Career and pay progression

6.1 The Isle of Man Department of Health and Department of Social Care have agreed to use the UK NHS Knowledge and Skills Framework (KSF). A KSF outline will be applied to all posts covered by this agreement. It is the intention that the KSF sub project will commence April 2008.

6.2 The output from the NHS Knowledge and Skills Framework for an individual job will be a list of descriptions and/or standards (KSF post outline) specifying the minimum applied knowledge and skills required for a job and how this should develop during a person’s time in post. It will provide prompts for action by individuals and their managers to update or develop their knowledge and skills, or address areas for development in the application of knowledge and skills.

6.3 Development review procedures have been jointly agreed by Management and Staff Representatives via the Joint JNC.

6.4 It must be clear which elements, as identified in the NHS Knowledge and Skills Framework, should be demonstrated at both the foundation and second gateway.

6.5 The KSF post outlines within the organisation will be available to all staff members to help them identify the knowledge and skills requirements likely to be needed for future career steps and identify the development needed to support them. These requirements are not, however, fixed and will be reviewed in partnership when posts become vacant or changes need to take place to enhance service development or care delivery.

6.6 All staff will have Annual Development Reviews against the NHS Knowledge and Skills Framework, which will result in the production of a personal development plan. Development reviews will take place between staff and their manager or, where appropriate, their supervisor, a professional adviser or another appropriately trained senior team member.

6.7 The main purpose of the development review will be to look at the way a member of staff is developing with reference to:

• how the duties and responsibilities of the job are being undertaken, based on current agreed objectives
• the application of knowledge and skills in the workplace 
• the consequent development needs of the individual member of staff

6.8 The primary output of a development review for an employee will be a record of the above against the relevant KSF post outline and an individual personal development plan, which links to the needs of the employee in the post. During the development review process, discussion should cover the duties and responsibilities of the job that is being undertaken as outlined in the above. This will help to define future objectives and learning needs.

6.9 The review of learning achievements demonstrated in the workplace will be demonstrated by reference to the current personal development plan.

6.10 Development will primarily focus on helping members of staff to carry out their current job to the standard specified in the KSF outline for the post, although personal interests and opportunities for career progression will also be taken into account. Approaches to development will not just consist of courses but will also involve distance learning, private study, opportunities to participate in particular projects or work areas, short secondments, work shadowing, peer review and other continuing professional development activities. Please refer to the study leave policy for further information.

6.11 Development plans will distinguish between goals for the year ahead and those applying to the longer term. There will be a commitment from both parties to make all reasonable efforts to meet the developmental goals for the year ahead in that year and elements not completed through force of circumstance will be carried over to the following year, unless agreed otherwise.

6.12 Managers and staff will work together to fulfil agreed development plans. Employers will encourage staff members to progress and develop and, where training and/or development needs have been identified and agreed; employers will ensure sufficient financial support is provided. Where appropriate, employers should ensure that staff have appropriate time to fulfil training and/or development needs related to their current job and appropriate financial and other support. If an employer fails to do this, they cannot defer pay progression. Wherever possible employers will also provide similar encouragement and support for elements of the personal development plan that reflect individual work related interests or help staff prepare for a more senior role or transfer to a different area of work within the Isle of Man Government. Further guidance can be found in the Study Leave policy.

6.13 Staff members will contribute to undertaking the agreed personal development plan through their personal effort. They may individually choose, where appropriate, to commit personal time and resources, especially in those areas relating to longer-term career development. It is the employer’s responsibility to support individuals and their personal efforts appropriately. Where development needs essential to the post are agreed with the employer there will not be any requirement for the employee to use his or her unpaid personal time.

6.14 Development and review processes must be designed to ensure that part-time staff and those working outside normal hours have equal access to them.

6.15 Gateways are points on a pay band where assessment of the application of knowledge and skills necessary to progress will be made.

There are 2 gateway points: the foundation gateway and the second gateway.

6.16 The foundation gateway applies no later than 12 months after appointment to the pay band, regardless of the pay point to which the person is appointed.

6.17 The foundation gateway will be followed by a second gateway, which will vary between pay bands as set out in table 4.

Table 4: Position of second gateway

6.18 The review at the foundation gateway will be based on the agreed subset as specified in the KSF outline for the post. The review at the second gateway will be based on the relevant dimensions, levels and indicators as specified in the full KSF outline for the post.

