Part Time Working Policy

Transcription

1 Part Time Working Policy Aim of the Policy The Kelda Group recognises the importance of a diverse workforce and is committed to providing equal support to both male and female colleagues who wish to change their hours of work to maintain a healthy work-life balance. This Policy clearly outlines the rights of part-time colleagues, and details the implications of a change in working hours on key terms and conditions and benefits. Should you require any further advice or guidance, please contact HR. Policy Objectives The Part-time Workers (Prevention of Less Favourable Treatment) Regulations ensure that part-time workers are not treated less favourably in their contractual terms and conditions than comparable fulltime workers, unless different treatment is justified on objective grounds. Rights of part-time colleagues Part-time colleagues have the right not to be treated less favourably than comparable full-timers. This means they should:- receive the same rates of pay (pro-rata); not be excluded from training simply because they work part-time; receive holiday entitlement pro rata to comparable full-timers; have contractual maternity leave and parental leave made available to them in the same way as for full-time workers and; not be treated less favourably when workers are selected for redundancy. Part-time contracts of employment A part-time contract should be applied when the number of normal weekly hours is lower than 37 per week. Like a full time contract, it can be on an open ended or fixed term basis. Scope of the Policy The Part Time Working policy applies to all colleagues in Kelda Group Ltd and its wholly owned group companies in the UK. Arrangements under TUPE may differ slightly - please refer to your local agreements. 1

2 Process and Application Process for requesting new working arrangements Where possible the Kelda Group will endeavour to meet individuals aspirations about their normal working arrangements. There is no legal right for an individual to be able to change his or her hours of work and this is a matter for discussion between an individual and their manager. However, managers should always look seriously at requests to work part-time hours, and where possible explore how this change could be accommodated. Right to request flexible working Individuals thinking about changing their normal working pattern have a right to request flexible working. The statutory right is to request flexible working and therefore an individual s application may not always be approved by their manager. For further information on requesting flexible working, please refer to the Flexible Working Policy on SAM. Salary A full-time colleague's total weekly hours are 37. The formula used to calculate pro-rata salary for parttime colleagues is given below. Part-time salary calculation:- Full time salary = Hourly rate Hourly rate x p/t hours = Weekly rate Weekly rate x = PART -TIME SALARY Worked example David earns 24,000 and works 37 hours per week. He would like to reduce his hours to 30 hours over 4 days. 24,000 / = Hourly rate of x 30 = new weekly salary of x = new annual salary of 19, Annual Leave Holiday entitlement is worked out on a pro-rata basis, taking into account the number of hours an individual works in a week compared with the hours worked by a full-time colleague working 37 hours per week. An individual s holiday entitlement will always be calculated on the average day worked in a week and will be given in hours rather than days. When an individual books annual leave they will deduct their normal working day from their leave total e.g. If an individual s holiday entitlement is 145 hours per year and their normal working day is 5 hours, if they take 1 days leave they will deduct 5 hours from their annual leave total. 2

3 All part-time colleagues are entitled to Bank/Public Holidays pro rata to their hours of work. Bank/Public Holidays are calculated at the start of the holiday year together with annual holiday entitlement. Normally, 8 bank holidays fall within each leave year. However, this can change on a year to year basis dependent on the fall of the Easter Break. If Easter falls late one year i.e. after the 1 st April, there will be 10 bank holidays in that leave year, followed the next year by 6. If an individual is contracted to work on a day when a Public / Bank Holiday falls and they are not required to work that day, they should deduct the number of hours they would normally work on that day from their holiday entitlement. To check your annual holiday entitlement, including Bank/Public Holidays, please use the Holiday Calculator on SAM. Part-time Holiday Calculation average day x (annual holiday entitlement plus all = holiday entitlement (weekly hours 5) bank holidays that fall in holiday year) (in hours) Worked examples: Full year annual leave year Example 1 Sarah works 22 hours per week, over 3 days. She is a band 5 and is entitled to a pro-rata equivalent of 25 days leave. This leave year, there are 8 bank holidays. 22 / 5 x (25 + 8) = annual leave in hours = 4.4 x 33 = 145 hours Example 2 Chris works 30 hours per week over 4 days. He is a band 3b and is entitled to a pro-rata equivalent of 28 days leave. This leave year, there are 8 bank holidays. 30 / 5 x (28 + 8) = annual leave in hours = 6 x 36 = 216 hours Changing hours of work part way through a year, average day x (pro-rata holiday entitlement plus all bank holidays = holiday entitlement (weekly hours 5) due to fall in remaining part of the leave year) (in hours) Example 3 Annabelle plans to work 25 hours per week over 5 days effective from 1 st October. She is a band 6 and is entitled to a pro- rata equivalent of 25 days in a full year. From 1 st October 31 st March is 6 months = 12.5 days leave Bank holidays that fall between 1 st October 31 st March = 5 25/ 5 x ( ) = annual leave in hours = 5 x 17.5 = 87.5 hours For more examples please visit HR Online Holidays Any holiday taken will need to be recorded in hours and must be agreed in advance with an individual s line manager. 3

