1. Cascade January 2013 Special edition – changes to the way staff are paid

2. In this issue As the council continues to look at ways of reducing costs, we are making changes to the way we pay staff. This means that everyone will be paid monthly from 1 st April 2013. In the following slides, you will find the key information that you and your teams need to have as the pay changes come into effect. This includes: What will change? Who will be affected? When will it happen? What help is available? Background to the changes Guidance for managers on key points for staff

3. What will change? All local government employees will now be paid monthly. Wages will be paid on the 14 th of each month. Supply teachers will move to the same pay cycle as all other teachers. They will be paid on the last Thursday before the last Friday of every month.

4. Staff who will be affected by the change are Those who are currently paid weekly Fortnightly paid cleaners Fortnightly paid local government staff Supply teachers Who will be affected?

5. When will it happen? The changes take effect from 1 st April 2013. The new pay dates for those employees affected are: Current PayrollFinal pay date on current frequency First pay date on new monthly frequency First period covered on new monthly frequency Pay01 (weekly paid) Thursday 4 th AprilFriday 12 th April25 th March to 15 th April Pay06 (fortnightly staff) Thursday 28 th March Friday 12 th April1 st to 15 th April Pay15 (fortnightly cleaners Thursday 4 th AprilFriday 12 th April20 th March to 15 th April

6. What support is available? Trades unions agreed to the changes as long as we provide support to the staff who are affected. We have written to staff to tell them about the changes and the help that is available: You can get an interest-free loan to assist with transition. For Pay01, this is three weeks salary. For Pay06, it is one fortnight’s salary. For Pay15, it is two fortnights salary. Loans are to be repaid between May 2013 and April 2014. Any outstanding balance will be deducted from the final salary of any employee who leaves before repayment is complete.

7. You can pay council tax for 2013/14 over twelve months rather than ten. You can have time off work to attend roadshows where you can discuss any concerns you have or find out more information about the help that is available. The roadshow dates are on the next slide. What support is available?

8. Representatives from local banks, trades unions and HR will be available at roadshows to talk with staff on the following dates: DateTimeVenue Monday 28 th January11am to 3pmVictoria Halls, Helensburgh Pavilion, Rothesay Tuesday 29 th January11am to 3pmQueen’s Hall, Dunoon Wednesday 30 th January11am to 3pmCorran Halls, Oban Thursday 31 st January11am to 3pmLochgilphead Community Centre Video conference with Colonsay, Islay, Mull, Tiree Friday 1 st February11am to 3pmCampbeltown Community Centre

9. Other places to get help The pay changes may mean that you need to take a closer look at how you manage your money. If you need advice about this, you can get help from the following places: Employee Counselling Service on 0800 389 7851 Your trade union representative or trade union website The Money Advice Service which was set up by the government – visit https://healthcheck.moneyadviceservice.org.uk/?utm_source=UNISExt&u tm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=NP-JOS https://healthcheck.moneyadviceservice.org.uk/?utm_source=UNISExt&u tm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=NP-JOS Don’t be tempted by ‘pay day loans’ – these can be very expense. Argyll and Bute Council staff can get safe, secure and ethical savings and loans from the Scotwest Credit Union – visit www.scotwest.co.uk for more detailswww.scotwest.co.uk

10. Background to the changes A working group, involving members of the joint trades unions, HR and payroll teams, has been developing the detail of the pay frequency rationalisation project. Following long negotiations, unions and the council signed a collective agreement in support of the proposal with effect from 1 st April 2013. An important part of the agreement was that support would be provided to all affected employees. This includes interest free loans to help with the transition to monthly pay, meetings with banks and the ability to pay council tax over twelve months in the first year.

11. Points for managers Please ensure that employees who will be affected by the changes in pay frequencies are aware of the key dates and the support that is available to them. For roadshows or meetings with banks to discuss how the changes will affect them, employees should be allowed up to one hour off work with pay in order to attend these sessions. Casual staff are not employees and will not be offered the support package. Details of new timetables and cut-off dates for submitting timesheets will be sent out in February. We have written to employees whose pay date is changing. We have asked employees to complete a pro-forma for support – these should be returned to Lorraine Brodie, Argyll and Bute Council, Improvement and HR, Witchburn Road, Campbeltown, Argyll PA28 6JU no later than 1 st February to ensure that the correct support is available.