Agenda and draft minutes

Members are asked to declare any disclosable pecuniary or affected interests in respect of any matter to be considered at this meeting.

Any Member with a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest in a matter should withdraw from the meeting when the matter is under consideration and should notify the Democratic Services Officer in attendance that they are withdrawing as they have such an interest. If the Disclosable Pecuniary Interest is not entered on the register of Members interests the Monitoring Officer must be notified of the interest within 28 days.

Any Member with an affected Interest in a matter must disclose the interest to the meeting.  There is no requirement to withdraw from the meeting when the interest is only an affected interest, but the Monitoring Officer should be notified of the interest, if not previously notified of it, within 28 days of the meeting.

There were no declarations of interest.

To approve as a correct record the minutes of the meeting of the Committee held on 11 July 2024 and 9 October 2024.

RESOLVED that the minutes of the meeting of the Committee held on 11 July and 9 October 2024 were approved.

There were no urgent items of business.

A verbal update from the Chairman of the Local Joint Committee.

The Committee received an update from the Chairman of the Local Joint Committee who emphasised the strong working relationship with trade unions, which was crucial for developing effective policies. The trade unions had approved the current documents and suggested ideas for future refinements. The council appreciated their involvement and attendance at all stages.

It was noted that good relationships with trade unions were essential and commended the members and officers for maintaining them. This positive feedback and thanks would be forwarded to the Local Joint Committee. 

The Committee is asked to note the minutes of the Local Joint Committee held on 9 October 2024.

The Committee noted the minutes of the Local Joint Committee of 9 October 2024.

To review and agree the following revised policies and procedure:

1.     Bully and harassment.

2.     Equality and Dignity

3.     Grievance

4.     Stress Awareness

5.     Time off in lieu

The Committee noted that the HR Team had established a programme in place to review or update existing HR Policies/procedures and guidance. As part of this process, policies and procedures were being consolidated, wherever possible or created to reflect changes to legislation or best practice.

The following amendments had been made to the HR Policies for this period:

1.    Time Off in Lieu and Additional Payments Guidance (TOIL)

·           General update of policy following the revision of the flexi-time scheme which was approved by the July 2024 Employment Committee.

·           Moved to a new template, which included the BFC equality statement.

·           Recognition that there may be local service specific arrangements in place.

2.    Stress Awareness Policy

·         Policy renamed from Stress at Work Policy to recognise that stress was not necessarily purely because of work but could also frequently be a combination of both work and personal stressors.

·         Added wellness action plans and links to Wellness Action Plans and Stress Risk Assessment.

·         Expanded how to identify stress.

·         Added link to Lone working policy.

3.    Equality & Dignity at Work Policy

·         Moved to new template, which included the BFC equality statement.

·         Added Public Sector Equality Duty

·         Added section Freedom of speech and what was appropriate in a work environment.

4.    Grievance Policy

·         Introduced a thorough review of information at appeal stage (Stage 2). Included those who were in their probationary period.

·         Added alternative text for flowchart for greater accessibility of the document.

·         Included learning sources or material links.

·         Included link to equality and dignity at work policy.

5.    Bullying & Harassment Policy

·         As a result of new legislation and greater responsibilities being placed on employers, the council’s current approach to responding to bulling and harassment had been included within the Equality and Dignity at Work policy, and this had now been replaced by a separate policy attached to the agenda papers.

The discussion of the Committee highlighted the importance of a supportive organisational culture, where unacceptable behaviour was challenged, and employees felt comfortable reporting issues. The Committee also addressed the impact of hybrid working on stress and the need for adequate support for managers. This should include regular training and updates on policies to ensure all employees were aware of acceptable behaviours and procedures.

RESOLVED, that having reviewed the revised policies and guidance, the Employment Committee agree to the following:

1.    Time Off in Lieu and Additional Payments Guidance (TOIL)

2.    Stress Awareness Policy

3.    Equality & Dignity at Work Policy

4.    Grievance Policy

5.    Bullying and Harassment Policy

To provide an update on the 2024 Pay Award agreement.

The Committee received an update from Paul Young, Assistant Director: HR, OD and Payroll on the 2024 pay award agreement.

Following recent meetings there had been the potential for industrial action in Bracknell Forest, but it was confirmed that this would not go forward. 

Initially, there was concern that the pay award might be delayed due to ongoing negotiations. However, an agreement had been reached between the trade unions and national employers and the pay award was confirmed and implemented based on the agreed offer. This was a significant achievement as it usually took longer to finalise these agreements.

Employees received their pay award and back pay in November. The early implementation was well-received by employees, who appreciated having the additional funds before the holiday season.

