Santander UK Integration Agreement Phase Three

Transcription

1 Santander UK Integration Agreement Phase Three consultative ballot december 2013

2 consultative ballot If this booklet has been posted to your home address, it will have been sent together with your ballot paper and a pre paid envelope. Please make sure that you return your ballot paper to be received no later than first post on 20th December If you receive this booklet at your workplace then please look out for local information about the consultative ballot. Vote yes for the agreement

3 Contents Introduction 4 Redeployment and Redundancy 4 Defending Jobs and Promoting Redeployment 5 Commitment to Proper Consultation 5 Reducing Staff Surpluses 5 Redeployment 6 Reasonable Travel 7 Additional Travelling Costs 7 Pay Protections 7 Notice Periods 8 Job Swaps 8 Redundancy Payments 8 Payment Formula 9 Definition of a Weeks Pay 9 Notice Periods and Payments 10 Changes of Hours 10 Minimum Payments 10 Maximum Payments 10 Working Notice 11 Special Arrangements 11 Outplacement Support 12 Appeals 12 Future re-employment 12 Defined Contribution Pension 12 Union Recommendation 13

4 Santander UK Integration Phase THREE Dear Colleagues, The CWU s Santander National Committee, which includes both national and local representatives from around the UK, has reached agreement with the Bank on a third round of integration that covers; a comprehensive redeployment & redundancy policy; a voluntary change to some pension defined contribution arrangements. The CWU is recommending acceptance of the new proposals in this consultative ballot. The new arrangements if accepted will apply from 1st April 2014, unless otherwise stated. This booklet contains a summary of the main features of the collective agreement and includes the Union s recommendation. REDEPLOYMENT AND REDUNDANCY At the moment there are a large number of separate redundancy policies covering the Bank which treat members differently when there is a staff surplus situation. These include the following policies and agreements: Co-operation with Change Agreement New Technology Agreement A&L redundancy terms A&L redeployment policy Former PCS A&L redundancy terms Ex Abbey Job Security Agreement A&L Commercial Bank Voluntary and Compulsory Redundancy terms. As with previous Integration Agreements, we have been in protracted negotiations about integrating all the existing policies to create a single coherent policy for the entire Bank. Overall, we have secured an agreement that maintains the existing approach to minimising job losses and maximising redeployment, while ensuring that the redundancy arrangements on offer for a majority of CWU members are improved. A copy of the new documentation, which will become contractual, is available from your CWU representative. 4

5 Defending Jobs and Promoting Redeployment The CWU has always regarded protecting jobs as a fundamental priority. The proposed Agreement includes key commitments from the Bank about maintaining employment, retraining and redeploying staff as well as minimising any job losses. These are very similar to those that exist in heritage A&L agreements that have served us well in the past and have been operated by Santander since the acquisition. Commitment To Proper Consultation The new draft Agreement contains valuable commitments to ensure proper consultation the CWU. There is a commitment from the Bank to consulting the CWU at the earliest possible opportunity. This will happen as soon as the Bank considers any business changes which could result in potential redundancies and will begin before any final decisions are taken. The Bank has confirmed that it will set out to reach agreement with the CWU on how any changes will be implemented and how to maximise redeployment opportunities to avoid compulsory redundancies wherever possible. Finally, collective consultation must be complete with the CWU before any individual redundancy notices will ever be issued. Reducing Staff Surpluses A major part of this policy are measures to reduce or eliminate the need for any job losses. The proposed Agreement contains commitments to achieve this objective in a number of ways. The Bank will control recruitment in order to provide alternative jobs as soon as it is known that an area could be affected by change, This may include not back-filling roles that have become vacant, and reviewing and minimising the use of overtime. Exceptionally, the Bank will also consider allowing business areas to become overstaffed temporarily if normal staff turnover will bring resourcing levels to an acceptable level within a reasonable period. Additionally, the Bank will review the use of secondments, in line with the Secondment Policy As part of the consultation process, the Bank will also ensure that it understands and considers individual preferences and career aspirations. This will allow those who wish to leave the Bank to indicate that fact. 5

