A Guide to the National Vacancy Filling Scheme

Transcription

1 A Guide to the National Vacancy Filling Scheme Introduction... 2 Background... 2 Filling internal vacancies... 2 Filling external vacancies... 3 The National Vacancy Filling Scheme (NVFS)... 3 Who does the scheme apply to?... 3 The purpose of the stages and flexibilities... 4 Stage 1: Internal level moves... 4 Stage 1 Flexibilities... 6 Stage 2: Cross Civil Service surplus vacancy filling... 7 Stage 2 Flexibilities... 7 Stage 3: Cross Civil Service vacancy filling... 8 Stage 3 Flexibilities... 9 Stage 4: External vacancy filling Stage 4 Flexibilities Recruitment checklist for NVFS Annex A: Various ways to run a recruitment campaign Annex B: The National Vacancy Filling Scheme: Frequently Asked Questions NVFSIssue2SB230215FVtoSPoCs 1

2 Introduction 1. This guide replaces and supersedes all previous guidance. It explains the administrative changes around combining stages 2 and 3 of the recruitment process. This new arrangement removes the requirement to ask Civil Service Resourcing (CS Resourcing) for dispensation to run stages 2 and 3 at the same time, and comes into effect from 16 March This guide supports vacancy filling in departments. It is for both HR professionals and those undertaking recruitment exercises. It provides information about the rules and processes that are unique to and common across Civil Service departments and agencies, in particular about the rules of the NVFS. When filling a vacancy, please also read: your departmental vacancy filling policy and procedural guidance your departmental processes for redeployment. [DN: departments to insert links to their policies] Background 3. The National Vacancy Filling Scheme (NVFS) was designed in 2010 by a cross departmental working group, facilitated by Civil Service English Regions (now Civil Service Local). 4. The NVFS was agreed between the Head of the Civil Service, Permanent Secretaries and the National Trade Unions in Operational responsibility for the NVFS was transferred to CS Resourcing in June A set of frequently asked questions about the NVFS can be found at Annex B. The scheme was implemented to: open up the internal Civil Service job market increase employment opportunities and support talent programmes encourage people to see themselves as part of the wider Civil Service family encourage the movement of scarce or specialist resources and reduce external vacancy filling, while giving vacancy holders access to a wide labour market. 5. All vacancy filling activity needs to comply with equality legislation. In addition, departments should be aware of Civil Service specific rules which are detailed in the following paragraphs. Filling internal vacancies The Civil Service Management Code explains the delegations which are applicable to departments including rules on vacancy filling. NVFSIssue2SB230215FVtoSPoCs 2

3 The Cabinet Office Protocol for Handling Surplus Staff Situations was revised in July 2014 and sets out the obligations of Civil Service departments and agencies, as well as of relevant Non Departmental Public Bodies (NDPBs) in the redeployment of surplus employees. It also explains how to manage potential redundancy situations. The National Vacancy Filling Scheme (NVFS). These are the stages of vacancy filling that apply across the Civil Service. Filling external vacancies Cabinet Office Controls Guidance explains the authorisation required when seeking to recruit externally. The Civil Service Commission s Recruitment Principles. These are the rules that have to be followed when recruiting external applicants in to the Civil Service. This guide incorporates the main points of the above guidance but there may be situations where departments will need to consult them in more detail. The National Vacancy Filling Scheme (NVFS) 6. There are four stages of vacancy filling within the NVFS: Stage 1 Internal within departments, generally level moves by advertisement or placement Stage 2 Stage 3 10 day exclusivity period giving priority to surplus employees across departments for lateral moves Cross Civil Service, regardless of grade or department, level moves or on promotion May be run at the same time Stage 4 External recruitment competition that is fair, open and appointment made on merit. 7. Some NVFS stages can be run at the same time and with a number of flexibilities depending on the situation and needs of the business. Who does the scheme apply to? 8. Civil Service departments, agencies and Civil Service (Crown) NDPBs, and other (non-crown) NDPBs with accredited status are required to follow the scheme. NVFSIssue2SB230215FVtoSPoCs 3