The Employment Committee noted the update on the Pay Award. 

To note the current wellbeing support provided by Bracknell Forest Council and to discuss any additional measures that could be adopted, for further consideration.  

The Committee received a report and presentation on employee wellbeing which highlighted the total days lost for sickness and measures being taken by the council to address health and wellbeing of its employees.

It was noted that the total days lost for sickness absence had reduced from an average of 8 days per employee in 2022/23 to 6 days in 2023/34.  This included a reduction in the total days lost for Stress/Depression/Anxiety. Whilst this was a positive trend, the overall percentage of the total days lost per annum was showing Stress/Anxiety/Depression as increasingly prominent as the highest reason for absence – increasing from 25% in 22/23 to 28% in 23/24. Further work was being undertaken to looking at better categorising reasons for absence to understand work-related stress more accurately.

The following points were raised and addressed:

·         Noting the concerns raised in certain areas, a wellbeing toolkit was being developed to support staff and managers to provide clear guidance and assistance.

·         In the new year, discussion sessions with senior managers would be conducted to support them. A media toolkit was being developed to address harassment and wellbeing and they were also working on a knowledgehub and e-learning modules for staff development.

·         They had 30 Mental health first aiders and wellbeing champions who played a crucial role in promoting wellbeing activities and providing support. They were trained to offer a listening ear and signpost staff to internal and external resources.

·         Despite financial constraints, they were committed to supporting staff wellbeing and ensuring that they felt confident in managing their situations.

RESOLVED that the Employment Committee note the current wellbeing support provided by Bracknell Forest Council.

To consider the adoption of the UNISON Anti-racism Charter in line with Bracknell Forest Council’s values and obligations under the Equality Act 2010, in ensuring inclusivity for all our communities in recognising the racism and discrimination they face.

The Committee received a report outlining the UNISON Anti-racism charter which was seeking its adoption in line with the Council’s values and obligations under the Equality Act 2010, in ensuring inclusivity for all communities in recognising the racism and discrimination that might be faced.

The UNISON anti-racism charter was a commitment by UNISON to tackle racism in workplaces and beyond. It was developed to ensure that employers, especially in public services, actively addressed racial discrimination and promoted equality. The charter highlighted several key principles and actions to be adopted by employers, focusing on creating an anti-racist work culture. Anti-racism was an ongoing approach rather than a final goal, making it a valuable framework for guiding organisational cultural change. The Committee noted that a number of other local authorities across the UK had signed this charter.

The charter was in a response to a recently conducted employee experience survey which had indicated that minority ethnic employees felt less included and more likely to witness discrimination. The aim was to embed anti-racism into the organisation's culture, ensuring it was not just a "tick box" exercise but a genuine commitment to creating a safe and inclusive environment.

The Committee noted the following points:

·         The team was conducting a gap analysis to identify areas needing improvement. It emphasised the importance of policies and impact assessments.

·         They wanted to promote the council as an attractive employer to diverse communities.

·         There had recently been a number of campaigns to encourage inclusivity and the council would be using some of this material to enhance its own recruitment efforts.

·         They would be ensuring that anti-racism policies were integral to the council’s culture and operations.

RESOLVED that the Employment Committee

1.    Approve the adoption and signing of the UNISON anti-racism charter; and

2.      Note the ongoing commitments that the organisation would need to pledge to introduce within 12 months of signing, focusing on creating an anti-racist work culture.

To review and agree the final draft of the Annual Workforce Equality Monitoring Report for publication.

The Committee received the workforce monitoring report of which provided equality data for the workforce up to 31 March 2024 and the report ensured that the council met this responsibility.

The Committee discussed the state of the workforce quality monitoring report, emphasising its importance and the need for detailed data analysis. They addressed the lack of information on the "rainforest incident" and the necessity of departmental management teams to understand the data.

The Committee noted the following points:

·         They were developing a manager behaviour framework and efforts were being made to support employees and address issues like non-disclosure of disabilities. The importance of self-declaration for accurate data collection and initiatives to encourage disclosure should be highlighted.

·         It was good to see a narrowing gender pay gap and ongoing equality and ethnicity pay gap reporting.

·         The impact of small changes on overall outcomes and the challenges of data accuracy was noted.

·         There was need for transparency and support for employees with disabilities. It was concerning to note that 17% of employees felt discriminated against, however, it was good to hear that efforts to address this had been made through union collaboration and toolkit development.

·         It was noted that this was an ongoing journey towards an inclusive and supportive organisational culture and that there was training for managers and continuous improvement efforts.

RESOLVED that, the Employment Committee approve the final draft of the Annual Workforce Equality Monitoring Report for publication.