4 Other Benefits Company Car Entitlements Part-time colleagues who are a Reward User or Business Needs User have the same choices available to them as full time colleagues, i.e. car or car allowance / lump sum (or van if that is the most appropriate solution for a business needs user.) Reward Users (Bands 3 and above) i) Company Car If a company car is chosen, the contribution paid by the company will be reduced based on the proportion of full time hours worked, and the individual will be required to make up the balance by paying a higher contribution. Typically, the company s contribution will reduce by up to 100 per month, but the exact amount will depend on the make and model of the car. ii) Car Allowance The car allowance for Reward Users will be pro-rated to the hours worked e.g. the car allowance for a full time 3b colleague is 2,520 per year someone working 18.5 hours per year would receive 1260 per year. Business Needs Users If Business Needs User allocation is based on mileage, (or where it is agreed that a role cannot be correctly performed without the use of a vehicle other than a Company van), the mileage required for full time colleagues is around 5,000 miles per year. This will be pro rata for part time colleagues e.g. An colleague who works 18.5 hours per week will be required to do around 2,500 business miles per annum. i) Company Car If a company car is chosen, the contribution paid by the company will be reduced based on the proportion of full time hours worked, and the individual will be required to make up the balance by paying a higher contribution. Typically, the company s contribution will reduce by up to 100 per month, but the exact amount will depend on the make and model of the car. ii) Lump sum and mileage rate The lump sum and mileage rate for Business Needs Users will be paid in full and will not be pro-rated to the hours worked. A part-time calculator is available on SAM under car policy / part-time colleagues to assist individuals in estimating what their car contribution will be if they work part-time hours. Pension / Life Assurance benefits If an individual is a member of a Career Average Re-valued Earnings (CARE) pension scheme, their future pensionable service will accrue at a slower rate than that of a full-time colleague if the number of hours they work is less than hours per annum. Pension deductions apply to contracted hours (but not to additional hours/overtime). If an individual changes from full-time to part-time hours, any previous pensionable service will not be affected by this change, but it means that each full year's pensionable service will take longer to accrue than it would if they were working full time throughout the year. For further information on part-time service, colleagues should contact the Pensions Team. 4

5 For colleagues in a 'Money-Purchase' scheme, pension benefits are based on contributions, which are in turn based on the salary payments colleagues receive. Life assurance benefit will be a multiple of an individual s actual salary, in accordance with their pension scheme. Pay for Performance/Performance in the Round (Bands 6 4/Blue to Green) Quarterly Bonus Part-time colleagues will receive the quarterly award that reflects their hours of work. The table below shows an example of the value of a performance award for full-time colleagues and how these will be pro-rated for individuals who work less than 37 (37.5 at Loop) hours each week. Full-time 25 hours per week 20 hours per week Over-achiever Achiever The quarterly awards reflect the number of hours worked in the same way that basic pay is calculated for part-time colleagues. This is a principle that is adopted with other lump sum payments. Annual Bonus (Bands 3 and above/indigo to Violet) Part-time colleagues will receive an annual bonus that reflects their hours of work e.g. Full time individual working 37 hours receives 2000 annual bonus. An individual who works 18.5 hours will receive Overtime Individuals who work part-time do not have an automatic right to overtime payments once they have worked beyond their normal working hours. Only when part-time workers have worked up to the normal hours of a comparable full time colleague or where they are working outside their contractual working window, will they have a right to overtime payments. Any additional hours worked within the normal working week (Monday to Friday) up to normal full-time hours will be paid at single time. Hours of overtime worked in excess of 37 hours will be paid in accordance with the company overtime rates as detailed on SAM. Standby Payments Where an individual works part-time and is required to work standby, their manager should decide on an appropriate arrangement that suits the circumstances i.e. the individual may do a full standby rota, they might share a rota with someone else or they might do a "pro rata" share of the rota that matches the hours. The outcome would depend on what the individual can do and also what the rest of the team can cover. However, if a part-time colleague is required to do more, pro-rata, than a full-time colleague, this could amount to discrimination unless it can be objectively justified. Standby payments will be pro-rated in line with the hours worked. Sick pay If an individual is ill on a day they are contracted to work, they will need to report their illness, and the sick pay provisions will apply. If an individual is not expected at work that day, they do not need to report their absence, and sick pay will not apply. 5