4 9. The employees of Civil Service departments and agencies and Civil Service (Crown) NDPBs are eligible to apply for vacancies which are advertised under the NVFS on CS Jobs. 10. Employees of non-crown NDPBs with accredited status are also eligible to apply for vacancies which are advertised under the NVFS. Accredited NDPBs are arms-length bodies whose employees are not civil servants but whose recruitment policies have been accredited by the Civil Service Commission. Their employees therefore have access to the CS Jobs website. However, this only allows their employees to apply for posts advertised at stage 3 or externally at stage 4 on CS Jobs; it does not allow them to apply with priority if the job is advertised at stage 2 (nor they will be given priority of consideration if stages 2 and 3 are run concurrently). 11. Both permanent employees and employees on fixed-term appointments (FTAs) can apply for posts advertised under the NVFS. However, note that employees who have not previously been recruited through fair and open competition cannot apply for posts advertised at any stage of the NVFS except stage Any reference to relevant NDPBs refers to a small number of arms-length bodies that employ civil servants, (even if not all of their employees are civil servants) or recognise one or several Civil Service unions. 13. The NVFS applies to posts advertised (externally at stage 4) as fixed term appointments (FTAs). Please see FTA guidance [DN: Departments to add link to the relevant policies] 14. Temporary opportunities such as loans or temporary promotion do not need to be advertised using the NVFS, but can if a department wants to. 15. Senior Civil Service Top 200 Posts do not need to be advertised under the NVFS. The purpose of the stages and flexibilities Stage 1: Internal level moves 16. Stage 1 can play a key role in filling vacancies if skills and knowledge for the role already exists within your department or could be developed with some training. This stage is used for level moves and also enables departments to fill the vacancy from within their existing headcount. 17. In line with the Civil Service Management Code, managers may reject applications from staff already serving elsewhere in the same department (or any of its agencies) where the candidate s level transfer from the existing post would conflict with wider departmental/agency interests or objectives. 18. Examples of internal vacancy filling at this stage could include: 1 There are a small number of employees who were not originally appointed on merit on the basis of fair and open competition but whose permanent employment as civil servants has been specifically agreed by the Civil Service Commission and who can be treated as if they were originally recruited on merit. NVFSIssue2SB230215FVtoSPoCs 4

5 redeployment of departmental surplus employees managed/development moves other priority movers including maternity and adoption leave returners advertised level moves. NVFSIssue2SB230215FVtoSPoCs 5

6 Stage 1 Flexibilities 19. When operating stage 1 the following flexibilities are available: Flexibility By-passing the stage 1 What this means The decision to by-pass stage 1 should be made by the HR Business Partner or equivalent in your department. [DN: departments to amend to reflect their current policy]. If your business needs or the nature of the vacancy indicate that you are unlikely to fill your vacancy with an internal applicant, you could consider by-passing it. This stage can be by-passed when, for example, filling a professional/specialised role where the required skills are not readily available in your department. Allows for managed or development moves Advertising period is variable These moves are a quick way of filling a vacancy and developing employees as roles do not necessarily need to be advertised. There is no set time period a vacancy has to be advertised for at stage 1 but you need to allow enough time to give potential applicants the chance to view the advertisement. For example, if a role is advertised over a peak leave period, extending the time it is advertised for could lead to a greater number of applicants. Advertising on promotion where there is an exceptional business need The decision to conduct an internal promotion exercise needs to be considered and taken by those who hold a departmental wide view, for example your HR Director. You should normally advertise promotion opportunities across the Civil Service at stage 3, but where there is an exceptional business need or to help avoid a redundancy situation, you may, with the appropriate internal permission, conduct an internal promotion exercise. This may happen when filling specialised roles where the required skills are known to be scarce and are mainly within your own department or as part of the redundancy mitigation process. NVFSIssue2SB230215FVtoSPoCs 6

