Agenda item

To consider progress made against delivery of the Workforce Development Strategy. 

19.1          The report of the Senior HR and OD Adviser, circulated at Pages No. 66-90, set out the progress made during 2022/23 against the Workforce Development Strategy Action Plan and the actions for 2023/24.  Members were asked to consider the report.

19.2          The Senior HR and OD Adviser explained that a five year strategy had been approved by the Council in 2019 and the report looked back at delivery of the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to date and what was planned for the forthcoming year.  Members were advised that it was not always possible to provide data from previous years as for some actions this was the first established data set that could be collected; however, she provided assurance that comparable data would be provided moving forward.  In terms of recruitment, the internal target was based on national levels and the market – the time from advert to contract had been reduced compared to previous years.  Right to work checks were now required to be conducted face-to-face and a number of staff did not live locally so there was a reliance on them to come into the Council Offices to do this.  With regard to candidate attraction, 624 applications had been received across 78 vacancies and Officers were looking at what could be done to ensure that adverts were fair and equitable in what was a very competitive market.  There had been an increase in the number of vacancies being filled from first and second advertisements, 73% and 92% respectively, which included hard to fill vacancies in Planning and One Legal where there was tough competition from the private sector.  Officers were also looking at what could be done to improve the overall package to make it more attractive to prospective employees and in 2022/23 this had included the introduction of a salary sacrifice scheme for electric/low emissions cars which had a small uptake to date.  A scheme for the purchase of additional annual leave was planned for 2023/24.  Positive feedback had been received regarding Eploy, an application tracking system used from the point of application to onboarding.  In response to a query regarding the percentage of zero hours contracts, as opposed to fixed or permanent, the Senior HR and OD Adviser advised there was a small handful of casual vacancies to fill project gaps with 10-15% on fixed term contracts; casual staff were currently employed in the Tourist Information Centres or on project work. 

19.3          In terms of absence, the internal target of eight days per full-time employee had not been achieved but, at 9.83 days, this was a big improvement on the previous year which had been 11.52 days.  The Supporting Performance Policy had been updated which clarified the Council’s requirements as an organisation and the trigger points etc.  A new HR platform had recently been developed which provided a self-service portal for staff to record annual leave, sickness and timesheets – it was intended to add to this going forward.  There had been a shift in the reasons for absences during 2022/23 due to staff returning to the office following the pandemic and mixing with others resulting in a number of cold and flu bugs; measures to counteract this included offering payment for flu jabs and providing cleaning supplies for desks etc.  The work of the team and the Council in respect of wellbeing had been recognised with formal accreditation from Gloucestershire Health Workplaces, as set out at Appendix 3 to the report,

19.4          In respect of staff turnover, this had increased from 14.5% to 15.4% with a number of staff leaving the authority after the pandemic following reflection on their personal circumstances.  Additional measures had been put in place to address this during quarters three and four, including the Recruitment and Retention Policy, and staff continued to be surveyed using the Pulse check to establish the landscape of the authority, particularly with increased hybrid working.  It was noted that the Council operated an apprenticeship scheme and there would be four new apprentices joining the authority over the coming weeks.  In terms of equality and diversity, although the Council had no legal obligation to report the gender pay gap, this had been done for transparency since 2017 and the gap had reduced from 16% to 13.2% in 2022/23. Equal opportunities data had been reviewed and there was an equal opportunities section on Eploy in order for the Council to collect data on new starters and applicants.

19.5          In terms of actions for the coming year, this would include creating a library of management toolkits for common issues such as absence management, maternity, organisational change etc; reviewing the job evaluation processes and how jobs were graded; and looking at evidence-based approaches to reducing the gender pay gap.  It was also intended to explore partnerships with others to increase exposure to digital innovation, for example, University of Gloucestershire Business School and GCHQ.  Officers would continue to implement the Council’s vision and values and ensure policies and procedures were embedded.

