News / Pay reform could save 6,000 south-west jobs, claim trusts

By Seamus Ward

A consortium of NHS employers has claimed it could save about 6,000 health service jobs in the south-west by reforming staff pay and conditions.

The South West Pay, Terms and Conditions Consortium (SWC) is a group of 20 NHS bodies that employ more than 68,000 staff. The group has attracted controversy, with unions engaged in national negotiations over agenda for change (AFC), claiming its activities have harmed the process.

Nationally, there are four proposals to amend AFC. These are to: remove unsocial hours rates of sick pay; introduce new pay and conditions for managers; remove fast-track increments for staff under preceptorship; and establish a closer connection between increments and performance. Unions have indicated they will make their position clear on the proposals this month.

SWC insisted it was committed to working with staff and unions to create a new or modified system that was fit for purpose. A paper in August did not make recommendations but set out options to be explored as an alternative to reducing headcount, it said.

SWC said it had assessed the potential local savings of the national measures, based on a typical trust with 3,500 staff and an annual turnover of £220m.

The changes to unsocial hours sick pay would save the trust £100,000 a year, while removing fast-track preceptorship increments would lead to £50,000 in deferred benefits for 50 band 5 appointments. Linking increments more closely to performance would save £200,000, while savings on new terms for managers is unquantifiable as yet. These and other measures, such as reducing annual leave, a 10% reduction in the working week and cutting sick pay benefits, could save enough to safeguard 6,000 jobs in 20 NHS bodies, it said.

Unison south west regional manager Tanya Palmer said: 'Rogue employers involved in the consortium are risking the chance of reaching a national agreement. They are also undermining staff morale, stable industrial relations, staff recruitment and retention and, ultimately, patient care.'

Poole Hospital NHS Foundation Trust chief executive and consortium steering group chairman Chris Bown said the group was only trying to generate ‘meaningful debate’.

While the consortium fully supported national negotiations, he said: ‘We believe we can and should work in the background as these discussions continue to give us the best opportunity to be sustainable organisations in the years ahead. By promoting financially healthy NHS organisations we can preserve employment and reduce the need for redundancies.’

Foundation Trust Network director of strategy Saffron Cordery said it was understandable some trusts were exploring their options. ‘If national agreements were sufficiently flexible then foundation trusts would continue to use them – there is much to be said for national frameworks with local flexibilities,’ she said. ‘We could well see more FTs developing local responses in future.’