Basingstoke & Dean Borough Council Human Resources Committee Meeting

There were no apologies for absence.

There were no declarations of interest.

There were no urgent matters.

The Chair confirmed that the minutes of the meeting held on the 5^thJuly 2023 were confirmed by the Committee as a correct record.

The HR Manager introduced the report which provided an update on the progress of the council’s pay and benefits review since the previous HR Committee on 5 July 2023 when the review was discussed in detail. 

The report also set out the final implementation plans for this stage of the review and in addition set out which areas would be covered within phase two of the review.

The implementation of the pay and benefits review involved substantial changes to the HR and payroll systems in addition to a number of changes to existing policies and processes. As such the salary changes required would be made in the salary payments in October 2023 and backdated to the official implementation date of 01 August 2023.

The appeals received from staff in relation to the individual outcomes of the pay and benefits review were currently being reviewed. The final outcome of the appeals would be shared with the staff who lodged them in advance of the salary payment date in October 2023.

The Committee discussed the report and sought clarification on how many staff had appealed, the distribution across the three grounds for appeal outlined within the report and the percentage that were upheld.   It was confirmed that HR had received over 100 appeals which were currently being dealt with.   The other details requested would be included in the next update report once the process had been completed.

Resolved:  The committee notes the report

The Head of Human Resources and Organisational Development introduced the report which set out key people indicators and management information for 2022/23 and the first quarter of 2023/24 and made comparisons with the previous years’ performance. Overall, there was a slight decrease in headcount during 2022/23 however this had slightly increased in quarter one of 2023/24.

In quarter one the workforce age profile has remained broadly static, with the highest percentage of staff continuing to be within the 55-64 age bracket.

Ethnicity in the workforce demographics in quarter one was predominately White British with 78.75% of the workforce in total reporting as White (British, Irish or any other white background). This mirrored the data in the 2021 Census which highlighted that 88.5% of borough residents identified their ethnic group within the White category. The workforce ethnicity breakdown had changed slightly with an increase in the number of staff reported as being from Ethnic Minority Communities.

There were 77 leavers in 2022/23 (excluding dismissals), 17 (22%) completed an exit questionnaire.

During the period 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023,134 vacancies were advertised with 1073 applications received. During quarter one, 37 vacancies were advertised with 393 applications received, through the Hirerserve recruitment portal.

The average days lost in 2022/23 was 7.81 days which was a reduction to that of 2021/22 but above the target for the period. A total of 923 days was lost due to sickness absence in Q1, which was an average of 1.64 workdays lost per employee and was slightly above the corporate target (1.63 days). 

The majority (58%) of the council’s absence in quarter one was due to long term absence (i.e. any absence lasting over 20 days). The remaining 42% of absence was due to short term sickness.

Sickness absence related to mental ill health was the top reason for absence at the end of 2022/23 and therefore a significant contributor to the sickness levels. Although positive to note, the average length of absence for this reason had decreased slightly, meaning that on average individuals were returning to work sooner. The council continued to take a proactive approach to the management of mental ill health and had a comprehensive supportive package (both preventative and reactive). However, despite this approach, absence in terms of days lost, due to mental ill health had increased. 

The council promoted a variety of health-based initiatives which were organised by the Wellbeing Group.  This was made up of staff from across the council and chaired by the HR team. The purpose of the Wellbeing Group was to assist in the delivery of the council’s Wellbeing Strategy by promoting a safe and healthy work environment.

The council remained committed to improving skills and providing training, education, and work-based experience through apprenticeships. From the date of compiling the report, in August 2023, there were currently eight apprentices in post, and five staff members who were undertaking training via an up-skill apprenticeship qualification. There were a further five apprentice opportunities out for recruitment from different service areas from across the council and a further two opportunities in discussion.

The Committee discussed the report and made the following comments which included: -

• Queried whether the voluntary resignations for the customer facing roles was due to challenging behaviour from the public.  Although they had no concerns in those areas there were measures in place such as reflective practice to enable teams to talk about challenging cases, training was also provided to deal with difficult conversations in person and over the phone and additional security was on site during reception opening hours.

• Recognised there were a higher level of leavers for grades 1 to 6 and wondered whether there was a way to improve retention.   It was advised that there were three times as many staff in those grades, so broadly it was proportionately inline. However, where possible the council were keen to retain staff where they could including those apprenticeship roles.

• It was highlighted that there was an increase in applications from younger people and a drop off in the 45 to 54 age range which possibly does not reflect the area’s demographic.   It was considered positive as the younger age group was slightly underrepresented in the workforce but there was some target work on application rates against new starter rates to understand the trends.  The information would be brought back to a future committee.

• Questioned whether it was possible to determine whether the absence due to anxiety and stress could be broken down to work related or outside factors.  It was advised that it was difficult to determine as it could be work related or home or a combination of both for many individuals.

• Commended the number of statistics contained within the report.

