Agenda and minutes

No apologies for absence were submitted.

There were no declarations of interest.

Held on 7 November 2012, to be signed as a correct record.

Resolved:     That the minutes of the meeting held on 7 November 2012 be approved as a correct record and signed by the chair.

Minutes of the meeting held on 18 February 2013 attached for information.

The minutes of the meeting of the Employees Consultative Committee held on 18 February 2013 were submitted for information.

Resolved:     That the proceedings of the meeting be noted.

A report was submitted seeking the committee’s determination of the level of pay enhancements to be paid to employees who volunteered to work at night on an occasional basis instead of their normal working hours.

Officers had proposed an enhanced rate of time-and-a-third for hours worked between 23.00 and 06.00 when this was not part of the normal working week, but the trade unions had proposed time-and-a-third plus the hours worked to be taken as time off in lieu.

The matter had also been considered at the meeting of the Employees Consultative Committee held on 18 February 2013 (minute 6 refers).

Resolved:     That further negotiations be undertaken with the trade unions in relation to the proposals.

A report was submitted advising the committee of any staffing matters arising from the annual review of the council’s information security policies and a new Data Transfer Policy and Procedure.

The report set out a summary of amendments made to existing policies and proposed minor amendments to the draft Data Transfer Policy and Procedure, which had arisen from discussions undertaken with the trade unions in January 2013.  The proposals had been endorsed by the Employees Consultative Committee at its meeting on 18 February 2013 (minute 7 refers).

Resolved:

(1)               That the summary of amendments to existing policies set out at Appendix A to the report, be noted.

(2)               That that the draft Data Transfer Policy and Procedure set out at Appendix B to the report be endorsed, subject to the incorporation of the minor amendments detailed within the report.

A report was set out seeking the committee’s endorsement of a Recruitment, Selection and Induction Policy, to replace the council’s existing Recruitment, Selection and Induction Code of Practice.

The policy had been endorsed by the Employees Consultative Committee at its meeting on 18 February 2013.

It was reported that the Criminal Records Bureau and Independent Safeguarding Authority had merged to become the Disclosure and Barring Service on 1 December 2012, and references in the policy would be amended accordingly to reflect the operation of the Vetting and Barring Scheme which would be in operation from 1 April 2013.

Resolved:     That the Recruitment, Selection and Induction Policy as submitted be endorsed.

A report was submitted to enable the committee to consider and prioritise a schedule for work for the coming 12 to 18 months.

Resolved:     That the order of priority for consideration of the employment policies set  out in Appendix B to the report be confirmed.

A report was submitted seeking the committee’s confirmation of arrangements for the involvement of elected members in employment-related appeals.

The report indicated that it was considered that the involvement of members in the process would provide significant benefits in terms of accountability, democratic authority and separation from the initial decisions being reviewed.

The proposals were debated at length, with some members expressing reservations over the involvement of members in the process while the majority were supportive of the principle.

Resolved:

(1)               That a sub-committee of the staffing committee comprising five members be established to deal with employee appeals in respect of Bullying and Harassment; Capability Policy; Disciplinary Procedure; Grievance Procedure; and Restructuring and Redundancy Policy and Procedure (Unfair Selection for Redundancy), in accordance with the appropriate policies;

(2)               That each of the named policies be amended to provide for appeals to be dealt with by the sub-committee; and

(3)               That all members of the sub-committee be required to complete relevant training before serving in that capacity.

(Councillors Howells, Sweeney and Tagg requested that their votes against the proposal be recorded in the minutes.)

A report was submitted to update the committee on the latest position regarding consultations undertaken with the trade unions in relation to the review of terms and conditions to achieve a saving of £100,000 in the 2013/14 budget.

It was noted that some items which had previously been the subject of discussions no longer appeared in Appendix A to the report (proposed changes to terms and conditions), and it was explained that those items had been removed as agreement had now been reached in respect of them.

The Chief Executive confirmed that a letter had been sent to all staff in respect of the proposals and undertook to ensure that a copy of the letter was appended to the minutes of the meeting for information.

Resolved:

(1)               That the proposals set out in Appendix A to the report be endorsed; and

(2)               That the Chief Executive be authorised to approve revised proposals in consultation with the Leader of the Council, the Portfolio Holder for Finance and Budget Management, the Chair of the Staffing Committee and the Chair of the Employees Consultative Committee.

There was no urgent business.