6 Redeployment As with existing Agreements, the new arrangements are based on maintaining employment and finding people another job within Santander wherever possible. This will happen by looking to match individuals into similar jobs and giving staff the opportunity to move into non-similar jobs. This is almost identical to the current arrangements for CWU represented staff. A) Similar Job If an individual were matched into a similar job then they will be entitled to a four-week transitional period to adjust to the new role. The Agreement goes into detail about what defines a similar job and factors such as accountabilities, skills, experience, S Band, salary, Job Family, hours of work, location, benefits and status will be taken into account. Personal circumstances will also be taken into consideration. This includes whether individuals have any caring responsibilities that cannot be altered, or a disability that has resulted in adjustments being made to work content or attendance patterns. B) Non-similar Jobs For those who are not matched into a similar job then the Agreement provides commitments to assist redeployment into a non-similar job. Someone at risk of redundancy is guaranteed interviews for non-similar positions as long as they meet the minimum requirements for the roles. Minimum requirements will not include skills and experience that can be quickly or easily acquired through training. Those who move into a non-similar job will be given a trial period which will normally be 12 weeks. The trial period may be longer if more time is needed for training. Unlike current arrangements, the trial period will run concurrently with the notice period. If the original notice period will not cover the twelve-week trial period the notice will be extended to the end of the trial period. If the trial period is successful then the role will be come permanent. However, if the role is not accepted the individual will remain at risk of redundancy. As the trial periods will in future run concurrently with the notice period we have put in place arrangements to protect staff if the initial trial is not a success. If an individual, or their manager decide, that the trial period has not been successful and they have less than four weeks notice remaining at the end of this trial period, then the notice period can be extended by up to another four weeks to give time to look for another role. If this happens and an individual then secures another trial period during these four weeks, there will be another extension of the notice so the new trial can be completed. 6

7 Reasonable Travel A key issue when deciding if a job is a similar job is whether it is within reasonable travelling distance/time of home. A job will be considered to be within reasonable travelling distance if the new place of work is within a 30 mile radius of home or if the journey to and from home to the new place of work takes less than 2 hours per day on average. Additionally, if you are in Bands S3-S5 and currently travelling to and from London, total daily home to normal place of work travelling time should not exceed 3 hours (unless your travelling time is already more than 3 hours). In addition, the Bank will take into account caring responsibilities and any disabilities. For part time staff, whether the travelling distance is reasonable will take into account the amount of time worked compared to the time travelled. Additional Travelling Costs The Union has already reached agreement on the financial support provided if there are any increased travel costs. These provide for payment over a three-year period, which moves from 100% of additional costs in year one; 60% in year two; and 30% in year three. While these are the standard arrangements, they will be reviewed in the event of a closure of an admin or HQ site. Pay Protections The Agreement provides financial protections which may be available should someone choose to accept a job with a lower salary range or S Band. This helps to maintain jobs and promote redeployment. Currently, CWU members who move to a lower pay scale move onto a protected salary for a period of three years and have to seek jobs at their original level. Holidays are also protected. The new Agreement introduces a new approach with no time limit. If someone is at risk of redundancy and accepts a job with a lower basic salary range and/or in a lower Band, the following protections will apply. If the current salary is within 30% of the maximum of the new salary range, it will remain unchanged. If the current salary is more than 30% above the maximum of the salary range of the new role it will reduce to 30% above the maximum of the range when the new job is confirmed at the end of the trial period. Holiday entitlements are linked to S Band, but if someone moves to a job in a lower Band with a lower entitlement, there will be no reduction in annual leave. 7

8 If someone moves to a role in a lower Band with a shorter notice period, there will be no reduction in the existing contractual notice period. If an individual is paid above the maximum pay range of their job then, unless special arrangements are put in place, it is likely that there will be no consolidated pay rise until the salary is within the pay range. Any payments are likely to be unconsolidated. This is in line with current arrangements. Notice Periods The deal provides for enhanced redundancy notice periods for Bands S1 to S4. This enhancement is a new development and a significant change as there is currently no enhancement in a redundancy situation. Most CWU members currently have a maximum of 12 weeks contractual notice at 12 years service. The inclusion of additional notice will provide valuable additional time to look for other roles within Santander. Notice periods for Redundancy Band S1 & S2 S3 & S4 S5 Years of Service Number of Weeks of Redundancy Notice Note: The S5 notice period is not enhanced as it is already 26 weeks. Job Swaps In exceptional circumstances, at the Bank s discretion, it may be possible for someone who is not redundant (a volunteer ) to swap positions with a redundant colleague. If this is agreed, the redundancy payment will be the lower of either the volunteers own redundancy package, or that of the colleague who was originally redundant. Where a job swap is agreed, the volunteer will be entitled to a notice period equivalent to their contractual notice and not the enhanced notice period. 8 Redundancy Payments If the consultation and redeployment process is unable to secure a job for everyone involved in a Company restructure then staff may eventually leave the Bank on redundancy. In this situation, we always want to ensure that members receive a meaningful compensation payment that will help you while you seek another job.

