NHS merger / possible downgrade / redundancy

Gloria_mundi

Hi All.

I am a band 7 NHS worker with almost 30 years service. The Trust I work for and a neighbouring trust are planning a merger scheduled for 2013.

Before this happens however my department and the corresponding department from the neighbouring trust will begin to operate as one unit. April 2012 is the target date.

Information release is being kept at an absolute minimum, senior managers are giving away nothing and rumours are rife as you can imagine.

Its pretty clear that shedding/downgrading staff to save money is the goal in the long term.

The main concerns of staff are :-

1. Can they be forced to work at a neighbouring trust, before the trusts have fully become one ? Or even afterwards, if they do not wish to travel there. (some staff live literally on the doorstep of our hospital)

2. Can staff be forced to apply for their own jobs and downgraded if unsuccessful ? Must they offer redundancy first in such situations ?
Can we be forced to compete with staff from the neighbouring trust for our jobs ?

If anyone on these boards has NHS/ Union experience on these types of issue input would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

Guitar

[FONT=&quot]1. Yes, unless the travel time increase is unrealistic. Many NHS staff have already switched trust. Living on the doorstep of your current job isn't a protected condition of NHS employment. My experience in the past is that staff that are unable to travel to a new job are given redundancy instead. Note: Unable, not unwilling.

2. Again in my experience what usually happens is there is a few rounds of voluntary redundancies. Then they begin matching up the jobs with who's left, which may include offering lower paid grades. Staff are often ringfenced to their own job with a group of people that preformed the same or similar functions. They then have to apply for the job, competing against each other. The 'losers' are usually made redundant rather than offered another job.

The recent restructures have targeted the higher pay grades with the intention of sharing their roles out with lower paid staff, for example I'm a Grade 4 that largely does work that was previously done by a Grade 6 and 7. I'm quite happy about this because it's good experience, interesting work and I still have a job.[/FONT]

bluesnake

Please be away that if you apply for the new jobs, and are successful, this means you will take on the new conditions and working times and practices. However, if you are slotted in then you still fall under the terms of your old contract.

There is also the issue of pay bands that if you are slotted in and the banding level has been reduced, if you are under 50 your pay will be protected for up to 5 years before reduction, or until it matches the new band.

Speak to your union, as there should probably have been some consultation regarding restructure, redundancy and generally what is going on.

redundancy gives one months salary for every full year and the tax free amount is £30000. Perhaps you may wish to buy extra years pension with monies over that amount or something like that as it is better than loosing 40% to the tax man

paparossco

bluesnake wrote: »

redundancy gives one months salary for every full year

Up to a maximum of 24 years service if I remember right. So two years salary tops.

Gloria_mundi

Thanks for the replies folks.

After more chatter at work someone suggested the best option if you were worried was not to apply for your job.

It was suggested that if you do this you will still be employed and the ball will be in the employers court, that you would still have a job under your old terms and conditions and if they wished to downgrade you it would be regarded as an alternative job offer which would carry a loss of status and therefore could be refused and redundancy would have to be offered instead.

Anyone know if this is true ?

wen3

Hi Gloria just wondering if you are in Kent as this is what is going on in our trust as well

Gloria_mundi

Yes wen3 its in Kent.

Dont really want to name the trusts involved publically but there arent that many

wen3

Gloria_mundi wrote: »

Yes wen3 its in Kent.

Dont really want to name the trusts involved publically but there arent that many

Thanks for starting this thread will be watching with interest:)

firesidemaid

this is also happening in other areas around the country.

in some areas, staff are all basically being downgraded by one band - they will all in theory re-apply for the new downgraded jobs. the band 7s will all be allowed to apply for the band 6 jobs, then the previous band 6s will apply for any band 6 jobs left and the new band 5s etc.

i take it this is legit, even tho these were all jobs that were matched under a4c? how and when does pay protection apply?

also, does anyone know how a break in service (of less than a year) affects redundancy payments?

i have a feeling that this topic is one that will become more frequent over the coming months.

makemesumdosh

a friend of mine who left the nhs last year after a payout on the mars scheme (mutually agreed redundancy scheme) left because his base moved and resulted in him having to travel 45 minutes each way from his usual base. he read up on terms and conditions and wound the bosses up by turning up at his old base at normal shift time then travel the further distance in his working time and claimed the mileage. he also left early to get back to his old base for normal finishing time also claiming mileage.

after a year they offered him a payout under the mars scheme (half the payout you would normally get if made redundant) tax free of course.

did your heels in if they move your base you have rights and they know it.

ps just been offered mars last week and told them where to stick it (23 years service)