This Falkirk Council Partnership Agreement has been established as part of an employee relations framework that recognises that partnership and collaboration are the best means by which sustainable change and improvement can be delivered. It aligns with our Fair Work First Agreement.

This agreement:

• provides a method for consultation to take place between the Council and its employees.
• allows staffing issues and concerns to be raised and discussed; difficulties explored and resolved and for shared routes forward to be agreed.
• ensures a joint focus on the Council's vision of being an innovative, responsive, trusted, and ambitious organisation.

The trade unions recognised for the purposes of this partnership agreement are:

• AHDS
• EIS
• GMB
• SLS
• SSTA
• UNISON
• UNITE

The partners to this Agreement share the belief that certain behaviours and principles are required to achieve sustainable improvement and to retain the commitment and support of staff. The following principles will be adopted:

• a shared commitment to the success of the Council in providing effective and efficient services to the local community
• mutual trust, honesty and respect
• openness and transparency in communications
• commitment to the principles of Fair Work
• early engagement when considering organisational change 
• respect confidentiality where either party considers this to be essential 
• recognising and valuing the contribution of all partners 
• access to and sharing of information by all parties 
• consensus, collaboration, and inclusion as the "best way" 
• maximising employment security; and 
• a collaborative approach to underpin partnership working.

The Council's Organisational Change Policy, Fair Work First Agreement and Time Off for Trade Union Duties and Activities Policy underpin the Council's commitment to partnership working.

This partnership approach and the employment relations framework outlined offers the opportunity for the Council's employees and their trades unions to be fully and consistently involved from an early stage in the formulation and implementation of change. If we are to realise the full potential from adopting this approach, all parties need to recognise their roles and responsibilities, and be committed to demonstrating actions consistent with the principles of this agreement.

Elected Members, managers, recognised trades unions and employees all have responsibilities within this process.

All parties to the Agreement will:

• be committed to and willing to contribute positively to partnership working.
• accept responsibility to try and agree decisions by consensus and demonstrate confidence and confidentiality to enhance the local partnership process.
• be committed to the principles of Fair Work.
• recognise interdependence and agree that matters affecting their interest shall be considered jointly as provided for in this agreement in order to continue and maintain harmonious employee relations.
• agree to work within the terms of the agreement, and that any disagreement should not prejudice a partner's position at any later stage in the partnership.
• recognise that some issues will require negotiation and, where this is necessary, a separate group will be established for this purpose.

Management responsibilities

• be familiar and adhere to the principles of the partnership agreement
• engage with trade unions at the earliest opportunity on issues which have workforce implications including service delivery, organisational changes etc to try to reach decisions by consensus in line with the Council's Organisational Change Policy
• share information and staffing data (subject to GDPR requirements) as appropriate with relevant trade unions to enable effective partnership working to take place
• encourage the formation of joint working groups where appropriate
• familiarise themselves with the Council's Fair Work First Agreement
• recognise the role of trade unions in representing the interest of their members and ensure appropriate time off for trade union duties/ activities in line with the Council's Time Off for Trade Union Duties and Activities Policy.

Trade Union responsibilities 

• be familiar with and adhere to the principles of the partnership agreement
• take an active and constructive part in partnership discussions at an early stage to try to reach decisions by consensus, responding within agreed timescales and in line with the Council's Organisational Change Policy
• provide a considered response to management proposals including alternative options where appropriate 
• share with management relevant information to assist discussions 
• encourage the formation of joint working groups where appropriate 
• recognise the right of management to plan, organise and manage the business, activities and staffing of the Council according to the Policies and Procedures agreed by the Council
• Adhere to the Council's Time off for Trade Union Duties and Activities Policy, recording time off for trade union duties as required.

There will be situations where, although supportive of partnership working, trade unions or managers are unable to agree a joint approach.  Remaining involved in the partnership process will enable differences to be dealt with appropriately. The current structure for dealing with employee concerns will be available to support this.

The framework for partnership working within the Council will essentially comprise of:

Tripartite Forum

Meeting on a quarterly basis (or as required), this forum will consist of nominated Elected Members, relevant officers and Trade Unions. It will provide a mechanism for consultation on strategic matters affecting Council employees eg budget, etc.

