Job evaluation and flexible working

Skintsaver

Today we got confirmation that the job evaluation has been voted through by the union. On the face of it, the offer looks decent — salary increase, more holiday, reduced hours, etc. But what really caught me off guard was the mention of new contracts being issued. Up until now, I was under the impression we’d just get variations to our existing ones.

Here’s a quick breakdown of what’s changing:

Holiday increased to 30 days

Two extra days for Christmas close-down

Sick pay stays at 8 weeks full / 8 weeks half (those on 6 months now aligned)

Weekly hours reduced from 39 to 37

 Weekly call-out becomes contractual, with increased pay

 New job title and job description

Salary uplift of around £4,000

Which all sounds great but....

Working Hours & Rota Confusion

The consultation pack says:

“The standard full-time working hours will be 37 hours a week. Variable hours contracts and a rota for evening and Saturday morning appointments will be introduced.”

No one’s been told what this rota actually  could be. Our current hours are Monday to Friday, 7:30–16:00. I asked about this during the consultation and got no answer — and I know I’m not the only one.

Flexible Working Arrangement

I’ve currently got an staggered flexible working agreement in place due to childcare. HR confirmed (in writing, to me and to a union rep) that this should remain unaffected by the job evaluation. They also said reduced hours must “meet the needs of the business.” which im happy with wording was should in a email to me, but will continue in a email to the rep. Should and will I understand have slight different legal meanings 

My supervisor’s happy with my proposal to drop two hours on Tuesdays, which seems fair. But how could my flexible working arrangement be affected by the  new rota for evenings and Saturdays? I can’t work weekends or some evenings — HR acknowledged my concern but didn’t explain how the rota would be managed around existing flexible agreements.

Call-Out Terms — Still Unclear

I currently do part-week call-out (4 days). Will the new contract expect full-week participation? Again, no clarity.

We also asked what the new call-out pay rate would be. Previously we got a minimum of two hours per job. No confirmation on whether that’s staying.

Union Support vs. Member Concerns

A lot of us feel left in the dark. The union seems satisfied, but many of us still have unanswered questions — especially around working hours, rota obligations, and call-out terms, as well as many other questions. It’s frustrating to be told we’re getting new contracts without full transparency. The whole process just seems a farce and not open and honest.

Trying to Make Sense of the New Contracts — How Might This Play Out for Me?

With the job evaluation now approved and new contracts on the way, I’m trying to figure out how this could actually affect my situation. On paper, the offer looks good — better pay, more holiday, reduced hours — but there are still a lot of unanswered questions, especially around working hours and the new rota system.

I’ve got a flexible working arrangement in place for childcare, which HR says should remain. But with the mention of evening and Saturday appointments being introduced, I’m unsure how that could affect me. Will my current hours still be protected? Or will I be expected to join the rota despite my agreement?

Same goes for call-out. I currently do part-week cover (4 days), but the new contract mentions contractual weekly call-out. Does that mean I’ll now be expected to do a full week? And what happens to the old pay structure — the two-hour minimum per job? Again we haven't been told what the new pay would be for call out currently min 2 hours paid from call received to time return home.

Wonka_2

Not sure anyone other than your company and/or union can answer the specific questions - but from experience on both employer and employee side it’s unlikely there’ll not be some compromise needed from you in exchange for the enhanced package. 

Marcon

Given all the changes, a new contract is going to be both cleaner and (crucially) clearer than just tinkering with the existing ones, so don't over-think that and jump to the conclusion it is somehow 'bad news'.

Wonka_2 said:

Not sure anyone other than your company and/or union can answer the specific questions - but from experience on both employer and employee side it’s unlikely there’ll not be some compromise needed from you in exchange for the enhanced package. 

^^^^This answer hits the nail on the head in all respects. You can't expect a load of improvements to benefit you without something being required to benefit the employer.

LightFlare

Marcon said:

Given all the changes, a new contract is going to be both cleaner and (crucially) clearer than just tinkering with the existing ones, so don't over-think that and jump to the conclusion it is somehow 'bad news'.

Wonka_2 said:

Not sure anyone other than your company and/or union can answer the specific questions - but from experience on both employer and employee side it’s unlikely there’ll not be some compromise needed from you in exchange for the enhanced package. 

^^^^This answer hits the nail on the head in all respects. You can't expect a load of improvements to benefit you without something being required to benefit the employer.

Sounds as if the enhancements are in return for mandatory evening and weekend oncall.

It isnt reasonable imo (and fair on other staff who have to carry the extra load) to say you are happy with the reward but can’t co tribute towards the work

If the OP is adamant that they can’t do evenings, the this could get a little “interesting”

Your flexible working agreement will probably need to be reviewed/reapplied
Good that your union is involved, but I would want specific advice around this

Skintsaver

I think @macron is right in saying that it'll be clearer and cleaner for me especially as I have a folder with 20 odd attachments with various changes over the past 10 years to my existing contract.

My current contract though never really was able to be enforced due to staff leaving and short staffed during the main working hours. stated "hours worked with a minimum notice of 1 week are Monday to Friday 730 to 8pm and Saturday morning 8am to 12pm. And you may be required to participate in the weekly call out rota."

So I guess that wording or along those lines will be in the new contracts?  I know many currently don't have wording like that. In fact I signed up for for that contract with the benefit of adjusting my hours for school runs many years ago, but my divorce and child care plan meant my employer at the time wanted me to make a formal request and alter my hours permanently, which I found odd at the time(we've since tuped).

But I do need to stick to those hours still ( though I may be making another request in around a year's time when my son's starts highschool.) Hense my concerns over my flexible working arrangements remaining for school runs ect..

I have this in writing from Head of HR

"Any flexible working agreements currently in place should be honoured with implementation of JE. You supervisor will be able to discuss the proposals you have suggested re the reduction in working time and agree them from an operational point of view. " I actually held a meeting prior to this saying how I'd like to reduce my hours and his view on it which he verbally agreed to. When I get my pack next week I'll chase an email to him again stating what working week I'll be on and get him to agree in a email if I can.


I also have this in writing via the union from HR
"As discussed, there will be no changes for anyone who has a flexible working arrangement in place. I and the HR Team are working on increasing the number of flexible working opportunities going forward so certainly no intention to remove them."

But it doesn't take away the fact there's no mention of this rota for evening and Saturdays is be Willing to do week evenings if needed. Call out I only have a verbal agreement but it probably falls under customs and practice that I now only do 4 days as my son's becomes older id be happy to cover a full week again anyway, even now I may be able to if they agree that I can carry my son as a passenger( I did this previously for a short while)