Requesting a review

By now most NHS employees in England will have received their Job Evaluation (JE) matching result and been placed onto an Agenda for Change (AfC) pay band. Members in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland will continue to be assimilated over the next few months. The advice given in this document applies to all members across the UK.

Section eight of the NHS Job Evaluation Handbook outlines how you can challenge your banding decision through a review process. You should make yourself familiar with this guide.

Constituted panel

In the event that individuals or groups of staff doing the same job are unhappy with their matching result they may request a rematch by a newly constituted panel, the majority of whose members will be different from the original panel. Such a request must be made in writing and done so within three months of notification of the original panel’s decision.

The formal result of the AfC matching process is usually contained in the letter that employee receives notifying them of their new AfC pay band and pay assimilation point. Some employers attach the full matching result to the letter whilst others might only supply the matching result after a specific request from the employee. If you have not received a detailed matching result you should ask your employer for a copy to be given to you. You will not be able to plan your review application without it.

We know that some NHS employers have produced their own application forms to start the review process. It is worth checking whether you need to complete a specific form or whether your application will still be accepted if it is sent in by normal letter.

Before requesting a review you should ensure that you have a copy of the matching report, a copy of the job description that was used by the matching panel and any other documents that were used by the panel or attached to the job description when it was submitted to the matching panel. You should remember that a review has to be based on evidence that the matching panel either did not follow the appropriate process outlined in the handbook or that they did not give enough “weight” to the specific demands of your job, as demonstrated by the JE factor levels.

In coming to their decision the panel should have interviewed a “representative post holder’ from the group of employees that are being matched. Without that key part of the process matching panels would have found it difficult to establish clearly the levels of certain JE factors e.g. mental effort or physical effort. This failure might then call into question the final decision of the panel.

Providing evidence

Members should go through the matching report carefully looking for evidence that the matching panel have underscored a factor (or factors) in their decision making. Once you have done this and you are confident that you have identified the areas that may have been underscored, you should highlight these either in your review application or letter. You should provide clear details about where you disagree with the panel’s decision and in which JE factor areas. You should recognise that small differences in ‘job weight’ will not necessarily make a difference in the pay band allocated. It is possible that the review panel may increase the job weight of your role but this may not result in a higher band as the total points awarded still make it fall within the original band.

Be prepared

During the review of your post you should be aware that any questions about your role will be directed towards you – even if you are accompanied by your RCN representative. It will be important for you to be able to articulate why you believe the first panel came to the wrong decision. You should be aware that Review panel may choose to revisit other JE factors relating to your role during the review. Make sure you can comfortably answer any questions you may be asked about the JE factors and how they relate to your post.

Representation

At the review/second panel you should have the right to be represented by your trade union representative.

The outcome

The review panel can do one of three things:

Confirm the match – agree that the original matching decision was correct.
Confirm a match to a different profile – confirm that the wrong Job Profile was used to match your post. This may mean that the original pay banding was correct or that the new profile has a higher pay band allocated to it.
Refer the job for local evaluation – this would involve you being interviewed by Job Analysts and the completion of a Job Analysis Questionnaire (JAQ) before referral to another matching / evaluation panel.

There is no right of appeal beyond the review panel if your complaint is about the matching outcome.

The JE Handbook (second edition) can be downloaded from www.dh.gov.uk/PolicyAndGuidance/HumanResourcesAndTraining/ModernisingPay/AgendaForChange/fs/en. Copies should also be available in your workplace. It can also be obtained from the Department of Health.