NHS Agenda for Change banding problem

Paulalfc

Hi

I am hoping someone will be able to give me some advice on an ongoing problem i have with my work. I am currently a band 3 medical secretary but have been doing the job of a band 4 medical secretary for the past 3 years but still on a band 3 pay. The job i am currently doing was advertised as a band 4 three years ago and i got short listed for the interview but the day before the interview the job was pulled with no reason given for this so i remained as i was doing the same job.

I am now fighting to be made into a Band 4 secretary as i feel this is what i should be paid with according to my job description. However, i have been told that if i want to become a band 4 my job needs to be advertised and i need to apply for my own job again. If i am unsuccessful i will loose my current role and management will have to find me another job within the department i currently work in. This whole process seems hardly fair to me considering i have been doing the job for three years now and all i want at the end of the day is to be paid the same as the other band 4's in my department.

Can anyone offer me any help on this as im so frustrated with the current situation and feel like i am being lied to by management who keep fobbing me off with different excuses. Sorry for the long post by the way!.

Many Thanks in advance.

sovilla

I work for the NHS and assumed that when you had been doing a role for more than 2 years they had to give you that role. I know in our department if we are seconded to a role and its extended for more than 2 years then its made permanent. Have a look for some policies on acting up/ doing another role outside your contract. They may be trying to pull a fast one.

Are you in a union? If not maybe speak to ACAS. Hope you get it sorted.

Paulalfc

Hi Sovila thanks for your reply. I started as a support secretary and then took on other responsibilities such as the waiting list etc. This was my choice as i wanted more experience so that i could progress to becoming a band 4 in future. This is not a secondment but the job i have been doing over a period of time. HR don't seem to be very helpful regarding this situation and i am thinking about putting a grievence in regarding this matter as i feel i am being treated unfairly considering the circumstances. I am not in the union unfortunately. I have spoken to ACAS who have informed me that they are within their rights to advertise the post if i was just covering?.

polgara

If you have been acting into a role for four years to be entitled to be made substantive.

If your role has changed then, with your line manager's approval, you can amend your job description and request a re-banding in line with AfC. If your line manager is not in agreement then you will need to have a discussion regarding what is actually in your job description and not what you have been doing over and above it. Ultimately your JD has been banded as a Band 3 at some point.

Given all the changes in the NHS at the moment it is not unusual for advertised jobs to be pulled at the last minute or be restricted to those who are at risk of redundancy. There is a particular squeeze on adminstration in all trusts that I am aware of and Band 4 secretarial roles are becoming very scarce.

Good luck but in my experience (19 years of NHS) rebandings are very rare - I tried a number of times with my secretarial role to no avail and ended up moving to another trust and progressing that way.

Savvy_Sue

I'd join the union now and try to progress this in a few months time ...

Traceyg

The hospital where I work have undertaken a secretarial review and downgraded medical secretaries from band 4 to band 3, they will be protected for a certain amount of time. Even the department I work in has been under review for 2 years and changes have been made.

I know people who have tried to get their banding changed but have not been successful and some who have been successful.

Good luck.

Tracey

firesidemaid

what type of contract do you have?

what is your role/title and what is your role/title on your job description? is it a band 3 JD? how is your JD different or similar to your Band 3 or Band 4 colleagues?

Rachylou1981

This is an issue in most Trusts now. Our Trust is currently trying to downgrade our Band 4 Med Secs to Band 3 and a review is ongoing. We are fighting it to the max. However in the meantime they are only recruiting new staff on a Band 3, which obviously is unfair to them as they will end up doing the exact same job as a Band 4. It is really difficult and a headache for all involved especially since most secretaries on the AFC changeover were told they were Band 3/4 with easy transition from one band to another but that is not the case now apparently. In my experience, unless you have gone up to Band 4 before now, you will have to fight tooth and nail and will be extremely lucky to get it. Even other Trusts are now recruiting at Band 3s (search NHS jobs and you will see).

silkyuk9

I have not read all your thread but it seems you were doing somethnig similar to me. I was working in a department doing the same job as my colleagues but getting 1 band below pay.

What I did was consult my union telling them that I am doing a job that is a band higher, since you have been doing this job over a period of time even though there is possibly no contract you are doing a job by 'custom and practice' this is like a verbal contract.

Ask for a rebanding review, get the review done then get the banding, after that claim for all the back pay too. I did it no problems and won everythnig. including several years back pay at around £1 per hour for 5ish years