6 Manager Expectations If an individual reduces their hours of work, managers need to be mindful that their outputs will reduce proportionally. Often individuals feel that they are expected or try to deliver the same outputs as they did previously on full time hours, which is not realistic or acceptable. Both managers and individuals need to be realistic on what can be achieved in the new working week and priorities / expectations should be set accordingly. Recruitment When recruiting, managers should always consider applications from people who want to work part-time or job share. This will ensure that they do not limit the field of applicants and also that they recruit the best person for the job, without restricting talented individuals. The fact that a post is currently being done full time should not be used to prevent people who wish to work part-time from applying for it. There may be occasions where the hours the post necessarily requires may be incompatible with the hours an applicant desires or currently works. However, in these situations managers should consider supporting a job share partner or discuss with the applicant whether they would be able to work other hours in order to fit in with the demands of the job. Job Sharing Job sharing is a way of working where two people share the responsibilities of one full-time role. It requires both individuals to take joint responsibility for the whole role, not just the duties undertaken individually. The job remains a full-time not a part-time job. Successful job sharing can provide the advantage of greater breadth of experience and skills from the sharers than from one person, possibly greater cover for holidays and sickness, greater continuity and commitment to the job. How can a job share arrangement be set up? Job share arrangements may be put in place for existing roles: a) Creating a job share post If an individual wishes to convert their current role to a job share, they need first to ask their manager. While all full-time posts are potentially open to job sharing, the business needs to ensure that it will not adversely affect the work. b) Finding a job share partner The available part of the role will be advertised internally as a job share role. It is not up to the manager to find a job share partner. Individuals will continue to work full time until a job share partner is found. If no suitable job share partner can be recruited, the job share arrangement will not be possible for that post and the individual will have to continue to work full-time, or look for an alternative job share or part-time role. c) Selecting a job share partner Applications from job share partners are assessed in the same way as any other applications for a role. The job share partners also take responsibility for ensuring that they can come to a mutually suitable arrangement for carrying out the full role. Once the normal recruitment processes have taken place with each individual separately, the manager will want to talk to the applicants together to make sure that all three can agree on how they will make the partnership work. 6

7 How is it decided if a role is suitable for job sharing? Using the role statement and personal knowledge of the role, consider issues such as: Will job sharing increase costs which outweigh the benefits? Would critical relationships i.e. with external suppliers, or customers be affected? What impact will not responding to the job share have on the individuals? Can they continue with current working arrangements? Would a trial period be appropriate? Are there any issues with practical considerations i.e. office space or equipment? Would the purpose of the role still be achievable if two people shared accountability? Where the role has an element of team management, how will this be managed? If job sharers are included, will there be a better quality of applicants in the target population for the role? What selection criteria should be used for a job share role? The standard guidance within the Recruitment and Selection Process should be considered. The most suitable person or persons for the role should always be appointed. To give preferential treatment to either a full time or job sharing candidate may be discriminatory to either party. Where job sharing candidates are clearly the most suitable candidates to appoint, managers must assess whether they have skills, experience and personal styles which complement and support each other, and agree the terms of the job sharing contract. These might include how the role is shared and handover arrangements. What else might need to be considered? Will team communications need changing to include the job sharing partnership? Does the team need support in understanding the job sharing arrangement? (particularly important if the team has not experienced it before). Whilst each job sharing partner will be assessed individually, it should be made clear that part of the assessment will be around the effectiveness of the job sharing partnership and each individual s contribution to making the partnership work. What happens if one partner leaves? The manager will assess if the role still requires full time coverage. If it does not, the role should be offered to the remaining partner on suitable part time hours. If full time coverage is still required, the manager could offer the remaining partner the position on a full time basis. If they cannot/do not wish to work full time, the manager could recruit another job share partner to continue the partnership arrangements. Internal and external recruitment should be used in the normal way to attract applicants. If the recruitment process has been unsuccessful, look for alternative roles for the remaining partner, in line with the Kelda Security of Employment Policy. Why is a job share agreement used as well as individual contract of employment? The job share agreement covers areas which are not required in individual contracts, such as smooth handover of work, taking joint accountability for making the job work, and practical issues such as holidays. 7

8 Version Control Last Update: 1 st October 2017 Next Review Update: 1st April 2018 Last Board Approval: December 2015 Next Board Approval: December 2017 Policy Owner: Employee Relations & Reward 8