7 Stage 2: Cross Civil Service surplus vacancy filling 20. Departments can advertise vacancies at stage 2, and these will be exclusively available for a 10 day period to surplus employees across the Civil Service, as outlined in the rules of the NVFS. This is to provide a mechanism to mitigate redundancy across government. 21. An employee is considered to be surplus if they are a permanent employee but no longer have a permanent post and are immediately available for redeployment. A surplus employee may be at risk of redundancy. 22. If departments advertise a vacancy at stage 2, it will be live on the CS Jobs portal for a 10 day period during which only surplus employees will be able to apply. 23. At stage 2, surplus employees cannot apply for vacancies on promotion, only at their substantive grade. 24. By advertising a vacancy at stage 2, departments: ensure the Civil Service meets its commitment to re-deploy surplus employees in line with Civil Service work-force management policy support the strategic aim of the Civil Service to manage headcount by filling vacancies internally without adding to the total Civil Service headcount help to facilitate moves across government. 25. It is important to advertise vacancies exclusively at stage 2 where substantial numbers of surplus staff need to be redeployed, unless the roles are sufficiently unique or specialist. 26. Departments should be aware of the redeployment network in place in their region. These groups provide a forum to discuss workforce management issues and allow discussions around potential vacancies for surplus employees and areas where employees may be being made surplus. The networks are organised by Civil Service Local coordinators. More information is available on the Civil Service Local website. Stage 2 Flexibilities 27. When operating stage 2, the following flexibilities are available: Flexibility Running stages 2 and 3 at the same time What this means Departments have the flexibility to advertise stages 2 and 3 together depending on the role and needs of the business. If you advertise stages 2 and 3 together surplus candidates must be considered first (See stage 3 below). NVFSIssue2SB230215FVtoSPoCs 7

8 If you choose to advertise stages 2 and 3 together you must publish your vacancy at stage 3 on CS Jobs. If you decide to advertise stages 2 and 3 consecutively, you must first publish your vacancy at stage 2. (See stage 3 below) Advertising If running stages 2 and 3 at the same time, you should make clear in the advertisement that you will give priority to stage 2 applicants (surplus staff) before considering non surplus applicants. Stage 3: Cross Civil Service vacancy filling 28. At this stage departments are able to advertise vacancies to employees from across the Civil Service regardless of grade or department. 29. As explained previously, this stage can be run at the same time as stage 2. Assessing whether there is a need to run stage 2 and 3 together or separately is part of effective workforce planning. The earlier recruiters make this assessment and take any required action the more likely it is that the recruitment campaign will have a successful outcome within the desired timescale. However, as mentioned above, departments should be aware that where substantial numbers of surplus staff need to be redeployed, vacancies should be advertised exclusively at stage 2, unless the roles are sufficiently unique or specialist. 30. At stage 3 non surplus employees can apply for vacancies on level transfer or (if the advertisement allows this) on promotion. If stages 2 and 3 are run together, surplus staff can apply on level transfer only if they wish to be considered with priority. If they apply on promotion, then they will be considered with other non-surplus applicants. 31. When recruiters run stages 2 and 3 together, they should ensure that surplus employees are prioritised. In order to do this, surplus employees should be sifted first. Any that are going forward to interview should be held on the CS Jobs system. If, after sifting, there are sufficient numbers of surplus candidates suitable for interview, other applicants should be notified that surplus applicants are going forward at this stage. Other applicants should not be sifted until the interviews have taken place. 32. In the event that insufficient numbers of surplus staff are successful at interview, the applications from non-surplus employees should then be sifted for the remaining posts. 33. If none of the surplus staff have passed the sift, non-surplus staff can then be sifted immediately after. 34. If recruiters decide to sift the stage 3 applicants and carry out mixed stage 2 and 3 candidate interviews, then their justification for doing so must be very robust. Any decision to appoint NVFSIssue2SB230215FVtoSPoCs 8

9 stage 3 candidates over stage 2 candidates must be equally robust and be for clearly justifiable reasons. The onus will be on recruiters to justify their decision to reject any surplus staff either at sift or interview. 35. Records of sift and interview decisions should be kept as per the departmental recruitment procedures, to ensure there is an audit trail of surplus employees being prioritised. [DN: department to insert links to the appropriate policies] 36. CS Resourcing will collate management information to enable central oversight, ensuring that departments use the opportunity to run stages 2 and 3 together in a fair and consistent manner. Stage 3 Flexibilities 37. When operating stage 3 separately or together with stage 2, the following flexibilities are available: Flexibility By-passing stage 3 when filling large numbers of vacancies What this means By-passing stage 3 and going straight to stage 4 for a large recruitment, will allow all civil servants the opportunity to apply for the roles and give wider access to the external market to ensure all the roles are filled within required timescales. Stage 4 vacancy filling activity will need approval from the department s Secretary of State. However, before going to stage 4, you will still need to advertise posts to surplus staff both in the department and across the Civil Service (stage 2) unless you have very robust reasons for not doing so, for example the post requires highly specialised skills. By-passing stage 3 if the role is highly specialised Highly specialised or professional skills can be so specific that they are extremely unlikely to be available anywhere in the Civil Service; therefore it is possible to by-pass stage 3 and go immediately to stage 4. Stage 4 vacancy filling activity will need approval from your Secretary of State in line with the Cabinet Office Controls Guidance. Advertising period is variable There is no set time period a vacancy has to be advertised at stage 3 but you need to consider a sufficient amount of time to allow potential applicants the chance to view the NVFSIssue2SB230215FVtoSPoCs 9