19.6          The Chair noted the accreditation from Gloucestershire Healthy Workplaces and congratulated the Council on a fantastic achievement.  A Member asked which service had the most vacancies and sought assurance that the impact on staff within departments carrying vacancies was recognised.  The Senior HR and OD Adviser advised that the majority of gaps were within the Planning service and, whilst it had been possible to fill some of the vacancies, there continued to be gaps across different levels which did add pressure to existing staff.  With regard to Appendix 2 which set out the achievement against key performance measures, the Chair indicated it would have been helpful to include a service breakdown in order to identify any particular services or grades where specific actions were required.  A Member drew attention to Page No. 75 of the report which stated that, of the 624 applications for job vacancies, 44 had been categorised as ‘not specified’ in terms of gender and he asked for clarification on this.  The Senior HR and OD Adviser explained that those people had not responded to this particular question.  She advised that the Council used “blind” applications as no personal details were made available when selecting candidates for interview.  The Member asked whether gender continued to be a relevant question and the Senior HR and OD Adviser recognised this was a difficult issue.  There had been an expansion of gender categories and norms which required consultation regarding appropriate terminology and phrasing. Gender was important in terms of applying equal opportunities and how this was reported, for instance, the gender pay gap, and ensuring that the Council could reach out to the right pool of candidates; however, she stressed that focus during recruitment was on experience and qualifications so it remained relevant in that regard.

19.7          A Member welcomed the apprenticeship scheme but noted this was normally aimed at young people and she asked whether the Council had a strategy for bringing people back to the workplace as well as the measures in place to upskill existing employees.  The Senior HR and OD Adviser advised that a lot of apprentices were 21 or over and there was no upper age limit for applicants.  The apprenticeship pay scale had recently been reviewed and made more attractive which it was hoped would increase the pool of candidates. The Continuing Professional Development (CPD) process, which involved a conversation between the staff member and their Line Manager, helped to identify staff training and development opportunities which enabled the HR and OD Team to build programmes for staff.  Another Member indicated that apprenticeships had been very successful in the past in terms of retention and she asked whether any of the new apprenticeships would be in Planning given that was an area where recruitment was difficult.  In response the Senior HR and OD Adviser explained that all operational managers had been consulted to establish whether they would be interested in taking an apprentice and two of the new positions were rotationa l– Environmental Health/Waste and Community Development/Planning Policy.  The other two would be in IT and Revenues and Benefits.  A Member asked whether flexible working was available for those not on a permanent or fixed contract and the Senior HR and OD Adviser explained that the Agile Working Policy gave all staff the opportunity to request different working patterns provided they had completed 26 weeks service; the staff member was required to complete an application form which would be discussed with their Line Manager and, if approved, HR would write to the individual with the new terms and conditions of their employment.  If anyone requested flexible retirement, there was an expectation they would drop 10% of their hours – that was the only stipulation. The Member suggested that flexible arrangements may help with recruitment and the Senior HR and OD Adviser confirmed that, for the right candidate, a request for reduced/variable hours etc. would be considered in terms of whether it was viable for the service; flexible applications were welcomed.

19.8          A Member asked whether the Pulse survey completed by staff was anonymous and what percentage of absences were work-related.  She pointed out that six of the seven top management positions within the Council were occupied by men and asked what was being done to encourage women into more senior roles.  The Senior HR and OD Adviser acknowledged that the gender pay gap was likely to be impacted by the new management structure this year but stressed there was no phrasing/terminology or imagery to deter women from applying and the appointments were based on the right person for the role.  There were ways and means to support female applicants to higher roles and the authority looked to grow its own talent supported by the CPD process and mentoring.  The Senior HR and OD Adviser undertook to find out the figure for work-related absences and provide that to Members following the meeting; however, she was aware that a small number of absences were due to work-related stress and HR worked quickly to address those matters.  She confirmed that the Pulse survey was anonymous but it was possible for Officers to add their name if they would like a direct response to their feedback. 

19.9          The Chair indicated that he expected to see more substance to the actions for 2023/24 and accepted this may be due to the way the document was worded; however, he sought assurance it was not reflective of a lack of ambition.  In response, Senior HR and OD Adviser advised that the actions were based on resources and targets set by previous management.  There was not a great deal to take forward based on the current strategy but there was work to be done year on year and there would be a lot of requirements for digital development going forward.  The Chair asked for Members to be provided with a brief update on what was planned under each heading to understand the ambitions for the next 12 months and the Senior HR and OD Adviser explained that the new Associate Director: People, Culture and Performance would be taking up her post at the end of August and would be able to feed into that document.

19.10        Having considered the report, it was

RESOLVED           That progress against delivery of the Workforce Development Strategy be NOTED.