NETWORK WINDOW – EXCEPTIONS PROCESS – PROCESS FOR COLLEAGUES RAISING CONCERNS IN AREA DISTRIBUTION IMPACTED BY NETWORK WINDOW

NETWORK WINDOW – EXCEPTIONS PROCESS – PROCESS FOR COLLEAGUES RAISING CONCERNS IN AREA DISTRIBUTION IMPACTED BY NETWORK WINDOW

Dear Colleagues

Please find attached the agreement for raising an exception within Local Distribution due to changes to attendance times linked to the Network Window changes. The process attached is only available for the current Network Window activity and is not considered to be an ongoing policy.  It is only valid for the deployment of Network Window, including any further attendance time changes that may impact on people following the Air Hub closures, e.g., in Exeter and Inverness 2025. 

As part of this process, we have been able to ensure our members have a fair and reasonable opportunity to request support through this period of unprecedented change where an employee’s personal circumstances change and impacts their ability to work their attendance pattern. Members can make a request for Flexible Working through the normal BAU (Business as Usual) process, this remains unchanged.

Process

Local Distribution sites will advertise their agreed duty sets and colleagues will have the opportunity to express a preference for their duty allocation.  MtSF resourcing principles will apply.  At the conclusion of the re-pick process, if colleagues are matched to a duty that they would find it difficult to work due to responsibilities in their personal lives, then they can raise a flexible working request. 

In recognition of the degree of change and by exception the following measures will enhance the normal BAU process:

• In view of the time constraints between re-pick and deployment of the new duties, anyone who raises a flexible working request will not be required to move to their new duty times until the Flexible Working request has been heard, including an appeal if applicable, provided always that the employee co-operates and engages with the flexible working process and raises the request within 5 working days of being allocated the duty 

We have also secured an appeal process which is detailed below:

Appeals 

Through this process anyone whose Flexible Working request has not been granted via their line manager, can appeal in writing within 3 working days of the outcome of their request being communicated. The appeal will be heard by an independent manager within 7 working days.

The appeal will be paper based if the change to duty is 30 minutes or less.  If the change is 31 minutes or more then the individual has the option to request that the appeal is heard via an MS Teams virtual meeting.

The department would apologise for the very late notice however these have been extremely difficult discussions.   However, given that commitment in the BRT&G it was important to secure an opportunity for our members to be treated fairly through the impact of change linked to the Network Window.  We believe that the attached document will support our members through the ongoing change.

Any enquiries in relation to this LTB should be addressed to Davie Robertson, Assistant Secretary, email: sbanbury@cwu.org quoting reference: 054.06.

Yours sincerely

Davie Robertson
Assistant Secretary

LTB 200.24 – Distribution Exceptions Process

Exception Process for Local Distribution

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