• Requested that Table 4.8 which displayed the proportion of leavers by grade in 2022/2023, include an additional column to indicate the percentage of the total number of people within the grade who are leavers within the organisation.   For example, 51 leavers which equated to 30% of the total number of staff within that grade.

• Suggested that future reports include a 5-year trend for the total labour turnover rate.

• Impressed by the initiatives and level of support provided to staff.

Resolved:  The committee notes the report.

The Head of Human Resources and Organisational Development introduced the annual statement which provided information to the committee about the cost of redundancies, early retirements and settlement agreements (previously known as compromise agreements) that had taken place during the last complete financial year.

The council paid termination costs totalling £278,804.13 in 2022/2023. This compared with a total of £49,421.86 for 2021/2022.

The total of £278,804.13 was comprised of £149,097.69 in redundancy costs, £76,819.39 related to PILON payments, £30,387.05 related to early retirement costs and £22,500 related to termination payments.

All the payments referred to in this report were made in accordance with the council’s Pay Policy Statement, constitution and financial regulations.

The Committee discussed the report and clarification was sought as to why the redundancy costs were so much higher compared to 2021/2022.   It was advised that the roles affected had been specific and in technical service areas and the available positions within the new structure were not deemed to be suitable alternative employment.

Resolved:  The committee notes the report

The HR Manager introduced the report and advised constitutionally, the HR Committee were responsible for the approval of a set of policies that had a significant impact on staff and/or on costs to the council.

Further to this the HR Committee were constitutionally required to undertake an annual review of the delegation to Officers to agree all other employment policies not explicitly listed on page 3.15 in Section 2.6.5, paragraph (3) of the constitution, determining whether the Committee wishes to amend the delegations for any certain policies.

In line with the policy review timetable agreed at the HR Committee on 27 February 2023, two policies had been reviewed which had resulted in minor updates being proposed to them.

The HR Committee were requested to review and approve the minor amendments to the Sickness Absence Policy and Procedure and the Bullying and Harassment Policy and Procedure.

The Committee discussed the report and made the following comments which included: -

·          Requested the amended policies include track changes on future reports.

·           Sickness Absence Policy and Procedure 4.1 “By telephone as soon as possible and no later than 10.00 am for staff working normal office hours.” Suggested that the sentence include the word call after telephone.

·           Requested that the Committee be supplied with a list of the employment policies that were delegated to Officers.   The Head of Human Resources and Organisational Developmentconfirmed that she would circulate the list.

·          Clarification was sought on HR’s position in any bullying or harassment claims made by staff at the council as it was suggested that in the experience of one member of the Committee at other organisations, the HR Department had favoured the Company’s stance.   It was confirmed that HR do not investigate any allegations and are neutral in the process and would not make any decision on behalf of the organisation.  It would be a trained manager who would do the initial review and fact finding and would be supported by HR in doing this. However, HR would also offer a range of support to the individual raising the bullying and harassment issue, such as counselling and also a dedicated HR contact who they could ask questions of throughout the process. 

·         It was suggested that the policies were clear and backed up by professionalism and that Councillors could take confidence in any decision made.

The Leader of the Council added that the processes in place would be held to and implemented.  He reassured the Councillors that they could have confidence that the processes were clear and those who followed them knew their responsibilities.   However, there was nothing wrong in having a review of the process once the claim had been dealt with appropriately. 

RESOLVED:  that the HR Committee:

Reviews and approves the following updated policies:

Appendix 1: Sickness Absence Policy and Procedure

Appendix 2: Bullying and Harassment Policy and Procedure

Views of the committee are sought on:

Whether the HR Committee wish to recommend there to be any amendments to the delegations to Officers for certain employment policies not listed in section 2 of this report, as outlined in section 3.2 of this report.

The Head of Human Resources and Organisational Development introduced the report which provided an annual review of occupational safety and health for 2022/2023 and indicated the key proposed areas of focus for the annual health and safety action plan for 2023/2024.

The focus of the health and safety activity within the council was to maintain the positive safety and incident reporting culture across the organisation and to support managers to appropriately manage risk throughout the diverse range of work activities that staff perform.

There was a small increase in the overall number of incidents reported during 2022/2023 (57) compared with 51 during 2021/2022.

The programme of health and safety activity within the 2022/2023 health and safety action plan was completed, and the action plan for 2023/2024 was in place and would be reviewed quarterly by the Corporate Health and Safety Committee.

The Committee discussed the report and enquired whether the incident figures reported related to the seasons.  It was advised that the figures were broadly comparably across the quarters but there were some seasonal elements involved within some of the incidents reported such as the impact of ice on making terrain slippery and the position of the sun which could affect visibility whilst driving.

Resolved:  The committee notes the report

The Head of Human Resources and Organisational Development confirmed the suggested work programme.

Enquired whether there would be a report on ethnicity pay gaps.  It was advised that although it was not a statutory requirement it was confirmed that the Government had previously consulted on this.  The HR Team would be looking at it in terms of the best way to produce the information and how to use it to better understand the workforce and any required actions.

The Committee noted the work programme.