Three holiday proposals

Three proposals have been made in an attempt to resolve the Public Holiday scheduling dispute in Resources.

The proposals where made by ESPG Representatives at a recent meeting with management held to discuss the disputed scheduling of UPA2 staff in Resources.

The following three options where proposed to management from whom feedback is awaited:

1. Don't do it - Allocation of Release from Duty (RD) days follows revised arrangements with no exceptions. This would be simple to put into place, as it is a mere clerical procedure/instruction. Moreover it defines specific guidelines for RD allocation the schedulers can work to and illustrates exactly what they can and cannot do, clearing up any confusion that exists at present.
2. Nine DOILs (PHLs) awarded on 1 April each year - The old system, which worked and everyone accepted, tweaked for current leave year. Each member of staff receives nine DOILs on 1 April each year and can be scheduled duties on any or all of the Bank Holidays. There would be no additional compensation for working on a Bank Holiday except for that currently paid for actually working on Christmas Day and Boxing Day.
3. If you work on any day over a Bank Holiday, you get a DOIL - Regardless of whether an RD has been scheduled on the actual Bank Holiday Monday, if you work on either the Saturday, Sunday or Monday (or any combination, including all three days), you get one DOIL. For Easter you would get two DOILs - if you work one day, two, three, or all four days of the long weekend. For Christmas you would get three DOILs - again, if you worked on any single day, or any combination, or all of them (this assumes the Corporation Day is butted up to the Christmas Day-Boxing Day pair and would also include duties scheduled on the Saturday/Sunday if the weekend adjoins the festive break). New Years Day is a stand alone day and would be treated as such, anyone working on it receiving one DOIL, except when it adjoins a weekend when that three day period would be the same as a normal Bank Holiday.

Management indicated they would need time to study the proposals and the meeting was adjourned.

Members with views on the above can contact the Branch Committee.