My thanks to a loyal reader who sent me the following transcript of an intranet message from William Hague (no, not that one) HMRC's Chief People Officer, concerning 420 HMRC staff who have been "declared surplus".
Apparently, despite now being labelled as "surplus" they can "be proud of their commitment".
May I ask, what is the farking point of showing commitment to an organisation that turns round one day and declares you to be "surplus"?
As Hague says, HMRC will continue to get smaller over time!
Tax does have to be taxing."Message from William Hague: reshaping our organisation6 August 2014I need to tell you about some significant workforce changes happening in our Department. We've been very open that some roles are ending, because we’re changing where we do our work or the way that we deliver services to customers.
We have done our very best to treat the people affected sensitively and fairly, and wherever possible, we've sought to find them other roles. I can assure you that we’ll continue to do this, but as we get smaller, we know that it’s going to be harder to redeploy everyone.
That’s why, this morning, we met with around 420 colleagues to tell them that they’re being declared surplus and we have invited them to apply for voluntary redundancy. The number includes around 170 people who worked in our Enquiry Centres and around 250 people working in eight offices where we’ve previously announced that lines of business are withdrawing. All these colleagues had already received voluntary exit offers (announced in November and February) and the overwhelming majority are in the redeployment pool.
This week, we've also opened a separate voluntary redundancy scheme for 86 AA-grade ESS Regional Post Room staff in Cardiff and Bootle – something we said we would do in our recent announcement about scanning Personal Tax post.
We’ve looked carefully at all the possible redeployment options for these colleagues, but we’re being up front about the fact that we think their chances of being redeployed are very low.
I’m acutely aware that this will lead to difficult choices for many people – and we’ll be providing one-to-one support to everyone affected. I want to be clear that it’s no reflection on these colleagues or their work. They can rightly be proud of their commitment to our customers and their contribution to the Department.
We’ve said many times that HMRC will continue to get smaller over time, but there will also be new opportunities in areas of work where we still need to expand. Wherever we can, we’ll always try to move people into these if their current role is coming to an end, although the grades and locations where we’re looking to recruit may not always make that possible.
I’d like to briefly update you on some areas where we’re actively recruiting.
Permanent opportunities for FTAs
As you know, we’re keen to provide as many opportunities as possible for FTAs to stay with us if they want to. That’s why, in June and July, we advertised a number of permanent vacancies that only FTAs could apply for. We’re now working through those applications and will let people know the outcome by 21 August.
External recruitment
Based on the applications we’ve received from FTAs, we think we’ll still have some vacancies left in Debt Management and Banking in Cumbernauld, East Kilbride and Livingston. So we’re going to advertise for AO roles in these locations on 7 August.
We also think there might be a shortfall of applicants in other business areas and locations, but we won't know that until we’ve completed the FTA allocations. If we need to go ahead with further adverts, it's likely we’ll do so on 20 August.
As always, we won’t bring new recruits into a location until we’ve considered people already working in HMRC. Priority movers, AOs in the redeployment pool, and AAs in the promotion pool with a first, second or third-choice preference for those locations will be considered ahead of any external appointments.
And, even though we’re recruiting externally, these opportunities will remain available to FTAs up until their contracts end in September. If you’re interested and eligible to apply, please keep a look out for these opportunities on Civil Service Jobs.
I will of course keep you fully updated on everything we’ve announced today, as and when we have more news.
William Hague
Chief People Officer"
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I can't tell you how angry all this makes me, we were given an option in February take an exit package or go in redeployment pool, I saw people in tears not knowing whether to take the money or stay as they needed a job.
ReplyDeleteSome people decided to stay and go in the redeployment pool, they spent weeks churning it in their minds and SIX DAYS after everyone leaves this bunch of disgraceful, disgusting bunch of shi*ehawks who call themselves Excom go and put these members of staff back in the same position they were in February.
These people are back to where they were all because Excom didn't want the people who left on 31 July to be classed as being made redundant and it was their choice.
Shocking, disgraceful, disgusting way to treat people anyone working in HMRC if you are offered a package leave these people have no feelings, they probably stick the knife in each others backs.
Lin Homer, Ruth Owen, William Hague hang your ugly heads in shame treating people this was, enjoy your bonuses, least we know what you got the bonus for now, I wonder how much you got per person you got rid of?
Out of interest, do you happen to know how the voluntary exit and voluntary redundancy packages compared with one another?
DeleteThey are technically the same these days, supposedly an exit package can be different to a voluntary but HMRC have an agreement to offer the best deal possible which is a minimum of 23,000.
ReplyDeleteThe only real difference is from Excom's point of view as an exit package is something an employee choses to take and is not them offering a redundancy as the employee can choose to stay, whereas an voluntary redundancy implies HMRC have implemented it and this is why this situation has arised.
Voluntary
Voluntary terms will be capped at 21 months' pay with the potential of up to an additional 3 months' PILON (pay in lieu of notice);
Cap of 6 months' pay for those over normal pension age
All individuals facing redundancy will be given an opportunity to take or 'bank' an offer of voluntary terms;
Accrual for both compulsory and voluntary redundancies will be one month per year of service, but there will be discretion for employers to exercise faster accrual rates in a voluntary scheme, if deemed necessary;
For people earning less than £23,000, for the purposes of the redundancy calculation,they will be deemed to earn £23,000.
The option to have access to an unreduced pension and pension lump sum for all with 5 years of service who are over minimum pension age (this is 50 for members in service before April 2006 and 55 for members who joined later; minimum pension age is a feature of the pensions taxation system and is not being reviewed by Lord Hutton);
If the value of unreduced pension and pension lump sum is less than the standard redundancy terms then members retain the difference as a cash redundancy payment.