Corporate Partnership Forum

Meeting on a quarterly basis (or as required), this forum will provide a method for consultation to take place at a corporate level between relevant officers and recognised trade unions. It will allow for discussion of Council wide staffing issues and for concerns to be raised and discussed; difficulties explored and resolved and for shared routes forward to be agreed. Any matters agreed through this Forum which impact on the Council's workforce policies, unless being updated to reflect changes in legislation, will be referred to the Executive Committee for consideration.

Service Partnership Working

Services should involve trade unions through regular discussion of proposed change initiatives and operational matters impacting on the workforce. Regular channels of communication with trade unions should be implemented at an appropriate level across the Service. For some areas, such as Education Services or the Health & Social Care Partnership, this may be via a Service Partnership Forum (or equivalent). For other service areas, however, this may involve establishing review or working groups involving employees and trade unions or inviting trade union representatives to team meetings depending on issues/ change being considered. The arrangements in place within each service should be reviewed on an annual basis. At the request of either management/ or trade unions, the creation/ disbanding of such forums, outwith this review period, may be agreed between parties.

HR/Trade Union Liaison Group

Regular meetings chaired by the HR & Payroll Manager will be held with recognised trade unions. Matters of mutual interest, concern, operational issues and information sharing will be raised at these meetings, or at other times if needed, with the intention of resolving them at this level. Topic specific meetings of this Group may be required to deal with particular changes, issues and matters arising.

Terms of reference, where relevant, for the operation of each of these Groups are shown below as Appendices. It is recognised by all parties that the various partnership groups referred to above are advisory bodies only. The Council shall have regard to any recommendations made by them but shall not be bound to accept them or to act on them unless and until they are approved and adopted by the Council or, in terms of a relevant delegation, by a Committee or officer on the Council's behalf. Where the Council does not agree to the implementation of recommendations made, matters may be remitted to the original forum for further discussion.

Any issues arising in relation to the conduct of service level partnership working, should be raised with the relevant Chief Officer in the first instance. If unresolved, the matter should be raised with the Chief Governance Officer for review. Where necessary, the Chief Governance Officer will seek to resolve this matter in line with the Council's policies.

Out with these forums, the following additional consultative forums will operate:

Local Negotiating Committee for Teachers (LNCT)

Allows for discussion of devolved national conditions at a local level.

Joint Staff Forum (Health & Social Care Integration)

Provides a forum to enable effective joint discussions between employer and employee representatives, on employment issues, relating to the effective implementation of Health and Social Care Integration.

All partnership forum members will participate in appropriate joint development events, as required, to continue the development of effective partnership working across the Council.

Partnership working arrangements, if they are to be effective, need to be responsive and flexible. The partners will review the details set out above on an annual basis.

• Terms of Reference - Tripartite Forum
• Terms of Reference - Corporate Partnership Forum
• Terms of Reference - Service Partnership Forums
• Other Service Level Mechanisms for Partnership Working

The role of the Forum is:

• To provide a mechanism for consultation on strategic matters affecting Council employees eg budget, terms and conditions etc.
• To ensure proposals focus on the Council's vision of being an innovative, responsive, trusted and ambitious organisation.

Principles

To underpin the working of the Tripartite Forum, the following principles will be adopted:

• a shared commitment to the success of the Council in providing effective services to the local community
• mutual trust, honesty and respect
• openness and transparency in communications
• commitment to the principles of Fair Work
• early engagement when considering organisational change
• respect confidentiality where any party considers this to be essential
• recognising and valuing the contribution of all partners
• access and sharing of information
• consensus, collaboration and inclusion as the "best way"
• maximising employment security
• a collaborative approach to underpin partnership working.

Ways of working

• The Forum will meet every quarter however this frequency can be varied if needs dictate this.
• Members of the Forum will receive papers one week before each meeting, where possible.
• An action note of the meeting will be created, kept and agreed by all members of the Forum who attended the meeting.
• The Forum shall be chaired by the Leader of the Council or their nominated substitute unless otherwise agreed.
• The Forum may establish sub-groups or working parties to focus on particular issues. The membership of any such group shall be at the discretion of the Forum. Such groups will be expected to report back to the Forum at regular intervals as agreed.
• From time to time, individuals may be asked to provide specific advice or expertise to the Forum as required.