6.19 The gateway review will take place in time for staff to progress on their normal incremental date. This should be no later than the end of the eleventh month of the gateway year to arrive at payroll no later than the pay role deadline of the month to be paid. A jointly agreed policy is in place to deal with cases where this is not possible (for example because the relevant manager is ill). This will ensure that there is no incentive to abuse the process and has been agreed by the Joint JNC.

6.20 Newly appointed or promoted staff joining a pay band under this system will serve an initial foundation period of up to 12 months. During this initial period all staff will have at least 3 formal discussions with their manager (or the person acting as their reviewer) and 2 informal discussions to review progress, guided by the KSF foundation outline for the post. The first of these discussions should normally be during the induction period. The aim of these discussions and any resulting support and development will be to help staff make a success of the new job and confirm as quickly as possible that they are applying the basic knowledge and skills needed for the job and can pass through the foundation gateway and commence progression up their pay band (see Annex T for additional information).

6.21 Once progression has been agreed, a member of staff will normally progress to the next point on their pay band 12 months after appointment and to subsequent points every 12 months thereafter, subject to meeting the criteria for progression when they pass through the second gateway point.

6.22 Before moving through the second gateway, there will be an assessment as part of the process of development review, against the full KSF outline for the post. Staff will normally expect to move through the second gateway at this point, but, subject to the safeguards set out below, progression may be deferred if the review indicates that they are not yet applying the full range of knowledge and skills required for the post.

6.23 The gateway system will only become fully operational when arrangements to ensure that staff have access to development reviews, personal development plans and appropriate support for training and development to meet the applied knowledge and skills required at the gateway concerned. This must be done for all posts covered by this agreement and all staff will be notified as to when the gateway system becomes operational.

6.24 Existing staff with at least 12 months’ experience in post will be assumed to have met the criteria for passing through the foundation gateway. Where the gateway system is operational, they will however be subject to the normal operation of the new system at the second gateway.

6.25 The following safeguards will also apply:

• There will be a normal expectation of progression and no quotas will apply to the scheme. All staff must have an equal opportunity to demonstrate the required standard of knowledge and skills to progress through the gateways and pay points.
  
  
• The applied skills and knowledge required at the foundation and second gateways should be clearly stated during recruitment.
  
  
• The KSF outlines may be changed subsequently by local agreement, and in partnership between employee and employer representatives, within the work area concerned where changes apply to a number of posts, or with the individual where they apply only to a single post. They may also be changed where it is necessary to reflect a change in professional standards as agreed by the relevant professional body or authority.
  
  
• The demonstration of knowledge and skills must be that used within each dimension, level and indicators in the KSF.
  
  
• The Departments will ensure there is a robust jointly agreed process for checking managers’ decisions and reviewing disagreements with an agreed timescale for re-review.
  
  
• Pay progression cannot be deferred unless there has been prior discussion between the individual and the person undertaking their review, which should be recorded, about the knowledge and skills that the individual needs to develop and apply and the member of staff has been given the opportunity to achieve the necessary development.
  
  
• Management and staff representatives, acting in partnership, will monitor decisions on pay progression to ensure that there is no discrimination or bias in relation to race or ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, disability, religion, age or trade union membership, or pattern of employment, for example part-time, flexible and night workers.

6.26 Guidance on the development of professional roles for healthcare professionals on pay band 5 is set out in Annex T.

6.27 Where significant weaknesses in performance in the current post have been identified, discussed and documented with the staff member concerned and have not been resolved despite opportunities for appropriate training/development and support, exceptionally pay progression may be deferred at any pay point until the problems are resolved.

6.28 Significant weaknesses are those that prevent a staff member from continuing to apply consistently, across a recognised normal workload, the knowledge and skills specified under the KSF foundation post outline for the foundation gateway or, for staff above the second gateway, the full range of knowledge and skills specified under the full KSF post outline, without continued supervision and support inappropriate to the post.

6.29 Where a member of staff moves to another job in the organisation covered by this agreement, where the necessary arrangements to support the operation of the gateways are in place, pay progression will normally depend on demonstrating the knowledge and skills specified in the KSF outline for the post within the first 12 months of appointment.

6.30 Where, however, an individual re-trains in a different area of work for wider service or operational reasons with the explicit agreement of the employer concerned, their existing level of pay should be protected. Once protection is agreed, it may not be withdrawn until the person concerned has had the opportunity to complete their re-training within a mutually agreed timeframe and progressed to a point where pay protection is no longer required. Explicit employer agreement in this context cannot be deemed to have been given solely because the employer has agreed to re-employ someone following redundancy.

