Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Mrs A M Newton.

It was noted that the Chief Executive, having received notice under Regulation 13 of the Local Government (Committees and Political Groups) Regulations 1990, had appointed Councillors C J T H Brewis, Mrs S Woolley and E J Poll to the Sub-Committee as replacement members for Councillor Mrs A M Newton and two vacancies on the Sub-Committee, respectively, for this meeting only.

There were no declarations of Members' interests at this point of the proceedings.

RESOLVED

          That the minutes of the Pay Policy Sub-Committee held on 7 February 2017 be agreed and signed by the Chairman as a correct record.

In accordance with Section 100(A)(4) of the Local Government Act 1972, agenda item 5 has not been circulated to the press and public on the grounds that it is considered to contain exempt information as defined in Paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972, as amended.  The press and public may be excluded from the meeting during consideration of this item of business.

RESOLVED

          That under Section 100(A) of the Local Government Act 1972, the press and public be excluded from the meeting for the following item of business, on the grounds that it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the act, as amended.

(To receive a report from Fiona Thompson (Service Manager – People) which provides information in relation to the Corporate Management Board Pay Review)

An exempt report from the Service Manager – People was considered which provided information to assist the Sub-Committee in making a decision relating to the Chief Officer (Corporate Management Board) Pay Review.

RESOLVED

          That the recommendation, as detailed within the exempt report, be agreed.

RESOLVED

          That the exempt session be closed and the meeting move back into a public forum.

(To receive a report by Debbie Barnes (Executive Director with responsibility for People Management) which provides information on the Gender Pay Gap, as at 31 March 2017)

Consideration was given to a report from the Executive Director with responsibility for People Management which provided information on the Gender Pay Gap as at 31 March 2017.

Fiona Thompson (Service Manager – People) introduced the report and explained that employers with 250 more employees were required to publish statutory gender pay gap information on an annual basis.  The methodology used was intended to mirror, as closely as possible, that used by the Office of National Statistics (ONS) to enable meaningful comparison of data.

Members were referred to page 20 of the agenda pack which reported that a total of 4465 employees were in scope for this exercise, 36% of whom were male and 64% female.  It was confirmed that the local authority continued to strive to ensure that opportunities for progression were provided equally for both genders.  Particular reference was made to flexible working and the ability to purchase annual leave although the ONS survey was clear that employment breaks, for maternity leave for example, could impact on the ability to progress.

The Sub-Committee was advised that there were no specific issues at Lincolnshire County Council in respect of gender pay and that the outcomes of the gender pay gap report were reflective of gender pay gap differences generally in society.

During discussion, the following points were noted:-

·       Members requested that statistics on members of staff eligible to be awarded additional performance payments under the Senior Leadership Pay Scheme, including the number of those who had been successful, be included in future reports;

·       It was suggested that permission for flexible working and additional leave requests for staff in key roles may, at times, have an impact on business need.  It was acknowledged that this was subject to managers discretion but it was felt that a reminder to managers that this was discretionary and not an entitlement would be beneficial;

·       Although the quartile pay bands were reported as a typical picture when compared to national figures, further analysis was requested, for example the gender of job applications received for each level of position to check if this correlated to the outcome of the recruitment;

·       The figures did not include schools as data was not held by the County Council for larger schools which had become Academies.  The legislation stated that this exercise must be taken for employers with over 250 employees.  The Local Authority schools were not included as employers for the purpose of this legislation;

·       Although the report had been clearly written and compared 'like for like', it was possible that the information could be misconstrued and detailed analysis and recommendations were asked to be included in the next report;

·       A suggestion was made that the figures in the Lower Quartile may be distorted due to the number of part-time roles at that level.  It was thought that the full-time equivalent (FTE) figures had been used for this exercise but this would be confirmed and the Sub-Committee advised following the meeting; and

·       The Sub-Committee was keen to provide opportunities  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

(To receive a report from Debbie Barnes (Executive Director with responsibility for People Management) which asks the Pay Policy Sub-Committee to consider and agree the Pay Policy Statement 2018-19)

Consideration was given to a report from the Executive Director with responsibility for People Management which advised the Pay Policy Sub-Committee that the Localism Act 2011 required all local authorities to agree, on an annual basis, pay policy statements which were compliant with the provisions of the Act and then to subsequently publish them thereafter.

Fiona Thompson (Service Manager – People) introduced the report and advised that the following areas had been updated within the policy:-

1.    Recruitment, Retention and Market Force Supplements had been renamed 'Attraction and Retention Payments' as noted at paragraph 8;

2.    Pay Progression had been updated to reflect a new Performance & Development Appraisal process implemented in January 2018, as noted in paragraph 12;

3.    Pay Multiples between salary of the highest paid employee and the median full-time equivalent salary had stayed the same as last year, as noted in paragraph 25;

4.    Personal Service Contracts in relation to off-payroll working in the Public Sector (IR35), as noted in paragraph 28;

5.    Gender Pay Gap Information requirements, as noted in paragraph 29; and

6.    Revised pay bands at Appendix A for the Fire & Rescue Service Management Team.  Pay awards from the JNC for the Chief Executive and the Chief Officers were yet to be received.

During discussions, the following points were noted:-

·       In relation to paragraph 9 (Attraction and Retention Payments), it was confirmed that Members were not automatically informed of these payments.  It was reported that there were currently five employees within Children's Services who had been paid an Attraction and Retention Payment.  The Chairman asked that the costs involved be circulated to the Sub-Committee;

·       Analysis was requested on how many offers of employment with attraction payments had been declined and how many had been accepted;

·       It was noted that recruitment of Social Workers remained an issue and that work was ongoing to attract more people into Lincolnshire;

·       Staff who had been TUPE transferred to the authority would remain on their existing terms and conditions until the department underwent a restructure which would then require these staff to move onto the Council's terms and conditions.  It was confirmed that these staff would not receive pay increments and would remain on their existing salary and terms and conditions until a restructure had taken place or they voluntarily transferred to the Council's terms and conditions;

·       It was confirmed that the new Director of Public Health had been appointed on Lincolnshire County Council terms and conditions;

·       An explanation of the appraisal and the increment process was provided.  It was advised that objectives for each member of staff were set yearly and were scored by the line manager.  The overall score was to exceed a certain level to attain the increment.  The increment would be withheld if that level was not reached;

·       Those at the top of the pay band who showed exceptional performance would be encouraged to apply for higher roles in the future as they became available; and

·       The current pay scales were to be revised to  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.