC equipment.
e)The use of a room for Branch Executive meetings.
3.2It is accepted that it will not be possible to provide these facilities at all offices and depots. However, Derbyshire Dales District Council has agreed to endeavour to provide suitable Trade Union accommodation wherever possible and will provide these facilities at the Town Hall, Matlock.
4Time-Off for Trade Union Training
4.1The Trade Union Secretary or Education Co-ordinator is required to give a minimum of 21 days notice, in respect of requests for paid release for training, to the appropriate line manager, who will then liaise with the Head of Service. In exceptional circumstances, less than 21 days notice will be accepted.
4.2Derbyshire Dales District Council will notify the Trade Unions of their decision to release at least 10 days in advance of the commencement of any course.
4.3Normally, in total, elected representatives will request no more than 10 days of paid release training in any one financial year. However, in exceptional circumstances and especially for Health and Safety representatives where regulations dictate, more training may be required.
4.4Training should be in aspects of employment relations relevant to their duties. If asked to do so, applicants should provide a copy of the syllabus or prospectus indicating the contents of the training course to the relevant Head of Service.
5Conditions Relating to Time-Off
5.1For time-off arrangements to work satisfactorily, both the Trade Unions and the employer should ensure that its officers and elected representatives are fully aware of their role, responsibilities and functions. The Trade Union representatives should also be trained in accordance with the latest legislation concerning Trade Union representation. The Trade Union should inform the Chief Executive, in writing, as soon as possible after Branch Officials and representatives are appointed or have resigned.
5.2Whilst it is the responsibility of the District Council to maintain services to the public, the Trade Union representatives should bear in mind the problem of discharging their responsibilities as employees as well as trade union officials and should ensure that every request for time-off is notified to their line manager as far in advance as is reasonable in the circumstances.
5.3The elected Trade Union representatives should indicate the general nature of the business for which time-off is required, the intended location and the expected period of absence, although the confidential nature of certain requests must be respected and need not be revealed. Managers may request that time-off be deferred or refused because of operational reasons e.g. problems of service cover or safety which would result if time-off were taken at a particular time. The grounds for postponement/refusal should be made clear and parties should endeavour to agree on an alternative time for the time-off. In considering postponement, both parties should weigh the urgency of the matter for which time-off is required against the consequences of granting the time-off.
5.4Managers should be willing to consider urgent requests for time-off in response to emergencies. For example, in cases where immediate consultation with the employer is needed on issues involving restructuring, redundancies and redeployment, where representation at disciplinary proceedings or in grievance cases is required or where potential disputes require immediate attention.
5.5On occasions, elected representatives may be called on to represent Union members who work in other departments and/or locations.
5.6The principle of time-off, whether for full- or part-time employees, is one of time-off during the employee’s working hours. However, attendance for approved full-time union training for part-time employees will be paid at their normal rate of pay including, where appropriate, bonus payments, and allowances.
5.7The Trade Union representatives should not unduly or unnecessarily prolong the time he/she is absent from work on union duties or activities.
5.8Where there is evidence of abuse of the system by either party, the matter should be referred to the relevant Head of Service. If the Head of Service is unable to deal with the matter, it should be referred to the Corporate Direcot who will seek to resolve the issue.
1 / Trade Union time off and facilities updated October 2015