6.31 Individuals may be moved into a higher pay band where it is necessary to fill a post on a temporary basis when a vacancy is unfilled but being advertised, or the post is being held open for someone who is due to return, for example from long-term sick leave, maternity leave or from extended training.

6.32 Pay should be set either at the minimum of the new pay band or, if this would result in no pay increase (by reference to basic pay plus any recruitment and retention premium if applicable), the first pay point in the band that would deliver an increase in pay. Temporary movement into a new pay band should not normally last more than 6 months or less than one month, except in instances of maternity leave or long-term sick leave where a longer period may be known at the outset. Periods of annual leave and sickness leave will be paid at the same rate as the post being acted up into.

6.33 If the post holder substituted into a vacant post is subsequently on sickness absence certified by a medical practitioner for 4 working weeks or greater the uplift in pay will cease and an alternative substitute sought where appropriate.

6.34 Where temporary movement into a higher pay band results in only one extra pay point the incremental date remains the same. Where temporary movement results in more than 1 extra pay point the incremental date for the period of the temporary movement becomes the date the movement began.

6.35 On subsequent promotion to a higher pay band any period of paid acting up or substitution will count for incremental credit purposes. This will mean, any period of acting up in the 12 months immediately prior to appointment date to the higher banded post will count as service in that post. Any such periods will be aggregated to determine the incremental date and point of entry onto the scale.

Example

If the period of acting up before being promoted into the post was 6 months and the start date in the promoted post is 1 April the incremental date will become:

• 12 months – 6 months = 6 months remaining on the pay point
  Therefore the incremental date will be 1 October

If the post holder acted up into a post for 3 months, returned to the substantive post, and recommenced acting up 2 months before promotion into the post on 1 May the incremental date will become:

• 12 months – (3+2) = 7 months remaining on the pay point
  Therefore the incremental date will be 1 December

6.36 Where professional registration is required for a post in a higher band a non registered employee cannot be permitted to act up into the registered post.

6.37 Pay on promotion should be set either at the minimum of the new pay band or, if this would result in no pay increase, the first pay point in the band that would deliver an increase in pay (by reference to basic pay plus any recruitment and retention premium, if applicable). Increment date changes to first day of month of promotion to new post.

If the employee has acted up into the position within the previous 2 years then the spine point the employee held on leaving the post will be used for the new position. This gives the employee credit for already working in the post. The employee should be given an increment date which takes into account the number of months worked at the higher band since the last increment.

Example

A member of staff worked in a position that was a band 6 from 1 October 2004 until 25 January 2006. The member of staff got an increment in October 2005. The employee moved to a band 5 post from 26 January 2006 until 30 November 2006. The employee was then promoted into the band 6 position that they left in January 2006 from 1 December 2006. The increment date should be 3 months before December as this would take into account the 3 months already worked in the band 6 post without gaining an increment. Therefore the employee’s new increment date will be September.

6.38 Further information on assimilation arrangements during the transition to the new system is set out in Part 7, including information on:

• the arrangements that need to be put in place before the gateway system can become fully operational
• the position of existing staff in relation to the foundation and second gateways
• the position of existing staff in relation to their current incremental date

6.39 Will remain on the same pay point and increment date.

6.40 HR will advise the employee that their increment date is the first date of the month in which they start pending confirmation of any hours worked on the bank.

HR will then ask Payroll to confirm any hours worked on a bank contract and calculate the new increment date using any hours worked on the bank as credit.

HR will then contact the employee if the increment date has changed.

6.41 If the bank post is at the same band then the bank post will mirror the substantive post for pay point and increment date.

6.42 If the bank post is at a higher band then it will be treated individually and will increment after a year subject to 488 hours having been worked in that year at the higher band.

6.43 Employees will retain the same increment if the bank post follows on from the substantive post. Any hours worked on the substantive post will then be used as credit towards the 488 hours needed to gain an increment on a bank contract within a year.

6.44 Employees who have a break in service and then return to a post of the same band should retain their pay point. Their increment date should be deferred by the number of months of the break in service. Only full months will be counted, a full month is 30 days for this purpose.

For example

A member of staff has an increment date of November but has a break in service from June to August.

As they have not been in service for three months their increment date should be deferred by 3 months, therefore moving it to February.

If an employee has been out of the post for longer than a year then normal terms and conditions will apply for increments and salary on commencement.