10 Stage 4: External vacancy filling advertisement. For example, if the role is advertised over a peak leave period extending the time at advert could lead to greater success. 38. Departments will usually be aiming to fill a significant number of posts or looking for particular skills that are difficult to find within the Civil Service, when advertising externally. 39. Due to the economic climate and the need for the Civil Service to reduce expenditure, there is currently a control of external recruitment. Therefore, this stage requires sign off from the Secretary of State in ministerial departments or the Chief Executive (authority delegated from the Minister of the Cabinet Office) in non-ministerial departments. As external vacancy filling increases head count, it is usually only permitted when it is essential in supporting the business aims of the department. Further guidance can be found in the Cabinet Office Controls Guidance 40. If filling a vacancy externally is the only option to meet the business needs of the department, the recruitment should be on merit on the basis of fair and open competition. Further information on this can be found in the Civil Service Commission Recruitment Principles Stage 4 Flexibilities 41. When operating stage 4 the following flexibilities are available: Flexibility Advertising period is variable What this means The Commission s Recruitment Principles do not set controls on the time a vacancy has to be advertised for at stage 4. However, you need to allow enough time to give potential applicants the chance to view the advertisement. The Recruitment Principles say Potential applicants must be given reasonable access to information about the job. For example, if the role is advertised over a peak leave period, extending the time it is advertised for could lead to a greater number of applicants. Running a stage 2 campaign in parallel with a campaign at stage 4 If advertising stages 2 and 4 at the same time, they must be run as separate campaigns to ensure compliance with the Civil Service Commission Recruitment Principles. Stage 2 applicants would be offered roles first; the remaining vacancies not filled at stage 2 would then be filled with applicants who applied at stage 4. NVFSIssue2SB230215FVtoSPoCs 10

11 Recruitment checklist for NVFS Recruitment checklist Planning Priority movers Surplus employees Advertising Plan all stages of the recruitment campaign at the start of the process, allowing time to agree a recruitment strategy with stakeholders. This will increase the likelihood of a successful outcome within the desired timescale. Obtaining prior permission to move through the stages can be a very effective way of shortening the time it takes to fill vacancies. It can prevent lengthy delays in obtaining the required approval for each stage. Check the process in your department. Consider priority movers, (employees who have preferential access to vacancies) in your department, before advertising more widely. If a suitable priority mover is available, you can fill the vacancy in the shortest possible timescale whilst meeting the department s obligations to priority movers. Consider any surplus employees in the department. There may be employees who can be appointed to roles where, with some additional support or training, they can meet the advertised job requirements. This allows the vacant post to be filled very quickly as surplus employees are immediately available for redeployment and will therefore be released as soon as they have been notified of their success. The vacancy will be live on the CS Jobs portal as soon as it is submitted to CS Resourcing. You may use the Civil Service Competency Framework to describe the skills required for the role; however you have the flexibility to choose not to. It is important that you make clear to applicants where the framework can be found and clarify which competencies are being used for assessment. This helps applicants to make a realistic assessment of the role and submit a high quality application making the sifting process easier. If running stages 2 and 3 at the same time, you NVFSIssue2SB230215FVtoSPoCs 11

