Asked by: Chris Stephens (Scottish National Party - Glasgow South West)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether his Department has notified staff to (a) tell or (b) remind them that they can sell annual leave in the last four months.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
There is no central policy on buying/selling leave. Departments may consider introducing this benefit under their own delegated authority.
Cabinet Office does not currently offer a buying/selling annual leave scheme.
Asked by: Chris Stephens (Scottish National Party - Glasgow South West)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many and what proportion of employees in the Prime Minister's Department are paid at the rate of the National Minimum Wage.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
The Cabinet Office ensures that we are compliant with legislative increases to the National Minimum Wage. Our minimum salary (AO at a National Pay band) works out to £11.25 per hour.
For management and staffing purposes, the Prime Minister’s Office is an integral part of the Cabinet Office. All employees in the Cabinet Office are paid above the National Minimum Wage.
Asked by: Chris Stephens (Scottish National Party - Glasgow South West)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many and what proportion of employees in their Department are paid at the rate of the National Minimum Wage.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
The Cabinet Office ensures that we are compliant with legislative increases to the National Minimum Wage. Our minimum salary (AO at a National Pay band) works out to £11.25 per hour.
For management and staffing purposes, the Prime Minister’s Office is an integral part of the Cabinet Office. All employees in the Cabinet Office are paid above the National Minimum Wage.
Asked by: Chris Stephens (Scottish National Party - Glasgow South West)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps he is taking to ensure his Department's compliance with section 181 of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
There is a range of HR information which is published on GOV.UK and which is therefore publicly available. In addition, Cabinet Office meets regularly with Trade Union representatives and presents and shares information and data requested on the Cabinet Office workforce, where it is appropriate and in line with our privacy statements to help inform decision making through formal negotiation and meaningful consultation and engagement.
Cabinet Office is therefore complying with section 181 of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992.
Asked by: Chris Stephens (Scottish National Party - Glasgow South West)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what human resources information his Department shares with trade unions on a regular basis.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
There is a range of HR information which is published on GOV.UK and which is therefore publicly available. In addition, Cabinet Office meets regularly with Trade Union representatives and presents and shares information and data requested on the Cabinet Office workforce, where it is appropriate and in line with our privacy statements to help inform decision making through formal negotiation and meaningful consultation and engagement.
Cabinet Office is therefore complying with section 181 of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992.
Asked by: Chris Stephens (Scottish National Party - Glasgow South West)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps he is taking to ensure his Department complies with section 2.1.6 of the Civil Service Management Code; and whether that monitoring data gathered is shared with union representatives.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
The Cabinet Office complies with section 2.1.6 of the Civil Service Management Code and relevant legislation including GDPR and Equality Act 2010. We collect diversity information and community background information during the job application process and on our workforce through our HR platforms. All personal and sensitive data collected is used in accordance with the Privacy Statement agreed by employees on the HR platforms.
This information is used to understand the workforce size and shape, as well as the level of turnover and diversity in our workforce. The data is used to help us invest in skills, and to inform our HR strategy and policy. Diversity and inclusion data also helps us understand how representative we are and identify those areas we need to improve. The data supports an evidence based approach to diversity and inclusion in the Cabinet Office.
The Cabinet Office meets regularly with the unions and presents and shares information and data requested - where it is appropriate and in line with our privacy statements - to help inform decision making through negotiation and consultation.
Asked by: Chris Stephens (Scottish National Party - Glasgow South West)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether he has made an assessment of the state of industrial relations in the Civil Service.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
The Cabinet Office is not the employer for all civil servants, and departments are responsible for engaging with recognised trade unions at departmental and local level. At Cabinet Office level, we engage with the National Trade Union Committee.
The Public and Commercial Services Union are currently in dispute with a number of Civil Service employers and have called for strike action in several departments. We remain open to continued dialogue in order to bring about a resolution.
Asked by: Chris Stephens (Scottish National Party - Glasgow South West)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, when the Government Property Agency’s new Facilities Management contracts under its Workplace Transformation Programme will be let; and when the new companies will start to provide the contracted services.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
The GPA’s Workplace Services Transformation Programme (WSTP) continues to progress the new Facilities Management contracts, with all Tender processes now complete and bid responses received across all Lots of the procurement exercise. There will now follow a due diligence process of evaluating the bids received on Quality and Price. The GPA remains on track to let the new contracts from April 2023, with the mobilisation of the new contractors taking up to six months to complete. A proposed final hand-over date is scheduled for October 2023.