WORK LIFE BALANCE

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WORK LIFE BALANCE

• WHAT IT MEANS TO AMBULANCE SERVICES

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Joseph Conaghan

• Work-life Balance Co-ordinator
• Paramedic
• Welsh Ambulance Services
• NHS Trust

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What is a Work-life Balance Co-ordinator all
about then ?

• Co-ordinates Trust policies to facilitie WLB
  issues for all staff
• Trusts liaison officer with Welsh Assembly Govt.
  Local Authorities on childcare
• Research, advise support managers, trade unions
  staff on childcare, flexible working, Improving
  Working Lives WLB
• Research, benchmark, monitor and implement
  legislation and best practice
• 4th NHS appt of this type in Wales

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Improving Working Lives
BENEFITS STAFF
BENEFITS THE ORGANISATION
BENEFITS THE PATIENT
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Improving Working Lives

• Benefits to Staff

• To the Organisation

• Feeling of value

• Values its staff

• Positive attitude

• Reduced sickness

• Ownership

• Inclusivity

• Improved life at home

• Healthy workforce

• Sense of loyalty

• Good employer

• Taken seriously

• Open style

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Improving Working LivesWhat is it all about?

• The NHS plan announced the governments
  commitment to deliver improvements in the working
  lives of all NHS staff
• All NHS Trusts are expected to show evidence of
  putting standards into practice by April 2003
• All NHS Trusts are expected to reach Practice
  Status by April 2003
• All Trusts are expected to reach Practice Plus
  status by April 2005

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Employment Act 2002

• Increase in S.M.P. to 100 weekly
• Increase in Maternity leave to 6 months S.M.P., 6
  months unpaid
• Increase in paternity leave to 2 weeks _at_ S.M.P.
  rate
• Provision for requests for working parents to
  work flexibly

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Childcare Provision

• Database of childminders, creches, after school
  clubs and playschemes
• Assistance with costs utilising vouchers
• Partnership with NHS and other agencies
• Benchmarking best practises
• Member of Childcare Strategy Group at the Welsh
  Assembly Govt.

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What Are We Doing?

• Policiesare they family friendly?
• Flexible Working Opportunities
• Trusts agreed statement protocol
• Special Leave
• Flexi time
• Request procedure
• Noticeboards
• Staff Suggestion Scheme

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Going About It

• Employee requests flexible working
• Form meeting with manager (within 4 weeks)
• Request considered and accepted, compromise
  reached or rejected with sound business case.
• Start date confirmed within 2 months (dti
  suggest)
• 14 days to appeal and to be heard within 14 days
  of lodgement and decision within 14 days.
• Mediation if required

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Whats Next?

• Education Training
• Induction
• Raise Awareness
• Mainstreaming
• Legislation and Agenda for Change
• Flexibility
• Equality Diversity

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THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME

• Childcare
• Work Life Balance
• Employment Act
• Agenda For Change
• Initiatives
• Requests
• Policies

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The IWL Standards

• Human Resources Strategy and Management
• Communication and Staff Involvement
• Flexible Working
• Healthy Working
• Training and Development
• Staff Benefits and Childcare
• Staff Attitude Survey

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Achieving Improving Working Lives Standard

• April 2003 - organisations to provide evidence
• Documentation 25 of evidence
• Site Visits interviews
• staff
• staff groups
• staff site representatives
• focus groups
• 75 of assessment

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The implementation Team at Ambulance
NHS Trust

• The Implementation team at Ambulance
  NHS Trust was set up in March 2001
• It is a multi-disciplinary team incorporating
  staff from both NHS Direct and the Ambulance
  Service
• Member of the team include Divisional Officers,
  Paramedic staff, Personnel, Nurses, Health
  Information and Union Representation

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How does the Assessment Work?

• IWL Assessors are selected by each implementation
  team to be put forward for training
• IWL Assessment teams comprise of IWL assessors
  from other sites
• The portfolio of evidence and the assessment and
  accreditation process is designed to deliver hard
  evidence of achievement and qualitative evidence,
  to enable organisations to show what has changed.