12 should make clear in the advertisement that you will give priority to stage 2 applicants (surplus staff) before considering non-surplus applicants, so expectations from non-surplus candidates are managed. Language Recruitment campaign Ensure the language used in advertisements, job descriptions and person specification is appropriate. Make sure advertisements are clear, and only use departmental specific language when completely essential. This will encourage applications from the widest possible pool. Terminology which is specific to your department may deter external applicants or those from other departments who are suitable for the role. Person specifications are particularly important in attracting applicants; ensure only those skills which are necessary to carry out the role are included. The use of non-essential skills in person specifications can deter applicants. Potential applicants may approach the recruiters with common questions about the application process or post campaign arrangements. Offering as much support as possible with these will avoid delays in applications. It will ensure that applicants are aware of the departmental position on certain issues, for example the expected commencement date of the new role, or their eligibility for a post. Departments recently revised some of their terms and conditions of service. Potential applicants may ask to see revised departmental policies when considering an application. The legal requirement for appointment to the Civil Service is that selection should be made on merit on the basis of fair and open competition. The best available person should be appointed, judged against the essential criteria for the role. Fair means there must be no bias in the assessment of candidates. Selection processes must be objective, impartial and applied consistently. Reasonable adjustments should be made for candidates if required, throughout the recruitment process, or on appointment. NVFSIssue2SB230215FVtoSPoCs 12

13 Supporting recruiters and applicants 42. Guidance for recruiters and candidates is available at CS Resourcing pages. 43. Supporting surplus employees should be handled in line with departmental guidance on redeployment. If your query relates to the Cabinet Office Protocol for handling surplus staff situations contact NVFSIssue2SB230215FVtoSPoCs 13

14 Annex A: Various ways to run a recruitment campaign Various ways of running the stages in a recruitment campaign * Stages 1 to 4 run independently and in sequence. This is most useful when large numbers of staff are surplus * Stages 2 to 4 run independently and in sequence. The decision to miss out stage 1 is a departmental one. 1 2/3 4* Stages 1 to 4 run in sequence, stages 2 and 3 run at the same time. Any surplus applicants applying on level transfer will be prioritised. Stages 2 and 3 run at the same time, stage 4 follows when they are complete. 2/3 4* The decision to miss out stage 1 is a departmental one. Any surplus applicants applying on level transfer at stage 2/3 will be prioritised * Stages 2 and 4 run at the same time, with each having a separate campaign, to comply with the Civil Service Commission recruitment principles. * This stage will need approval from the Secretary of State NVFSIssue2SB230215FVtoSPoCs 14

15 Annex B: The National Vacancy Filling Scheme: Frequently Asked Questions 1. What is the NVFS about? NVFS is a scheme under which all civil servants are entitled to apply for any advertised vacancy regardless of grade or department, provided they have the required skills and competences for the role. Successful applicants transfer on a permanent basis (unless the post is on loan) and must accept the terms and conditions offered by the recruiting department. 2. What is the scheme trying to achieve? The purpose of the scheme is to: open up the internal Civil Service jobs market increase staff opportunities encourage employees to see themselves as belonging to the wider Civil Service family. It allows people to move voluntarily between departments including from areas of surplus to vacancies. It helps make better use of scarce and/or specialist resource across the Civil Service, mitigate redundancy, reduce external recruitment and give departments access to a much wider labour market. Importantly, to meet the on-going challenge of delivering more for less, the Civil Service needs to make the best use of the skills and talents of its existing people. By sharing opportunities and allowing free movement of labour, we enhance the prospect of achieving this. 3. Does the NVFS extend to local authorities or the wider public sector? No, it does not. 4. How does NVFS work? It operates by filling vacancies in this sequence: Stage 1: Internal, level moves* Stage 2: Exclusive 10 day period for surplus staff in all departments at their current grade Stage 3: Vacancies advertised to all staff, regardless of grade or department Stage 4: External recruitment (This stage will need approval from the Secretary of State) *This is not a compulsory stage under NVFS. The decision to miss out stage 1 is a departmental one. NVFSIssue2SB230215FVtoSPoCs 15

