NHS pay review body: twenty-sixth report 2012 - Official Documents

46
•
•
•
The national RRP for maintenance craft workers should cease after 31 March 2011
for all new starters, with transitional protection arrangements for two years (year
one at 100% and year two at 50%) for staff in receipt of the national RRP, and a
further review of the need for a national RRP in time to inform decisions at the end
of the period of pay protection;
The national RRP for chaplains should be withdrawn and replaced, where
appropriate, with a local RRP. Employers should therefore review the need for this
RRP and, where employers decide it should be withdrawn, transitional protection
should be in line with that agreed for maintenance craft workers; and
Employers should review the need for national RRP paid to groups under Annex R of
the NHS Terms and Conditions Handbook including any need for a local RRP where
thought necessary.
4.12 We wrote to the NHS Staff Council on 15 March 2011 commenting that, in our view, the
requirement of the Hartley judgment had been fulfilled by consultation on the process for
reviewing the national RRP for qualified maintenance craftspersons and technicians rather
than the outcome. We affirmed that we had no role in decisions on the continuation
of existing national RRP and, therefore, it was not appropriate to comment on the
methodology, conclusions and recommendations of the IES report in relation to existing
national RRP. We drew the Council’s attention to three matters: that the review would
have benefited from the greater involvement of UCATT; that we be kept informed of the
proposed review of the need for a national RRP for qualified maintenance craftspersons
and technicians; and that we would welcome a review of the unsatisfactory nature of the
process for dealing with national RRP, particularly the division of jurisdiction between the
Review Body and the NHS Staff Council.
4.13 The Joint Secretaries to the NHS Staff Council replied on 19 September 2011 noting
the points we raised and, while appreciating our concerns, considered that the current
arrangements for dealing with the award of national RRP provided the flexibility needed
for all parties.
4.14 In evidence for this report, the Health Departments, NHS Employers and the Staff Side
summarised the conclusions of the NHS Staff Council on national RRP. The Department
of Health also provided helpful data on the use of “general” and “long term” RRP in
England.
NHS Pharmacists
4.15 We have highlighted in successive reports the difficulties recruiting and retaining
pharmacists in Bands 6 and 7. We recommended a fixed term national RRP for
pharmacists in Bands 6 and 7 in our Twenty-Fourth Report11 . Our recommendation
was rejected by the UK Government in July 2009 on the grounds that recruitment and
retention varied widely across England, that the Devolved Administrations made clear
a national RRP was not necessary, and that the difficulties would be best addressed by
increasing supply and by using local RRP alongside local initiatives to support training
and development.
12 4.16 In our Twenty-Fifth Report , while stating our intention to continue to monitor the
position, we did not recommend a national RRP for pharmacists in Bands 6 and 7. We
noted that our concerns in previous years regarding the shortage of pharmacists had
been acted upon in other ways by the Health Departments.
11 NHSPRB (2009), Twenty-Fourth Report, TSO (Cm 7646), paragraph 3.77.
12 NHSPRB (2011), Twenty-Fifth Report, TSO (Cm 8029), paragraphs 4.40 – 4.44.