Agenda and minutes

Apologies of absence were received from Councillor John Morley.

To receive declarations of disclosable pecuniary and other interests from Members in respect of any item to be considered at the meeting.

No declarations of interest were received.

To approve the minutes of the meeting of the Employment Committee held on 19 November 2024.

RESOLVED

That the minutes of the meeting of the Employment Committee held on 19 November 2024 be approved and signed as a true and correct copy.

To consider any business that the Chairman rules may be dealt with under Section 100B(4) of the Local Government Act 1972.

There were no items of Urgent Business.

To receive and agree the statutory policy prior to the Council meeting.

Reporting Person:  Amanda Jeffrey

Amanda Jeffrey introduced the report on the Pay Policy Statement for 2025/26.   Amanda drew attention to a typo on page 8, paragraph 4.5 of the report. The incorrect text was “The bottom point on this pay scale is £21,151” the correct figure should read “£23,151”.

Sections 38 to 43 of the Localism Act 2011 required local authorities to create an annual pay policy statement to outline:

• Pay details for chief officers and lowest-paid employees
• How their pay compared
• Definition of ‘lowest-paid employees’
• Pay specifics for chief officers (including hiring, raises, performance pay, bonuses, and leaving payments)
• How pay information was shared

The purpose of the statement was to provide transparency with regard to the Council’s approach to setting the pay of its employees.  The statement would also need to be approved by Full Council and, once approved, would be published on Council’s  website.

Councillor Graves asked whether Committee Members would be invited to sit on the Pay Panel.  The Committee was advised that the Panel comprised of a member of the Corporate Leadership Team (CLT) and a member from Human Resources (HR).  The Panel was a newly established independent body where managers could create a business case for individual pay increases.  This included proposals for pay progression for expanded roles, honoraria, and market rate supplements. 

The Panel had met once to-date, with a further meeting scheduled to take place soon.  Feedback on the objectives of the Panel would be provided to the CLT before it was officially communicated to the wider organisation.

In response to a question on the Government appointed Commissioners, it was clarified that the figures did not include the remuneration of the Commissioners, which was set by the Government.  The pay level for the Chief Executive Commissioner had, however, been used to calculate the comparison pay ratio.

It was noted that the ratio of average chief officer remuneration to the average remuneration of other employees had increased over the year and it was suggested that the figures should be tracked in future to identify whether there was a trend indicating a widening gap between the pay of chief officers and that of other employees.  Officers advised that the information was recorded and could be provided in future.

RECOMMENDED TO COUNCIL

That the Pay Policy Statement for 2025/26, as set out in the report, be approved.

To receive an update and agree next steps for the 2025/2026 pay award for employees.

Reporting Person:  Amanda Jeffrey

The Committee received a report which outlined the Council’s position on pay and progression for employees from 1 April 2025.  The proposals before the Council honoured the Council’s commitment to pay the real Living Wage to the lowest paid employees from 1 April 2025. 

Furthermore, it was proposed that employees who had successfully met agreed performance criteria would move one incremental pay point unless at the top of the grade.  Finally, the report recommended that the inflationary element of the pay award for 2025/26 should be deferred until the National Joint Council (NJC) for local government had published a proposed uplift.  The pay position for Chief Officers on grades W10 – W12 would be subject to a further report once the National position for senior officers was known.

It was recognised that there had been a significant impact on Staff when the decision had been taken not to make a pay award, and that the delay in the pay award determination for 2025/26 would have a further impact.  Once the pay award offer had been determined, Staff would receive the uplift; any changes to the offer following negotiations would be paid to Officers once agreed, with back pay provided if necessary.

RECOMMENDED TO COUNCIL

That (i)    the Real Living Wage is implemented from 1 April 2025;

          (ii)   pay progression for employees who meet the set criteria is implemented from 1 April 2025; and

          (iii)  the pay award for 2025/26 is deferred until National Joint Council (NJC) for local government offer is made.

For the employee survey to be noted.

Reporting Person:  Amanda Jeffrey

The Committee received a report on the outcome of employee pulse surveys, which had been introduced in August 2024.  Two pulse surveys have been undertaken to-date, comprising 6 quick questions ranging from how employees were feeling at work to their level of understanding of the decisions made by the Council.  A third survey had just closed and further surveys would be undertaken every 3 months.

In addition to the surveys, employees were invited to attend a focus group who explored further the morale of the organisation, how confidence in the Improvement and Recovery Plan could be improved and what could be missing from the Plan.  The report summarised the results of the pulse surveys and the feedback received from the focus group.

It was noted that that the number of responses was low and the Committee asked whether any measures had been taken to encourage responses.  It was reported that reminders had been sent to encourage individuals to complete the surveys.  A further, more extensive survey of staff would be undertaken in the summer.

The outcomes of the surveys were shared through the focus group, though it was acknowledged that the outcomes could be shared more widely.  The questions were kept consistent across the surveys to enable comparisons to be made.  It was recognised that challenges remained for staff following the extensive changes brought in over the past year.  Celebrating success and personal growth were key elements of staff satisfaction, together with the knowledge that staff were being heard and responded to.

In regard to the Improvement and Recovery Plan, understanding was high across those who replied, but the results also indicated that staff did not feel that the Plan gave them any confidence in the Council’s future. 

The employment of interim staff was discussed and it was noted that, although the number of interim staff had reduced, permanent employees struggled to adjust with changes in focus as interim staff changed.  Work was being undertaken around vision and behaviours and seeking to establish an induction process for interim staff to ensure that they were aware of the culture of the Authority.

RESOLVED

That the employee pulse survey results be noted.

To agree changes and note the risk assessment.

Reporting Person: Amanda Jeffrey

The report before the Committee set out the updated draft Anti-Harassment and Bullying Policy for the Council.  The existing Policy had been reviewed and updated to ensure it was fit for purpose and included more detail on preventing and reporting sexual harassment as required by a recent legislative update.  It was noted that the provisions within the Policy applied to both Officers and Elected Members.  The Committee was asked to agree the draft Policy for the purposes of consultation with UNISON.

It was proposed that authority should be delegated to the Head of Human Resources in consultation with the Chair of the Employment Committee to make any minor updates to the draft Policy and Procedure arising from the consultation.  The documents would then be submitted to a meeting of Full Council for formal adoption.

A corporate risk assessment had been circulated to managers which sought to mitigate any risks around harassment and bullying.  A copy of the risk assessment had been circulated with the report.

The Members of the Committee welcomed the report and it was

RESOLVED That

That (i)    it be agreed that consultation on the updated draft Anti-Harassment and Bullying Policy and Procedure with UNISON (included at Appendix 1) can begin; and

          (ii)   authority be delegated to the Head of Human Resources, in consultation with the Chair of the Employment Committee, to consider and implement minor comments on the updated policy and then submit a report to Full Council including the updated policy with comments.