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

level since August 1994. We have commented before that we have sympathy with the Staff
Side’s argument on the impact of the recent period of high inflation rates, particularly on the
lower paid, and that staff have had a reduction in real wages. However, this concern is not
unique to NHS staff. Our recommendations are not linked to inflation as it is only one of a
range of our considerations. Finally, we note the concerns over a range of influences on morale
and motivation including budget reductions, job security, impacts on workloads from vacancy
freezes or delayed recruitment, service reconfigurations and workforce restructuring, pension
changes and the NHS reforms in England.
Judged against all the required factors, our overall assessment is that there is no case to justify
any increase above a flat rate £250 for those AfC staff earning £21,000 or less. We recommend
an uplift of £250 to Agenda for Change spine points 1 to 15 from 1 April 2012.
High Cost Area Supplements (HCAS) and National Recruitment and Retention Premia
(RRP)
We received no proposals or evidence on existing high cost area supplements or proposals for
supplements for new areas.
On the issue of a national RRP for pharmacists, our assessment from the evidence is that
any remaining recruitment and retention issues exist only in specific localities and we would
encourage employers to use local RRP where these are supported by appropriate evidence.
In the light of the latest survey evidence, our specific review of the position on pharmacists is
no longer required but we ask that the parties draw our attention to evidence on the vacancy
situation as appropriate.
We consider UCATT’s case for a new national RRP for building craft workers is again
unconvincing. We strongly recommend if UCATT pursues this issue it bears in mind that RRP are
for situations where market pressures would otherwise prevent the employer from being able
to recruit and retain staff in sufficient numbers. UCATT has failed to present robust and relevant
evidence that shows there are widespread recruitment and retention difficulties applying to
NHS building craft workers.
We note the Royal College of Midwives’ concerns about the shortages of newly qualified
midwives and keeping the need for a national RRP under review. We consider this an issue
largely of supply and conclude that further action is needed to manage more effectively
workforce and training planning to ensure an adequate supply of midwives in the right
locations.
General Workforce Issues
Our remit also allowed us to consider information about recruitment, retention and other
aspects of the NHS workforce for those paid above £21,000. We note that falls in the number
of NHS training commissions can store up potential manpower supply problems and ask the
parties to report any concerns in future evidence. On AfC shortage groups, we note that the
position might be easing slightly although further monitoring is required. We ask that the
parties keep us informed of any pay and workforce issues for shortage groups. It is clear that
morale and motivation across the NHS workforce is threatened by a variety of local pressures
and national developments. They could present significant challenges to employers in meeting
demand for quality services and delivering on the wide-ranging change agenda, plus they could
threaten longer term recruitment and retention.
On workforce planning, we welcome the new role of the Centre for Workforce Intelligence
but are concerned whether local healthcare providers can give sufficient priority to deliver
effective local workforce planning. We also remain concerned about the accountability and
responsibility for education and training provision as they become localised thereby risking the
appropriate level of investment and activity. Our view is that the use of the Knowledge and
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