Barts Health Equality and Human Rights Impact Assessment Report

Barts Health Equality and Human Rights Impact Assessment ReportEDS Goal 3: Empowered, Engaged and Well Supported StaffMerger issuePositiveimplications ofthe mergerNegative implications of the mergerMitigationImplications forcompliance with PublicSector Equality DutyImplications forprotection andpromotion ofhuman rightsTransitionprocess,reduction instaff paycosts andstreamlining/redundanciesCost savingswhich can helpfinancial viabilityand sustainabilityof organisation –allowing it tocontinue toprovide care tolocal people.Talentmanagementapproach beingtaken to retainstaff and there areopportunities forpromotion.Baseline review identified some feelings ofunfairness; that is, some staff feel themerger is being ‘done to them’, it’s atakeover of their Trust. Related to this areconcerns about unfairness of promotion andmuch longer standing perceptions ofunfairness and inequality around therecruitment and promotion of staff (thebaseline review identified evidence of thisparticularly for BME staff but did not consultspecifically on other issues/protectedcharacteristics).This creates significant risks around loss oftalent and maintaining staff support throughthe process. Particularly when a number ofmembers of staff don’t feel the merged Trustwill be any better equipped to respond tostaff inequalities (staff inequality is seen asthe ‘Achilles Heel’ of all NHS institutions). Italso creates risks around the impact of poormotivation on staff performance andresulting patient experience.The baseline review identified existingchallenges around low performance and areluctance to challenge performance if thereis a risk of people making grievancesrelated to discrimination/ harassment. Thereis a risk that this will be replicated in themerged Trust and amplified by redundancysituations.Important to communicate plansclearly around transition andredundancy process. Useful to initiatestaff satisfaction survey (even if oneis not due) to understand stafffeelings on this issue. This will help torespond to areas of discontentmentand avoid allowing feelings to ‘fester’.Clear opportunity to make a ‘freshstart’ and establish the type oforganisational culture that talksopenly about staff inequality andresponds swiftly and effectively todiscrimination and inequality.Need for strong performancemanagement processes thatmanagers feel confident in using.Need for additional training andsupport on this.Need for training for managers onresponding to inequality,discrimination and harassmentexperienced by staff they support.Clear messages required in relationto rights of frontline staff andmanagers in merged Trust and wherethey can get support and advice onequality and human rights issues.Merger will affect Trust’sability to respond to itsduties (e.g. eliminatingunlawful discrimination).The Trust may already haveplans to consider staffwelfare going into themerger process and it isessential that equality andhuman rights are integratedinto work of this nature.There is a window ofopportunity for staffrecruitment, progressionand appointment processesto be reviewed and toascribe new processeswhich can be seen as faireracross the board. Importantfor Trust to demonstratethat it has consideredequality objectives in light ofthe impact of merger onstaff equality. For example,NHS East London and Cityhas included responding toimplications of theimpending staff transitionprocess as a specificequality objective.Article 8 Right toprivacy and familylife: important toensure stafftransition process isdone in an equitableand transparent way– and that the effecton people’s privacyand family life isconsidered.201