16 5. Can departments still run promotion boards/assessment centres for internal candidates only? Yes, they can. Where there is an exceptional business need or as part of a redundancy mitigation process, departments may hold internal promotion boards or assessment centres at stage 1, but they are encouraged to open up promotion opportunities to people from other departments at the earliest opportunity. 6. Does the NVFS apply to Non Departmental Public Bodies (NDPBs)? This scheme applies to Civil Service (Crown) NDPBs for example ACAS or HSE, whose employees are civil servants. It also applies to accredited NDPBs. An accredited NDPB is one which has had its recruitment policies accredited by the Civil Service Commission and therefore its employees have access to the CS Jobs website. However, although employees from accredited NDPBs can apply for posts advertised internally on CS Jobs at stage 3, they cannot apply with priority at stage 2 or be prioritised when stages 2 and 3 are run at the same time, unless they are civil servants. An employee of an accredited NDPB who is not a civil servant, but who has been appointed to the NDPB under fair and open competition, and who successfully applies for a job at stage 3, will then join the Civil Service under exception 7 of the Civil Service Commission s Recruitment Principles Continuous employment with the Civil Service will start on the date they take up their employment in the post. Terms, conditions and employment status may vary from department to department, and as with any voluntary move, it is the job applicant s responsibility to ensure that the terms and conditions offered for the post are acceptable. 7. Does NVFS apply to the devolved administrations? No. However, devolved administrations have the option to adopt the principles of NVFS if they wish to. 8. Can departments choose to opt out of the NVFS? No. Apart from the devolved administrations, Permanent Secretaries have agreed that all departments in the Civil Service are included. 9. What about surplus staff? Do they still get priority for jobs? Yes they do, at their current grade. NVFSIssue2SB230215FVtoSPoCs 16

17 10. Can I still fill a permanent post with a person on temporary promotion to provide a developmental opportunity/support a temporary business need? You should fill permanent posts on a permanent basis. But if, exceptionally, there is a strong business case for offering a temporary promotion you can continue to do so from within the department. 11. Are departments able to decide what the job requirements are? Yes, as long as the requirements meet business needs. For example, if the job on offer is for a vet, then it would be legitimate to say only qualified vets could apply. If the job on offer is a senior management post, it would not be acceptable to say only senior managers could apply or that previous management experience has to be from the same department. 12. Are departments able to block level moves? Yes. Departments will continue to be able to block internal level moves, where those are contrary to business needs. No. 13. Can departments block moves on promotion, or level moves to another department? 14. Under what other circumstances can an application be blocked? There are no circumstances in which managers can block applications, other than for internal level moves; the Civil Service Management Code does not allow this. 15. Does the Guaranteed Interview Scheme still apply in the NVFS? Yes. For vacancies advertised by departments which have signed up to the Guaranteed Interview Scheme the Scheme will apply where interviews are included in the process. 16. Why are specialist posts included in the scheme? It is difficult to be sure that specialist skills are unavailable in other parts of the Civil Service, including people who may not currently be using a qualification. By full and proper use of the job specification and advertisement to set out the essential requirements including qualifications, skills and experience, it is possible to ensure only suitable candidates apply whilst maximising staff opportunities and optimising use of specialist skills within the Civil Service. 17. Do all posts have to be open to flexible working, including job sharing? The Civil Service is an equal opportunities employer that positively promotes all forms of flexible working, including job sharing. Job sharing enables two employees to voluntarily share the responsibilities and duties of one full time job. The vast majority of posts should be considered as suitable for job share. However, when considering whether a post is suitable for any form of NVFSIssue2SB230215FVtoSPoCs 17

18 flexible working, recruiters need to ensure business needs come first. [DN: departments to amend/insert link to their flexible working policies] 18. Is it correct that junior grades will be able to apply for senior posts? Yes, but they should apply only if they can demonstrate that they have the required competences which may include skills, qualifications and experience. 19. What about job vacancies in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland? The commitment made under NVFS is for departments to open job vacancies in the English regions. Most departments with staff outside of the English regions have decided to operate the principles across the UK. 20. How soon can successful staff be released? Requirements for release should be specified in the job advertisement by the importing department. The normal default position should be release within 4 weeks, but in exceptional circumstances the release period can be flexible. Surplus staff appointed at stage 2 will be available for redeployment immediately. Where an issue is identified line managers (of applicant and of vacancy) should discuss and agree a release date for the applicant that meets the needs of both departments. 21. Can I offer other government department applicants the same terms & conditions that I offer to home department applicants e.g. relocation expenses and travel allowances? Yes, you must. Any terms and conditions on offer must be the same for all applicants to ensure fairness and equity. NVFSIssue2SB230215FVtoSPoCs 18