PAS Review: Executive Support workstream information sessions

Thursday, 18 February 2016

Robert Van de Noort, the Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Academic Planning & Resource, has been briefing staff on the Executive Support workstream this week.

His presentation (available here) provided details on the proposals for the Executive Support which are subject to ongoing consultation with UCU and the Staff Forum.

The first two sessions took place on 17 and 18 February, and attracted a range of questions from the participants. Below you will find some of the questions and the answers to those:

What is the purpose of voluntary redundancy (VR)?

The purpose is to take people out of the selection process and ensure that we provide people who really want to stay at the University with the broadest opportunity.

If you are matched, can you still apply for VR?

Yes. But you can’t apply for jobs and then take voluntary redundancy.

How will the matching process work in practice?

We believe that most people will be matched to a role. We will be sensible about matching. We recognise that there is a great diversity of roles, especially in the school manager community, and we will be sensible about matching. People can also request to be matched to a particular role. Matching will be an administrative process with the involvement of relevant line managers based on people’s current job descriptions and the activities they currently do.

What happens if I am on holiday when the selection happens?

We will be as fair as possible, being as flexible as we can and recognising and working around people’s prior commitments.

Will we only be matched to roles within our school and function?

We are trying to strike a balance between being as fair as possible and minimising the disruption to individuals and services and functions. It may be that you are matched to a role in your school or function but you may also be matched to roles in a different part of the University.

How will I hear about the results of matching?

You will be hear by letter whether you are:

Matched and confirmed in a role
Matched but there is a selection process (i.e. there is more than 1 person matched to the roles)
Neither 1 or 2 and you are at risk of redundancy.

Can you accept a match and apply for other roles?

Yes you can.

Will Heads of School/Function form part of the recruitment panel?

We haven’t decided on the composition of the selection panels as yet. It is highly likely that for school roles there will be a senior school rep on the panel and for functions a senior functional manager.

Will there be any further updates to the job description?

We are interested to hear your views on the job descriptions and the job titles. There is some opportunity to put in some local tailoring of job descriptions and if managers in this area know what this should be then they should add this into the job descriptions now. However, all job descriptions will be issued centrally.

Will those on fixed term contracts be considered in the same way?

Much depends on the end date of contracts, however we do have an obligation to treat staff on fixed-term contracts fairly.

How are you keeping people on maternity leave informed?

We will provide them with all the relevant information they need, including access to the presentations and Q&A.

There is a mention around events support in the job descriptions. Does this means we have to work evenings and weekends?

There will be some roles where there is significant external-facing activity and this will be expected. In others the event activity will be zero.

When will we know what is happening with the Building Managers activity as this may be relevant to my decision?

There is some building liaison role within the Executive Support job description as currently proposed. The broader work around Building Managers and Health and Safety Advisors should be concluded within the next week or so.

The timetable is very tight, will there be more jobs advertised after the w/c7th March?

Recruitment is an ongoing process, if people don’t accept matches or go for voluntary redundancy further jobs may well become available later in the spring.

Can you proactively apply or be matched for a lower graded job and keep your money (i.e. receive pay protection?

We are still consulting on the terms and conditions of pay protection. However pay protection is designed primarily for those who have been matched to a grade lower than they are currently working.

The third and final Executive Support workstream information session is scheduled for Monday 22 February, 12–pm, Van Emden, Humms. The session is open to non-academic staff from schools and functions, with places offered on a first come first served basis.

The PAS website was recently redesigned and is being updated regularly to provide as much information as possible. Staff are reminded to check the website regularly for updates. The Executive Support workstream page can be found here.