Membership

• Membership of the Forum shall comprise nominated Elected Members, representatives of the Council's management team and all relevant trade unions.
• Each of the following trade unions, recognised by the Council, may appoint one nominated representative to the Forum:
  • UNISON
  • EIS
  • UNITE
  • GMB
  • SSTA
  • SLS
  • AHDS
• If the nominated trade union representative is unavailable, they may be represented by a substitute.
• Full time officers may attend on an ex-officio basis, noting their attendance in advance.
• Members of the Forum are expected to take ownership of and implement actions agreed by the Forum.

Governance

The Forum shall be an advisory body only. The Council shall have regard to any recommendations made by the Forum but shall not be bound to accept them or to act on them unless and until they are approved and adopted by the Council or, in terms of a relevant delegation, by a Committee or officer on the Council's behalf.

The role of the Forum is:

• To provide a method for consultation to take place at a corporate level between the Council and its employees. 
• To provide a mechanism for Council wide staffing issues and concerns to be raised and discussed; difficulties explored and resolved and for shared routes forward to be agreed.
• To ensure proposals focus on the Council's vision of being an innovative, responsive, trusted and ambitious organisation. 

Principles

To underpin the working of the Corporate Partnership Forum, the following principles will be adopted:

• a shared commitment to the success of the Council in providing effective and efficient services to the local community
• mutual trust, honesty and respect
• openness and transparency in communications
• commitment to the principles of Fair Work
• early engagement when considering organisational change 
• respect confidentiality where either party considers this to be essential
• recognising and valuing the contribution of all partners
• access and sharing of information
• responding within agreed timescales
• consensus, collaboration and inclusion as the "best way"
• maximising employment security
• a collaborative approach to underpin partnership working.  

Ways of working

• The Forum will meet every quarter with a schedule of meetings issued on an annual basis. This frequency can however be varied if needs dictate this.
• Members of the Forum will receive papers one week before each meeting.
• An action note of the meeting will be created, kept and agreed by all members of the Forum who attended the meeting.
• The forum will be chaired by the HR & Payroll Manager or nominated representative unless otherwise agreed.
• The Forum may establish sub-groups or working parties to focus on particular issues.  The membership of any such group shall be at the discretion of the Forum. Such groups will be expected to report back to the Forum at regular intervals as agreed. 
• From time to time, individuals may be asked to provide specific advice or expertise to the Forum as required.
• Minutes of the meeting will be published on the Council's intranet. Trades Union representatives will however have an important role in both communicating with their members and actively ensuring that their members' views are conveyed effectively and taken into account.

Membership

• Membership of the Forum shall comprise representatives of the Council's management team and all relevant trade unions.
• The Chair and the Secretary of the JTUC will attend each meeting.
• Each trade union may appoint one nominated representative to the Forum (in addition to the Chair and Secretary role). If the nominated trade union representative is unavailable, they may be represented by a substitute.
• Full time officers may attend on an ex-officio basis, noting their attendance in advance.
• Members of the Forum are expected to take ownership of and implement actions agreed by the Forum.

Governance

The Forum shall be an advisory body only. The Council shall have regard to any recommendations made by the Forum but shall not be bound to accept them or to act on them unless and until they are approved and adopted by the Council or, in terms of a relevant delegation, by a Committee or officer on the Council's behalf.

The role of the Forum is:

• To provide a mechanism for service specific staffing issues and concerns to be raised and discussed; difficulties explored and resolved and for shared routes forward to be agreed.
• To ensure proposals focus on the Council's vision of being an innovative, responsive, trusted and ambitious organisation.

Remit

In general, the remit of Service Partnership Forums is to discuss day to day service delivery and operational matters impacting on the workforce covered by the Forum and the performance of the Service area.

Forums will only be established for specific Divisions or Functions where the Partnership Forum agrees that this is necessary. The arrangements in place within each service should be reviewed on an annual basis. At the request of either management/ or trade unions, the creation/ disbanding of such forums, outwith this review period, may be agreed between parties. 

