** Please refer to FAQs and updated presentation for information. Final measures will be confirmed when the consultation closes.

The term ‘measures’ although not defined within TUPE legislation, is an integral component, which provides for any action, step or arrangement, that is alternative to the pre-transfer position.

The ICB has now confirmed the prescribed measures associated with the transfer and these will form the basis of this consultation process.

Base

There will be a change of contractual base for staff transferring from Mersey Care to the ICB.

Staff will be based at one of the following locations with effect from 1 April 2024:

  • Magdalen House, 30 Trinity Rd, Bootle L20 3NJ
  • Cunard Building, Cunard Building, Water Street, L3 1AH
  • Regatta Place, Summers Road, Brunswick Business Park, Liverpool, L3 4BL

The ICB supports agile working and allows staff to work from home (or an ICB base as appropriate) to meet the needs of the business.

Pay Date

It is proposed that employees will be paid on the 28th day of each month unless this falls on a weekend and in such event employees will be paid on the Friday before the 28th day with the exception of the Christmas pay and Bank Holidays when pay dates may vary.

The ICB Payroll service is provided by Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust Payroll Services.

Organisation Structure and Role

Following the transfer, the ICB proposes to complete reviewing the structure of, and roles within, the All Age Continuing Care Service as a whole, which will include the roles undertaken by CHC staff who transfer under TUPE.

The organisational change process for current All Age Continuing Care ICB staff has not commenced to ensure Mersey Care staff are included and not disadvantaged by the changes.

Any proposed changes will be progressed in line with the ICB Organisational Change policy, with formal consultation likely to commence after April 2024.     

Working hours/patterns

Staff will transfer across on their existing contractual working arrangements. The ICB has adopted a hybrid working pattern where staff are able to work from home for part of the working week (if they so wish and are able to conduct their duties in this way) and, in agreement with their manager, will be required to attend their base for a minimum period each week.        

Ways of working

In order to ensure that the ICB continues to operate safely and effectively from 1 April 2024 some staff may be required to make adjustments to ways of working and staff may be required to work flexibly within the parameters of their job description and banding.

All changes will be reasonable and the ICB will work with staff and trade unions through engagement and consultation, where required, to agree any proposed changes.

The following are examples of potential changes:

  • Line Manager - a change of line manager for staff transferring into the ICB
  • Function Change - a change to where a function/team/individual is allocated to may be required
  • Systems and processes - staff may be required to deliver their role within an alternative system, procedure and/or approach. It is acceptable to ask team members to work flexibly/differently, but any such requests will be reasonable, and will be discussed sensitively with the relevant impacted staff and their trades unions from an early stage. Any changes will not fundamentally alter the purpose of staff’s role and in any event full training and support will be provided.

Organisational Policies

Transferring staff will move onto the ICB’s HR policies from the date of transfer, with the

exception of those Mersey Care HR policies that are deemed to be contractual and will therefore be retained. The policies deemed as contractual on transfer are Pay Protection, Special Leave and Long Service Policy. Please highlight if there are any other policies that are deemed to be contractual. Where future changes are proposed to a policy identified as contractual, consultation with staff will take place.

Pension

Access to NHS Pensions will be available and we confirm the ICB's commitment to NHS Pension rules. Where staff are not eligible to join the NHS Pension, a relevant NEST scheme will be made available. Current Special Class and MHO status will be maintained for those eligible employees.

Employees will automatically be opted into one of the above pensions scheme and are able to opt out by 31 April 2024 to have any deductions refunded.

Salary Sacrifice

The ICB will honour salary sacrifice arrangements that currently exist. It is intended however that a standardised approach will be taken in due course with a single provider, and we will liaise with the relevant staff to discuss the transfer of current arrangements where applicable in due course at no detriment to the employee.      

Occupational Health and Employee Assistance Programme    

Occupational health support will be provided to all transferring employees by Optima. An Employee Assistance Programme will also be available – this is called ‘Care First’ and is also provided by Optima.