 |
 The Job Evaluation Group has provided some advice about the handling and release of information to postholders about the Job Evaluation process and their outcomes.
Information to postholders when notifying of their JE outcomeMatched jobsThe JE Handbook makes it clear in chapter 8 that: In order to make an informed decision as to whether the relevant information has been taken into account by the panel, individuals whose jobs have been matched will need to have copies of the following information at the outset of the three month's notification period:
Locally evaluated jobsThe JE Handbook states in chapter 10 that: Similarly to the matching procedure, in order to make an informed decision as to whether the relevant information has been taken into account by the panel conducting the evaluation, individuals whose jobs have been evaluated need to have copies of the following information:
Information to postholders relating to panel notes on CAJEWhen entering rationales onto CAJE, there is a field for 'panel notes', which can be used by the panel to remind them or to inform a review panel at a future date of why they have done something. This field is not usually given to postholders as part of the matched job report, as it is meant to be an aide memoire and should normally just contain technical notes. If the notes contain any personal information about postholders, they may be entitled to see the information under section 7 of the Data Protection Act. In a recent judgement (Durant) it was decided that information only forms personal data when it focuses upon the individual as a person and does not automatically become so even if someone's name or address appears in the data. The notes should record information about a post rather than about a person, so the DPA is unlikely to apply unless the panel have made personal statements about the postholder during the matching process and these statements have been recorded. If the notes contain non-personal data then the Freedom of Information Act will apply. A representative of the postholder, who has the consent of and is authorised by the postholder to seek disclosure of the notes would also be entitled to receive them. Information to postholders relating to panel member namesOrganisations appreciate that a degree of confidentiality is essential in carrying out evaluations of people's jobs. Personal details of postholders, such as name, gender, pay rate are not disclosed to panel members who are matching or evaluating the jobs. Similarly, names of panel members are not normally disclosed to postholders when they receive the outcome of the exercise, in order to protect panel members from any attempts to introduce factors into the process that could lead to bias. The law is not straightforward in relation to disclosing panel members' names and a postholder is entitled to request this information under the Freedom of Information Act. However, it can be argued that the names constitute personal data and consent would need to be sought from the individual panel members as to whether they would object to disclosure of their names to the postholder. If panel members did object, there could be a defence under the Data Protection Act that on balance it is in the public interest not to disclose the names. The reason for requesting disclosure of panel names should be ascertained: if this stems from genuine concern that the panel's constitution could have led to bias, the joint JE Leads should be able to reassure the appellant that the panel was properly constituted and acted correctly. If there were an allegation of personal bias on the part of one or more of the panel members, this would have led to a defective outcome, which would have been dealt with through either consistency checking or a review request. Organisations should ensure that they agree in partnership the appropriate procedures in place to deal with queries of this sort, should they arise. This should include procedures for:
Job Evaluation Group The Job Evaluation Group is a national technical sub-group of the NHS Staff Council whose remit is to continue to ensure that the NHS Job Evaluation Scheme is fit for purpose. Its membership includes representatives of the health service, the UK health departments in each of the UK countries and representatives of the NHS joint unions. Last reviewed 11 Jun 2007 |
|