9 At the moment there are a variety of agreements in place with different formulas mainly based on four times the statutory matrix but using the basic Santander salary for the calculation. Combining all the different formats into a single formula in a way that benefits all our members whatever their service profile and age has not been possible. However, we have secured redundancy arrangements that, taken overall, improve the terms available for most CWU members. The main elements of the proposed new redundancy terms are set out below and include part years service and allowances for the first time. Payment Formula The formula for calculating redundancy payments is the better of either: 3.25 times one weeks pay for each completed year or part year of service OR 2.5 times the number of weeks you are entitled to under the Government s statutory redundancy arrangements calculated using Santander weekly salary and eligible allowances. The statutory redundancy formula is currently; 0.5 weeks pay for each full year of service where age during the year is less than weeks pay for each full year of service where age during the year is 22 or above but less than weeks pay for each full year of service where age during the year is greater than 41. A maximum of the last 20-year s service will be taken into account. Definition of a Weeks Pay Basic Pay is based on annual gross salary on the day an individual leaves the Bank. However, the new arrangements also include a number of allowances and payments. This is the first time that these payments will have been included for all. The payments in scope in addition to basic pay are: Overtime, Shift Allowance; Bootle Security Supplement; Acting Up Allowance; National Unsocial Hours Payment; and on Call/Call out payments. The calculation for these additional elements is based on an average of the payments to an individual in the 12 months prior to the month in which individual notice of redundancy starts. The inclusion of these additional allowances is particularly advantageous to the lower paid as they are primarily paid to S1 and S2 staff. 9

10 Notice Periods and Payments The new enhanced redundancy notice periods for Bands S1 to S4 that were detailed above will also apply. The additional notice not only provides additional pay for those at risk of redundancy, it also means that your leaving date will be later so allowing for the possibility of a pay rise, bonus payment or pay progression increases being applied. The Company will also continue to make normal payments into occupational pension schemes during any notice period. Changes of Hours To protect the interests of members who have recently reduced their working hours the calculations for redundancy payments will be based on the highest contracted weekly hours worked in the 12 months before notice of redundancy is issued. This means that if someone has reduced their working hours (or increased their hours) in this period redundancy pay will be based on the higher contracted hours. Minimum Payments There is no legal requirement to pay anyone redundancy compensation until they have two years service. However, we have never accepted this in the Bank and the new Agreement contains the following payment for those with short service. A minimum payment of 13 weeks pays after 2 years service or if less than 2 years service 4.33 weeks pay. Maximum Payments From 1st January 2015, the maximum redundancy payment will be capped at the lesser of 104 weeks pay or 150,000. This figure will be reviewed with the CWU in It will have no impact on the vast majority of our members as in order to reach this maximum an individual will typically need to have a salary of 75,000 and 32 years service. However until 31st December 2014 the maximum redundancy payment will be capped at 104 weeks pay without regard to amount The 104 week maximum is less than some of the existing policies but returns us to the situation that was in place until 2006 and will leave Santander at the higher end of redundancy agreements across the UK. The maximum payment is a new development and follows the approach of other major UK banks that have also introduced a cap. 810

11 Working Notice The proposed Agreement also confirms arrangements for working notice periods. In most cases, as now, the Bank will expect staff to work during the period of the enhanced notice. However, this will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis, and the Bank may decide to place staff on garden leave for some or all of the notice period. Another alternative is to pay in lieu of notice (PILON). All PILON requests need to be approved by a director in People & Tallent, but if this is agreed redundancy payments will be based on the original notice end date, and PILON for the balance of the notice period. If someone finds alternative employment outside Santander during their notice period, the Bank will be as flexible as it can in agreeing an earlier leaving date. In this situation, someone will still get a redundancy payment, based on the service up to their earlier leaving date. However, there will not be any payment in lieu of salary for the balance of the notice period. Special Arrangements As there are currently many different arrangements, in order to protect the interests of our members as far as possible, we have also put in place some special arrangements for two specific groups of members where we felt that the new arrangements needed to be supplemented. A) A&L Senior Management Population (formerly A&L Bands A-E) This group of about 650 staff would currently receive redundancy payments of up to six-times statutory terms using Santander salaries for the calculation. The Bank has insisted on changing these arrangements, since they believe that they are far more generous than for similar roles in Santander and competitor companies. We argued hard to maintain these terms for the current population but this was not acceptable to the Bank. We have however, ensured that the existing terms will not be removed immediately. They will continue for an additional two-year transitional period. Therefore, the new arrangements do not apply to the existing ex A&L Senior Management population (formerly A&L Bands A-E) for an additional two years, which is until 1st April All new colleagues will fall into the scope of the new Policy from 1st April B) Alliance & Leicester Commercial Bank Contracts in post before 1st January 1999 There are 135 employees primarily in S1 grades working in Bootle and Bradford who fall into this category. These members are currently entitled to a set of terms that only apply in the event of compulsory redundancies. These provide for redundancy payments of up to 104 weeks and for members over age 55 they could result in pension enhancements at the time of redundancy. 119

