PCS PARLIAMENTARY BRIEFING: October 2007
October 2007
For more information contact PCS’s campaigns team:
Tel: 020 7801 2820, e-mail
Public and Commercial Services Union
160 Falcon Road, London, SW11 2LN 1
Job cuts:
Update
By the end of June this year headcount reductions across the civil service totalled 66,000 posts with 13,000 posts relocated. The Treasury considers CSR 04 to conclude on 31 March 2008; they will assess overall achievement against targets six months later (except for the relocation targets which expire in 2010).
An announcement on CSR07 is scheduled for Tuesday 9 October. PCS are concerned that with administration budgets likely to be cut by 5% year on year, our members are likely to suffer further job cuts and increased stress due to lack of resources in which to deliver their services.
PCS would welcome an announcement that does not feature further arbitrary headcount or budgetary reductions but are concerned that further job cuts being made as a result of budget cuts would increase the problems being experienced in service delivery across the civil service. Even Sir Peter Gershon recommended that going beyond the headcount reductions he outlined as part of CSR04 would be to the detriment of public services. The Treasury Select Committee have also raised concerns over the impact 25,000 job cuts in HMRC by 2011 will have on their quality of service.
Compulsory redundancies
With the expiration at the end of September of our departmental agreement with HMRC on no compulsory redundancies there are now no formal agreements in place to protect our members’ being forced out of their employment. PCS still firmly believe that the Cabinet Office could, if they wished to do so, put in place assurances over no compulsory redundancies. With the majority of the 66,000 reductions so far being made through natural wastage and voluntary redundancy schemes, and departments on course to meet their Gershon targets, we see no reason why the Cabinet Office could not meet our demands for no compulsory redundancies.
The latest announcement of compulsory redundancies was in DEFRA where 20 staff in the Wildlife Administration Unit were given notification on 26 September. PCS believe these redundancies are unnecessary particularly in light of the fact that they come at a time when the Department’s staff have been working round the clock and cancelling annual leave to contain bluetongue and foot and mouth.
Further notices have also been issued in DBERR and we have been informed that the first compulsory redundancy notices to be issued to DWP staff are imminent.
Equality concerns
PCS have concerns over the impact on equality job cuts, relocations and outsourcing are having. We have made a formal complaint to the new Equality & Human Rights Commission (EHRC) about the lack of equality impact assessment being made on outsourcing of functions in the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
We have lodged a judicial review application over DBERR’s failure to assess the impact of compulsory redundancies on their black and minority ethnic (BME) staff. Of the 18 DBERR staff still subject to the compulsory redundancy notices issued in June, eight are black, meaning an even greater disproportionate impact on BME staff than originally feared. The Commission for Racial Equality wrote to the DBERR on 24 September giving the Department 21 days notice to provide copies of Race Equality Impact Assessments carried out before the notices were issued. Unless these are presented legal proceedings will commence.
Further industrial action
Following our summer of consultation with members on our national dispute to defend jobs, pay and conditions, PCS are now holding a consultative ballot on taking further action.
A verbal report and more information will be given at the meeting.
Departmental issues
DWP: Compulsory redundancies in Jobcentre Plus
Jobcentre Plus announced in June their intention to enter into “meaningful consultation” with PCS over the possible compulsory redundancy of over 400 staff. Nearly all of these staff are in the administrative assistant grade (the most junior grade). They are spread all over the country but with most concentrated in the south.
PCS does not believe that any redundancies are necessary. Given the size of DWP the numbers involved are a very small proportion of DWP staffing and could comfortably be accommodated in a meaningful role. PCS policy is to ensure that anyone who wants to continue their career in the civil service should not be made compulsorily redundant.
Since June, PCS has had numerous meetings with Jobcentre Plus management at national level and particularly in the regions. Regional trade union sides have been working hard to try and ensure that alternatives to redundancy are found for these staff. This work has led to a significant reduction in the number of staff subject to redundancy as staff have either been redeployed in DWP, or elsewhere in the civil service, or chosen to leave via an exit package.
However there remains a significant number of members still at risk of compulsory redundancy. Only one region, East Midlands, has been able to reduce the number at risk of redundancy to nil. North East was the only region that did not enter into “meaningful consultation”. The latest numbers of staff still at risk are as follows:
North West 6
Yorkshire & Humber 8
Scotland 2
South West 28
West Midlands 9
South East 51
Wales 7
Eastern 41
London 99
A disproportionate number of those threatened with compulsory redundancy are from groups that are disadvantaged in the labour market, including disabled, part time workers, older workers and ethnic minorities.
Four of the regions: Scotland, Yorkshire, North-West and South West are at a more advanced stage than the other regions. They have entered into the “period of reflection” part of the process. This is where joint meetings are held between DWP, the Cabinet Office, and the Council of Civil Service Unions to examine each potential redundancy and further explore alternative solutions.
Jobcentre Plus has indicated that they believe the “period of reflection”, and thus the “meaningful consultation”, in these four regions is approaching its end. This introduces the very real possibility that they may move to issue notices of compulsory redundancies to the affected staff when the “meaningful consultation” ends. PCS has made it clear that the issue of any notices of compulsory redundancy would be viewed as a very serious and provocative step.
