From amicus - MSF
Head of Health, Gail Cartmail General Secretary, Roger Lyons
Reps Direct should be forwarded by email to other members and put in printed form on the notice boards for all to see, both members and non-members.
These are the questions raised by members in EI sites. The answers have been agreed by the staff and management secretariat of Agenda for Change.
Q1. What should be the position of staff recruited after
June 1st but before an Agenda for Change pay band could be
indicated, should the protection arrangements within the
agreement apply?
A. Yes the protection arrangements should apply. They should
stop being applicable to staff whose posts are advertised on
Agenda for Change pay bands
Q2. What is the position on staff who are seconded do
they retain entitlement to enhancements that were applicable in
the substantive post.
A. This should be a matter for local resolution since the
circumstances of the secondment may vary widely.
Q3. When some one is on call and for example responds to
the call by dialling in from home and remotely solves a fault
could this count as work, as in paragraph 2.31
A. Yes this should count as work.
Q4. Part time staff and Bank Holidays, are they entitled
to a proportionate share irrespective of the days of the week
on which they work.
A. Yes this is covered by the agreement.
Q5. Will there be any national guidance on what is "
other relevant employment" in paragraph 12.2
A. No, it is for local determination of what is
relevant.
Q6. Will national assessor's roles continue.
A. Agenda for Change does not change this. If national
assessors are used to assess at the point of recruitment
currently we assume that this will continue. If national
assessors are used as part of JE panels they should be trained
like any other panel member.
Q7. Are there any plans for further guidance on which
bonus schemes comply with the agreement.
A. There are no plans for further guidance, but all trusts
have freedom to introduce team bonuses.
Q8. What is the position on staff working more than 37.5
hours when it is not possible to change rotas immediately from
June 1st.
A. Staff are entitled to the new hours from June 1st, where
rotas can not be changed until some later point then overtime
is applicable for the balance of hours between 37.5 and the
Whitley arrangements.
Q9. Will there be a national time sheet
A. No this is a local matter.
Q10. Are current staff entitled to count existing service
in paragraph 12.1 because the text refers to " will count "
implying in the future.
A. This should be interpreted the same as " counts". It is not
designed to give existing staff less favourable terms.
Q11. In section 46 in the draft handbook there is a
footnote 7, is this correct?
A. This is the correct reference, it refers to the enabling
clause on local protection arrangements.
Q12. In paragraph 46.24 how is a spot salary
defined.
A. It has the normal meaning of a post being paid at a single
rate with no increments.
Q13. How should high cost areas be interpreted.
A. The relevant paragraph covering this is 4.5
Q14. Can there be any movement on the December
deadline.
A. There are no plans to move the target date. We should make
it clear however that the most important thing is for
organisations to get implementation right, rather than force
things through too quickly.
Q15. What is the position on overtime worked prior to
assimilation, would payments be clawed back?
A. There should be no claw back of payments.
Q16. How can transitional points ever be
eradicated.
A. Transitional points will go automatically. This is set out
in paragraph 46.13
Q17. What is the position for staff who under Whitley are
entitled to higher overtime rates than 1.5 eg on
Sunday.
A. Agenda for Change applies from June 1st The applicable rate
for all overtime except BH's should be the Agenda for Change
rate of 1.5