12 These terms were last changed in 1998 and have never been used by Santander, or the Alliance & Leicester. The Union has opposed any compulsory redundancies for any of our members. Our opposition to compulsory redundancies will continue. The Bank was adamant that the special terms for those over 55 could not continue, however, in recognition of the current arrangements we have ensured that those previously entitled to these terms will receive an additional notice period of 13 weeks in a redundancy situation. This will be on top of the enhanced notice periods detailed above. Outplacement Support Anyone who is under notice of redundancy will be provided with access to specialist outplacement support. This will run alongside the efforts to support staff in finding another role within Santander UK. During notice periods staff will be entitled to reasonable time off to look for other jobs by attendance at interviews and reasonable use of PCs, faxes, internet, and other equipment for job searches and application preparation. Appeals If someone does not agree with a job matching or redundancy decision there is an appeal process in place that can ultimately escalate the issue to a panel of S5s or Dir Reds. Appeals can be submitted up to three months after notice is served. In the event of an appeal, members can be represented by the CWU. Future re-employment If you leave Santander on redundancy, an individual will not normally be considered for re-employment either directly or through a third party for six months after the last day of employment. This is a six-month reduction on the current arrangements for CWU grades. DEFINED CONTRIBUTION PENSION From 1st May 2014, we have ensured that members who are already in the Alliance & Leicester Defined Contribution pension, or who are eligible to join this pension, can decide to join the Santander Retirement Plan (SRP) on a voluntary basis. The SRP offers higher employer contribution rates and a significantly enhanced death in service cover. Contributions In the existing Alliance & Leicester Pension Scheme, defined contribution pension members pay 5% and the Bank pays 9% of pensionable salary. The table below shows the contribution arrangements in the SRP. 12

13 As members of the A&L pension will have over four years service by May 2014, a member moving to the SRP and maintaining a 5% contribution will get an additional 0.5% Company contribution for each year of service. Moreover, the Bank will pay up to 12.5% if individuals contribute 8% or more. Employee % Employer Contributions % with increments based on Company Service <1 year >1<2 years >2<3 years >3<4 years 4+ years Death in Service In the A&L pension, the death in service payment is four times pensionable salary and in the SRP it is ten times pensionable salary. However, not all the other benefits are identical and the Pensions Dept will be issuing more information next year if the Agreement is accepted. UNION RECOMMENDATION The Union has exhausted the negotiating process and is recommending that you vote to accept the proposed agreement in the consultative ballot. This is a complex and comprehensive proposal that reflects the fact that CWU members are part of a large and diverse organisation. Overall the Union believes that we have secured a deal that should be supported because it contains the following key features. Promoting Job Security A commitment to consulting the CWU at the earliest possible opportunity. Measures to minimise job losses including controlling recruitment and reducing third party resourcing. A focus on maintaining employment and finding people another job within Santander. 13

14 Redeployment Commitments to redeploy staff into similar jobs and allow access to non-similar jobs. Transitional and trial periods when in a redeployment situation. Additional travel cost compensation. Salary and annual leave protections if someone takes a lower paid/banded job. Redundancy Up to 104 weeks redundancy pay. Enhanced contractual redundancy notice periods. Inclusion of overtime, allowances and pay supplements in the redundancy calculation. Inclusion of part years in the redundancy calculation. Protections for those who have changed their hours in the 12 months before redundancy. Special arrangements for former A&L bands A-E and ALCB contracted staff in post before 1 January Commitment to provide specialist outplacement support. Alliance & Leicester Defined Contribution Pension A voluntary option to move to the Santander Retirement Plan. For all these reasons, we are recommending that you vote to accept the Agreement. Nigel Cotgrove Assistant Secretary 14 Vote yes for the agreement

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16 04258 Published by the Communication Workers Union 2013 Vote yes for the agreement Contact the CWU Algus National Branch Bootle Branch Bradford Branch Northern & National Financial Services Branch The Broadway London SW19 1RX T: E: Billy Hayes General Secretary