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Key questions for contractors

TUPE

  1. Do you understand the updated (2006) TUPE requirements?
  2. Are you aware of current pay and conditions of service for staff?
  3. Do you anticipate movement of workers? e.g. existing staff being asked to work on your other sites.
  4. Do you anticipate increasing/reducing current staffing levels?
  5. Do you operate check-off, for existing and future employees?
  6. Do you use TUC approved agencies?

Statement of measures

Are there any elements of the current staff terms and conditions that you feel you cannot replicate?  If so, will you be producing a Statement of Measures (which is standard practice in these situations) detailing what measures you intend to introduce to replace these or compensate for them? (NB: In these situations, the production of a Statement of Measures is an important responsibility on the contractor during the process of Due Diligence, and they should be held accountable for it).

Previous experience

  1. How many of your company's employees are ex-public servants?
  2. How many public sector organisations have you worked for?
  3. Can you give examples of similar contracts to this one?

Employment relations

  1. Will you recognise PCS as the representative of staff?
  2. Which unions does your company already recognise?
  3. Do you encourage your employees to join a union?
  4. What are your employee representative structures? e.g. Works Councils etc
  5. Is the Contract a single Bargaining Unit?
  6. Will the employer be offering their "terms" to transferred staff?
  7. What is the company's attitude to "assimilation" on pay and reporting?
  8. Does the company have codes of behaviour policies on alcohol, dress code, professional conduct etc?
  9. Do they have view on non-TUPE "customs and practice" such as Christmas parties, time off for Christmas shopping etc?

Health and safety

  1. How will H&S be handled by the new employer?
  2. Is the contractor, or the department liable?
  3. Will they apply civil service standards  on H&S 'policies' such as risk assessment, rsi?
  4. Does the company have 'green' policies, e.g. corporate social responsibility?

The contract

  1. Do you know when the scope of the contract will be finalised?
  2. Will work remain in the same location?
  3. Have you got agreements on new work?
  4. Can work be brought in from elsewhere in the company?
  5. Will you honour existing contracts e.g. security, catering, cleaning?
  6. Will you be recruiting, internally and externally?
  7. Is the cost of the implementation of the 2-tier workforce guidelines written into the contract?

New employees

  1. How are pay and terms and conditions of employees determined?
  2. What perks or incentives are offered staff?
  3. What is the company's annual leave policy?
  4. Does the company have a written sick leave policy?
  5. Does the company offer redundancy entitlements above the statutory minimum?
  6. What proportion of the workforce is on:
    1. Permanent contracts
    2. Temporary contracts
    3. Contracts with employment agencies
    4. Unwritten contracts
  7. Does the company expect unpaid overtime?

Equal opportunities

  1. Does the company have a written equal opportunities policy?
  2. Has it run an equal pay audit?
  3. Does the company offer flexi-time?
  4. What are the attitudes to work-life balance policies on part-time working, compressed hours, term-time working etc?
  5. Does the employer offer childcare assistance?
  6. Will the company honour existing child-care arrangements?
  7. Does the employer offer maternity, paternity, adoption and parental leave above the statutory minimum?

Training and development

  1. Does the company have a written policy on training?
  2. Does the company conduct annual audits of employees training and development needs?
  3. What is the company's policy on internal recruitment and promotions?
  4. Do part-time staff have the same opportunities for training and promotion as other employees? Is this a written policy?

Pensions

  1. Does the employer currently run a pension scheme which has been assessed by the Government Actuary (GAD)?
  2. What pension scheme will the employer be offering transferred staff?
  3. Will the employer offer bulk terms for employees wishing to transfer their pension entitlements to the new scheme?
  4. Are the company's employees entitled to join an existing scheme?
  5. Is it an occupational pension scheme, money purchase or stakeholder?
  6. Does the employer's pension scheme have employee trustees
  7. Are some employees excluded from the pension scheme?
  8. Do you run two schemes, one for new employees and one for transferred staff?
  9. How much as employees expected to contribute?
  10. How much does the employer contribute?
  11. What are the arrangements for member-nominated trustees?
  12. Will the employer be able to match up on the multiple Civil Service Schemes (post April 2007)?
  13. Do your practice ethical investment policies on your pension fund?

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