Pre-1987 Reserved Rights will be dealt with by separate correspondence.
Compulsory
Compulsory terms capped at 12 months' pay with the potential of up to 3 months' PILON.
Cap of 6 months' pay for those over normal pension age
Exit Package:
DeleteVoluntary exit can be offered in the interests of workforce efficiency and where employers wish to reduce staff numbers, to support organisational changes, address promotion blockages and where there is limited efficiency. There is no compulsion on individuals to accept the offer.
2.a Tariff
There is a standard tariff of 1 month’s pay per year of service up to a maximum of 21 months for those under scheme pension age.
There is a maximum of 6 months’ pay for those over scheme pension age.
Tapering of compensation will apply where the employee is close to scheme pension age as explained in paragraph 6.i of this document.
Employers must apply the restriction on the pay to the highest paid explained in paragraph 6.c of this document.
Why have they offered jobs to people outside of Hmrc whilst I am on the AA promotion list
ReplyDeleteAnd same goes for me.
DeleteFollowing a protracted series of grievances by myself and other team members against a management decision, plus counter grievances by a tw@t of a manager with a history of grievances and complaints including some that resulted in payment of compensation against the tw@t of a manager (estimated,mated I excess of 100 complaints and grievances over the years - evidenced) I had been a civil sent for 40 years contributions when I bugged out of health grounds and retired the b@stRds knocked me a year on my pension and lump sum payouts because I was not 60 when I left, even though I had contributed for 40 years. They are nowt but a bunch of cnuts and they know it.
ReplyDeleteHopefully see you in court motherfu€£er$!
Anyone care to comment, constructively or otherwise?
That would be the manager against whom 2 people received monetary compensation yes?
ReplyDeleteThat manager should never have been placed in charge of staff again, but was, and many staff left from various locations that the individual was based in over the next couple of decades including allegations of sexual discrimination and bullying.
unbelievable, but true, luckily the individual, if the same one, has gone.
Another PCS f¥ck up?
Dear PCS, why has my office offered jobs externally to people off the street while I am still on the AA promotion list? why why why has this been allowed to happen?
DeleteIt seems as though the staff are beginning to wake up and understand what is happening in hmrc, both management ineptitude and PCS inaction or ineffectiveness towards members.
ReplyDeleteThe fact that the loss of 420 jobs nationwide, especially as recruitment continues is not commented upon in the media?
If some 420, bottom of the dung heap, low paid workers are to go, what about the management prats above, surely, pro rata, there will be management losses, if not, why not?!
ReplyDeletePCS get off your sorry ass and start banging on media, Parliamentary and TUC doors and wake someone up. If, as it appears, you are incapable of representing your members effectively, you should not be taking a salary from your members subs you should be refunding those salary amounts. What are you doing in your new HQ, playing a stringed instrument amidst the surrounding conflagration or thinking up the latest soundbites. No members left in a decade or less = no PCS!
Pcs IMO r too busy waving about silly lollipops stating we all need a pay rise, and blowing bells and whistles instead of metaphorically blowing the door down for decent negotiations to start. The arguments between pcs and hmrc are becoming embarrassing saying who said wot to who and when. Start acting professionally and negotiate for your members who deserve to be treated like human beings not animals.
ReplyDeleteWe campaign for fair pay and conditions, decent pensions for all and equality in the workplace and beyond.Above copied from PCS website!
ReplyDeleteFailed!
Back to HMRC, an organisation crying out for decent, competent, efficient management. It will take a huge commitment to turn this failed tax protector/collector around. It has been
allowed to be pushed off course by Politicians, Lobbyists, Pacesetter and Lean
soapbox orators and has suffered from poor leadership since itsdifficult birth.
Some say split it back up, others wish to see Privatisation. The answer may lie in a combination.
They (PCS) seem to be banging the drum for all sorts of other causes which is all very laudible however first and foremost they should be concentrating all their efforts on their members, after all that's what its members pay its representatives for, I am getting very disillusioned with them, all rhetoric and no action. Carry on this way there will be no union, either people will leave or there will be no one left employed by HMRC to join the union. Mr Sewotka start earning your 6 figured wage or get out and let some one who is passionate in defending his members interests.
ReplyDeleteOne line manager in Large Business has managed performance so well that one of the team now works for PwC and another will shortly be joining Deloitte. I have no doubt that this will not bother senior management one jot or adversely affect the career of this obviously gifted manager. I wish the departing inspectors well, but they are of a calibre which HMRC can ill afford to lose. They won't be the last.
ReplyDeleteFriend of mine was an HEO in VAT under the old system, could not get to SEO, went to one of the then big 6 on A/C salary, BMW, full house move etc. etc. and never looked back, worked in many worldwide locations, has been a partner in one of the big 4 for more than a decade. That's the category of real achiever that should be in excom now, not the results of familiarity and nepotism as currently exists within.
ReplyDeleteMight explain why HMRC is such a consistently poor employer with crap staff engagement and lousy customer service.
I regularly attend meeting with the Big 4 and their ilk, and often find myself sitting opposite a former HMRC employee who is now employed to work for their client to reduce tax, always for a much bigger salary and benefits. Some of them are ex-colleagues. It is not a choice I would want to make (though I think about it more often than I used to). I gather that they get respect, resources, and an ethos of professionalism. It is likely to happen more and more as HMRC is ground into the dirt
ReplyDeleteBig 4 - care to comment?
ReplyDelete