PCS continues to believe that solutions can be found to prevent these redundancies going ahead. The “periods of reflection” should be extended in all the regions to ensure all possibilities are fully explored. A combination of greater flexibility in implementing the standard operating model, more cooperation between DWP and other departments and greater use of promotion as a redundancy avoidance measure can remove the need for any compulsory redundancies.
Unfortunately Jobcentre Plus has adopted an unnecessarily inflexible approach, particularly to the future role of AA’s in the job centre network. Essentially Jobcentre Plus want to remove all AA’s from their job centres as part of the adoption of their new standard operating model. This would leave AO’s and EO’s having to perform AA duties as well as their existing duties. PCS is extremely concerned at the implications of this for all AA’s across DWP and is pressing management to enter into substantive discussions about the future of the AA grade in DWP.
The other regions with staff still at risk of redundancy are expected to enter their “periods of reflection” in October, apart from London where this is likely to be delayed until November.
Jobcentre Plus have also said that they are to run voluntary exit schemes, on compulsory terms, for AO’s, EO’s and HEO’s in the Benefit Delivery Centres(BDC) feeder sites. These are the sites that Jobcentre Plus wants to close when their processing work transfers to the BDC’s. This raises the possibility that, if there are insufficient volunteers for the exit schemes, Jobcentre Plus may move into “meaningful consultation” here too. Given the pressure that the BDC’s are under and the large amount of overtime being worked, PCS believe there is no justification for such a move.
None of the staff under threat of redundancy have been sent home on gardening leave. They are doing work that continues to be available for them to do. This, together with the fact that there are still redundancy avoidance measures which have not been fully explored, that may result in them being found permanent posts, means any attempt to issue redundancy notices at this stage would be unjustified.
We would ask the Secretary of State to provide PCS members with similar commitments to Remploy staff and give a no compulsory redundancy guarantee in the department.
DWP pay
PCS continues to campaign on pay within the DWP. More talks are planned and we will keep the parliamentary group up to date with any developments.
We strongly believe the two key issues of pay and compulsory redundancies can be resolved and we seek the support of the parliamentary group to enable us to achieve a settlement.
Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customs (HMRC)
Job Cuts and office closure issues
Recently released staff survey results clearly demonstrate the morale of staff has hit a new low in the department;
· Only 20% of staff believe that HMRC is being well managed, and
· Half of all staff believe the department is changing for the worse with poorly managed teams in an environment where it is unsafe to challenge the way the department go about doing their business.
13, 000 posts have been cut in HMRC since 2004, with a further 12,500 jobs to be axed by 2011. PCS are concerned that we currently have not been able to re-secure the no compulsory redundancy agreement that expired in September, although we do welcome the department’s strong commitment that they wish to avoid compulsory redundancies. We expect detailed announcements mid November regarding the workforce change programme of office closures and job cuts.
There are still over 200 offices potentially threatened with closure and the resulting relocation of staff to other sites – this affects 10,000 members.
An announcement on the East Midlands urban review is expected in mid October – the most recent date we have been told is 15 October. The future of tax offices in Keighley, Skipton, Huddersfield and Halifax will be dependent on this announcement and the general secretary, Mark Serwotka will be speaking at a members meeting in Bradford on 12 October along with four local MPs.
PCS welcome the support received from MPs who are securing debates, attending meetings and tabling parliamentary questions. A further debate has been secured for 10 October 4.30-5pm by Chris Mullin MP regarding the closure of offices in Sunderland.
A key concern emerging from the office closure programme is the impact on equality. For example;
· Many of the offices threatened with closure have a predominantly female workforce, many with caring/childcare responsibilities who work part-time and would therefore be unable to relocate.
· There are also particular concerns about the closure of offices in Chichester, Bath and Aylesbury because of difficulties for staff with disabilities and/or caring/childcare responsibilities being expected to relocate despite a drop in income and reduced working hours. Grievances have been submitted to Chichester management by staff told they must move to Portsmouth despite their representations of why the move is not possible.
· In terms of redeployment, an office in Oxford is now staffed completely by part-time female staff as they have been told they can’t apply for jobs in MoD as they are part timers - despite this being contrary to legislation introduced by the current government and MoD being prepared to transfer in 20 full-time HMRC surplus staff.
PCS also believe these closures will have a detrimental impact on local economies and cause difficulties for service users.
The first report of the Treasury Select Committee on efficiency echoed our concerns in relation to the lack of departmental planning over cuts and closures. We now have further concerns that at the same time HMRC are looking to strengthen border security they are also looking to outsource their security function by extending the current Mapely contract. We are concerned that the department are proposing to privatise a function that is crucial to site security of some of the most closely guarded HMRC sites, containing seized contraband including drugs, alcohol and cigarettes as well as money. We are concerned that this is being considered even though the department wrote to members in April to assure members that they had no further plans for outsourcing.
PCS are asking MPs to secure further debates where possible, write to the Financial Secretary to the Treasury Jane Kennedy to express concern over how restructuring, cuts and closures are being handled and lend support to local campaigns.
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Compulsory Redundancies in DEFRA Wildlife Unit
DEFRA issued compulsory redundancy notices to 20 staff in the Wildlife Unit on 25 September 2007. The redundancy notices were issued to staff based in Polwhele, Cornwall and Aston Down, Gloucestershire. The issuing of the notices came at the same time as the department are working around the clock to contain foot and mouth and Bluetongue.