MPA staff pay, grading, terms and conditions

Report: 3
Date: 25 January 2001
By: Clerk

Summary

At its meeting on 21 September 2000 the Human Resources Committee resolved to appoint a firm of consultants to carry out a salaries and grading review of the MPA staff. The Committee also appointed a working party to consider the appropriate non-contractual terms and conditions for MPA staff. At its meeting on 20 December 2000 the Human Resources Committee agreed the consultants’ findings and the general terms and conditions of MPA staff. The Clerk was asked to develop detailed non-contractual terms and conditions of MPA staff in due course. This paper outlines a draft MPA staff structure and timetable for recruiting permanent staff for the MPA.

A. Supporting information

1. At its meeting on 20 December 2000 the Human Resources Committee accepted the Hay recommendations in respect of pay and grading for MPA staff. These recommendations now need to be translated into a staffing structure. Details of the basis for the recommendations, the analysis undertaken and the justification for the comparabilities are set out in full in "MPA support staff pay, grading, terms and conditions" (Report 7) see Appendix 1.

2. The Human Resources Committee agreed that the MPA would need a small number of high quality staff. The consultants recommended a relatively aggressive pay position in the upper quartile of the public sector (London) market. This will be applied to a three band structure; the upper band would include the Clerk, Treasurer, Deputy Clerk, Deputy Treasurer and Communications Director, the second band would incorporate policy officers and policy/technical support staff in a salary range from approximately £31-50k and the third band would incorporate administrative and technical staff in a salary range from approximately £15-30k.

3. Within these bands, the appropriate pay and grading for each post will be established using job evaluation scores, with pay reference points for each job. For each job it will then be necessary to agree a pay range to provide some form of pay progression linked to an annual review that took account of the cost of living and individual performance. The final staff structure of the new Authority will be developed by officers, taking account of the views of members and the balance to be struck between the staffing of the current structure and the needs of the Authority in the longer term. This will include appropriate salary levels.

4. A proposed high level structure for MPA staff see Appendix 2 (see Supporting material).

5. An initial breakdown of posts, including those shown as vacant which need to be advertised, and potential salary costs see Appendix 3. This will undoubtedly need to be revised in the light of experience in the next twelve months. These posts and figures do not include the Internal Audit Directorate, for whom Peter Martin is keen to do a ‘by analogy’ review using the Hay findings because of severe problems with recruitment and retention, the recommendations arising out of the Best Value review of consultation for Community Consultation Officers and administrative support or short term staffing requirements, eg: the Virdi Inquiry. The figures shown for the majority of posts are the scale maximum and are based upon the Public Sector (London) upper quartile pay point.

6. Most of the staff currently working for the MPA are on secondment or short term contracts, finishing at the end of February or the end of March. There are also a number of agency staff. Details of current staffing see Appendix 4. We intend to extend the secondments or contracts of staff unless permanent staff can be employed before the end of the existing arrangements.

7. We would like to begin the recruitment exercise for the deputy clerk and three further policy officers to lead on consultation/external diversity, human resources and professional standards, and Information Systems (IS)/projects, and the Secretariat vacancies, as soon as possible. Members may want to participate in the selection of the deputy clerk and policy officers. It is anticipated that, in addition to supporting the Clerk, the deputy clerk will assume responsibility for crime and disorder and community relations and line management responsibility for one or two other policy areas. Secretariat posts are being advertised in the first recruitment exercise because the current seconded staff have the shortest secondment periods. The second stage of the recruitment exercise will cover the remaining posts in the MPA. This will give a chance for the newly appointed policy officers to take part in the selection of their staff. A draft timetable see Appendix 5.

B. Recommendations

1. That the Co-ordination and Urgency Committee endorse the decisions of the Human Resources Committee at Appendix 1.
2. That the Co-ordination and Urgency Committee agree the draft structure and staffing levels as outlined at paragraphs 4 and 5.
3. The Co-ordination and Urgency Committee agree the draft recruitment timetable outlined at paragraph 7.

C. Financial implications

The financial implications will be dependent upon the salary levels negotiated with the individuals appointed to posts with the MPA and with the associated recruitment costs.

The costs of advertising these posts in The Guardian, Local Government Chronicle, The Voice and Asian Times will be £35-45k depending upon the size of the advertisements. Estimated costs will be incorporated in the budget form the MPA support organization for 2001/02.

D. Review arrangements

None.

E. Background papers

The following is a statutory list of background papers (under the Local Government Act 1972 S.100 D) which disclose facts or matters on which the report is based and which have been relied on to a material extent in preparing this report. They are available on request to either the contact officer listed above or to the Clerk to the Police Authority at the address indicated on the agenda.

F. Contact details

The author of this report is Alan Johnson.

For information contact:

MPA general: 020 7202 0202
Media enquiries: 020 7202 0217/18

Appendix 3

MPA staffing numbers and costs

Appendix 4

Start date and end dates

Appendix 5

Timetable for recruitment of MPA staff

Week beginning 29 January (closing date 16 February)
adverts appear for:

• Deputy Clerk
• Policy Officer, Consultation and External Diversity
• Policy Officer, Information Systems and Projects
• Policy Officer, Human Resources and Professional Standards
• Secretariat

Week beginning 19 February
paper sifts for advertised posts

Week beginning 5 March
interviews for Deputy Clerk

Week beginning 12 March
interviews for Policy Officers

Week beginning 19 March
interviews for Secretariat

Week beginning 30 April
new staff start work

Week beginning 26 February (closing date 16 March)
adverts appear for remaining posts

Week beginning 26 March
paper sifts for advertised posts

Week beginning 9 April
interviews for Best Value, Finance and Communications posts

Week beginning 16 April
interviews for Consultation and External Diversity, Lay Visiting and Crime and Disorder and Community Relations

Week beginning 23 April
interviews for Administration, HR, Staff Officer/Personal Secretary, Policing Plan and Performance Management

Week beginning 1 June
new staff start work

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