BANK WORKERS - APPLICATION OF AGENDA FOR CHANGE TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF SERVICE

1. Agenda for Change terms and conditions of service, including pay, are applicable not only to substantive post holders but also to the wide range of “bank” workers in NHSScotland. The AfC Handbook does not detail the application of these terms and conditions to “bank” staff and SPRIG requested that guidance be prepared for the Service to ensure that the new terms and conditions under AfC are appropriately and consistently applied to these staff.

2. The Terms and Conditions Guidance Group have prepared the following draft guidance and, in doing so, have consulted with the SEHD Group who undertook a review of nurse bank working across Scotland and produced the Report & Action Plan “Nationally Co-ordinated Nurse Bank Arrangements”

3. This guidance is applicable not only to nurse bank workers but to all other staff groups working on this basis.

4. In preparing this guidance the following issues were debated:

·  Assimilation to new AfC pay bands

·  Job Descriptions and Pay Banding

·  Salary on appointment

·  Annual increments

·  Accelerated increments – band 5

·  Progression from Band 5 to Band 6 (Annex T)

·  KSF Outlines

·  Application of KSF Gateways

·  Sick Leave/Maternity Leave

·  Annual Leave

·  Payment of Overtime.

5. Assimilation to new AfC Pay Bands

Staff should be assimilated in the same way as substantive members of staff – by referring to current pay and placing them on the same or next point above on the AfC pay scales – section 46 of the AfC Handbook applies.

6. Job Descriptions and Pay Banding

In order to assign “bank” workers to a specific pay band for assimilation purposes it is recommended that each Board develops a number of core generic job descriptions. However, to ensure that staff are appropriately paid for the work they actually undertake, the pay band of the post that they are covering should be applied, even when this varies (whether higher or lower) from the band that they were assimilated to using the generic job description.


7. Salary on Appointment

Incremental credit should be applied to “bank” staff in the same way as it is applied to substantive staff when agreeing the pay point that the staff member is being appointed to. The Scottish Pay Reference and Implementation Group letter SGL/2005/012 contains relevant guidance.

8. Annual Increments

“Bank” workers should progress through the pay points in the same way as substantive staff subject to the relevant Gateways. To qualify for an annual increment “bank” staff should have worked a minimum of the equivalent of a 7.5 hour shift per week over each year.

9. Band 5 Accelerated Progression

This should be applied to “bank” staff as well as staff appointed to substantive posts, i.e.

progression through the first 2 points in six-monthly steps, so long as they have met the relevant professional standard.

10. Progression from Band 5 to Band 6

This should be applied to “bank” staff as well as staff appointed to substantive posts and subject to the same criteria as laid out in Annex T of the AfC Handbook. .

11. KSF Outlines

Generic KSF outlines should be developed for each of the generic bank job descriptions. For those staff who do not have a substantive post this generic outline should suffice unless the “bank” worker has agreed to cover only one specific post rather than a range of posts in which case the agreed outline for the specific post will be applied.

It is recommended that staff with substantive posts should normally have no more than two outlines – one for their main post and one for their “bank” work.

11. KSF Gateways

(a) For staff who only work on a “bank”, the annual development review and gateway review should be undertaken by the manager of the “bank” or appointed deputy.

(b) For staff who have a substantive post as well as a “bank” post in the same Health Board area, the main annual development review and gateway review should be undertaken by their line manager. It is imperative, however, that the line manager liaises with the manager of the “bank” to confirm that the employee is or is not eligible to go though the gateway on the “bank” post.


12. Sick Leave and Maternity Leave

“Bank” workers are only entitled to receive Statutory Sick Pay and Statutory Maternity Pay.

13. Annual Leave

“Bank” workers are paid an extra percentage in line with Working Time Regulations.

14. Overtime Payments

Staff who work more than 37.5 hours per week on the “bank” within a Health Board area should attract overtime payments in the same way as substantive post holders. However, substantive post holders who undertake additional hours on the bank should be paid at plain time. The substantive post and “bank” post should not be linked however and the two contracts kept separate for overtime calculations.

28.06.06