Principles

To underpin the working of Service Partnership Forums, the following principles will be adopted:

• a shared commitment to the success of the Council in providing effective and efficient services to the local community
• mutual trust, honesty and respect
• openness and transparency in communications
• commitment to the principles of Fair Work
• early engagement when considering organisational change
• respect confidentiality where either party considers this to be essential
• recognising and valuing the contribution of all partners
• access and sharing of information
• consensus, collaboration and inclusion as the "best way"
• maximising employment security
• a team approach to underpin partnership working.

Ways of working

• The Forum will meet every 8 weeks with a schedule of meetings issued on an annual basis. This frequency can however be varied if needs dictate this.
• Members of the Forum will receive papers one week before each meeting.
• An action note of the meeting will be created, kept and agreed by all members of the Forum who attended the meeting.
• The forum will be chaired by an appropriate Chief Officer or nominated representative unless otherwise agreed.
• The Forum may establish sub-groups or working parties to focus on particular service issues. The membership of any such group shall be at the discretion of the Forum.  Such groups will be expected to report back to the Forum at regular intervals as agreed. 
• From time to time, individuals may be asked to provide specific advice or expertise to the Forum as required.
• Minutes should be made available on a digital noticeboard/ the Council’s Intranet. Trades Union representatives will however have an important role in both communicating with their members and actively ensuring that their members’ views are conveyed effectively and taken into account.

Membership

• Membership of the Forum shall comprise representatives of the service management team and all relevant trade unions.
• Each trade union, with members within the Service, may appoint one nominated representative to the Forum. If the nominated trade union representative is unavailable, they may be represented by a substitute.
• Full time officers may attend on an ex-officio basis, noting their attendance in advance.
• Members of the Forum are expected to take ownership of and implement actions agreed by the Forum. 

Governance

The Service Partnership Forums will submit action notes and any issues to the Council's Partnership Forum.

Where it is not considered appropriate to establish a Service Partnership Forum, specific partnership working groups/ forums may be established as the need arises, for example, during the development and implementation of major change projects. Best practice guidance for such groups is detailed below.

Managers are encouraged to arrange to meet with trade union representatives to discuss issues arising or to seek joint solutions to problems, commencing at as early a stage as possible.

Services should also inform and engage with employees directly on relevant issues to seek their views through a number of mechanisms, as appropriate to their teams, including:

• Inside Falkirk  
• Noticeboards 
• Employee newsletters 
• Team meetings - guidance on effective team meetings is available under the Good Conversations Toolkit. Managers are encouraged to invite trade union representatives to team meetings when relevant issues are being discussed.
• Briefings/ Toolbox talks 
• Listening Events 
• Hackathons 
• Letters/ Memos/Emails/ Texts

Consideration should be given to the most appropriate mechanisms for virtual communications in the current environment. Trade unions should be asked, in advance, for their input into newsletters or other correspondence being issued to employee groups. 

Principles

To underpin the service level partnership working, the following principles will be adopted:

• a shared commitment to the success of the Council in providing effective and efficient services to the local community
• mutual trust, honesty and respect
• openness and transparency in communications
• commitment to the principles of Fair Work
• early engagement when considering organisational change 
• respect confidentiality where either party considers this to be essential
• recognising and valuing the contribution of all partners
• access and sharing of information
• consensus, collaboration and inclusion as the "best way"
• maximising employment security
• a collaborative approach to underpin partnership working.

Change Management/ Review Groups

Managers are responsible for reviewing the operational arrangements for the delivery of their service areas on an ongoing basis.  A range of outcomes may arise from such reviews. These could include: proposals to make changes to service structures impacting on staffing levels, individual roles and reporting arrangements; revisions to working arrangements (eg changes to shift patterns, work locations and particular working practices); changes which may indirectly impact on employees (including employees not in their own service area) or a full scale service review.

Partnership working is essential in such circumstances if the change process is to be effective and successful. Early discussions and consultation with nominated Trade Union representatives is integral to the successful and timeous implementation of any organisational change. Organisational change should be managed in line with the Council's Organisational Change Policy.

Governance

Any issues arising in relation to the conduct of service level partnership working, should be raised with the relevant Chief Officer in the first instance. If unresolved, the matter should be raised with the HR & Payroll Manager for review.