The Trade Union (Facility Time Publication Requirements) Regulations 2017

• Citation: S.I. 2017/328
• Sections: 200

Section 1 Citation and commencement

These Regulations may be cited as the Trade Union (Facility Time Publication Requirements) Regulations 2017 and come into force on 1st April 2017.

Section 2 Interpretation: general

In these Regulations—

“the 1992 Act ” means the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992;

“paid facility time hours” means the number of hours spent on facility time by an employee who is a relevant union official during a relevant period (excluding hours attributable to time taken off under section 170(1)(b) of the 1992 Act in respect of which a relevant union official does not receive wages from the relevant public sector employer) and “total paid facility time hours” means the total of all such hours spent during that period by all such employees;

“paid trade union activities” means time taken off under section 170(1)(b) of the 1992 Act in respect of which a relevant union official receives wages from the relevant public sector employer;

“relevant period” means a period of 12 months beginning with 1st April, and the first relevant period begins on 1st April 2017;

“wages” (and “gross amount” in relation to wages) has the meaning given in section 27 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 ;

“working hours” has the meaning given in section 173(1) of the 1992 Act .

Section 3 Crown employees: person or entity to be treated as an employer

For the purposes of section 172A of the 1992 Act, a public authority that is an emanation of the Crown is to be treated as the employer of a relevant union official who is employed by the Crown under or for the purposes of that authority (and a reference in these Regulations to an employee is, in the case of such a public authority, to a person employed by the Crown under or for the purposes of that authority).

Section 4 Meaning of total cost of facility time

(1) For the purposes of these Regulations, the total cost of facility time for a relevant period is calculated by taking the following steps—

(a) Step 1 - determine the hourly cost of each employee who was a relevant union official during that period;

(b) Step 2 – multiply the hourly cost for each such employee by the number of paid facility time hours spent by that employee on facility time during the period (if there is only one employee who was a relevant union official, this amount is the total cost of facility time);

(c) Step 3 – if there is more than one employee who was a relevant union official, add together each of the amounts produced by the calculations at step 2.

(2) The hourly cost for the purposes of step 1 is calculated by—

(a) adding—

(i) the gross amount spent on wages by the employer in respect of the employee during the period;

(ii) the amount spent on pension contributions by the employer in respect of that employee during the period; and

(iii) the amount of national insurance contributions paid by the employer in respect of the employee during the period; then

(b) dividing that amount by the working hours of the employee during the period.

(3) But a notional hourly cost must be used at step 2, instead of the actual hourly cost determined under step 1, where the employee is identifiable.

(4) An employee is identifiable if the employer considers that the use of the actual hourly cost will lead, when the information required to be published under these Regulations is published, to another person being able to identify the employee’s wages during the relevant period.

(5) The notional hourly cost referred to in paragraph (3) must be reasonable having regard to the type of work the identifiable employee ordinarily did for the employer during the relevant period.

Section 5 Meaning of total pay bill

For the purposes of these Regulations, the total pay bill for a relevant period is calculated by adding—

(a) the total gross amount spent on wages by the employer in respect of its employees during the period;

(b) the total amount spent on pension contributions by the employer in respect of its employees during the period; and

(c) the total amount of national insurance contributions paid by the employer in respect of its employees during the period.

Section 6 Meaning of full-time equivalent employee number

For the purposes of these Regulations, the full-time equivalent employee number is calculated by—

(a) establishing the number of full-time employees; and

(b) adding to that number such fraction as is just and reasonable in respect of those employees who are not full-time.

Section 7 Relevant public sector employer

(1) Subject to paragraph (3), a public authority referred to in paragraph (2) is specified for the purposes of section 172A(2)(a) of the 1992 Act.

(2) The public authorities are—

(a) any department of the Government of the United Kingdom (excluding the Secret Intelligence Service, the Security Service and the Government Communications Headquarters);

(b) the Scottish Ministers; and

(c) an authority listed, or of a description, in Schedule 1.

(3) An authority of a description in Schedule 1 which is a devolved Welsh authority is not specified for the purposes of section 172A(2)(a).

(4) In paragraph (3), “devolved Welsh authority” has the same meaning as in section 157A of the Government of Wales Act 2006 (inserted into that Act by section 4 of the Wales Act 2017 ).

Section 8 Requirement to publish information

(1) If the employee number condition is met in respect of a relevant period, a relevant public sector employer must publish the information that comprises the response to the questions, or request for information, set out in Schedule 2 in respect of that period as it applies to that employer.

(2) The employee number condition is met if the relevant public sector employer has a full-time equivalent employee number of more than 49 throughout the entirety of any seven of the months within the relevant period.

(3) The information must be published, together with the questions, or request for information, in the form indicated in Schedule 2.

(4) The information must be published by being—

(a) placed on a website maintained by or on behalf of the employer before 31st July in the calendar year in which the relevant period to which the information relates ends; and

(b) included in the employer’s annual report which covers the relevant period, where the employer produces an annual report.

(5) If the information is not, by virtue of paragraph (4), placed on a website maintained by or on behalf of the Government of the United Kingdom, the employer must also cause it to be placed on such a website before 31st July in the calendar year in which the relevant period to which the information relates ends.

(6) Paragraph (7) applies to a local authority, the Common Council of the City of London and the Council of the Isles of Scilly if the authority or Council is required to publish information under this regulation in respect of a relevant period.

(7) The authority or Council must comply with the requirements of this regulation separately in relation to—

(a) its central function employees;

(b) its education function employees;

(c) its fire and rescue function employees,

to the extent it has employees within those categories.

(8) The reference in paragraph (7) to “separately” means publishing the information, and carrying out such calculations as are necessary for the purposes of determining the information to be published, as if the employer were a separate employer for each category of employees.

(9) In paragraph (7)—

“central function employees” means employees of the authority or Council other than—

its fire and rescue function employees; and

its education function employees;

“education function employees” means persons employed by virtue of section 35(2) of the Education Act 2002 (staffing of community, voluntary controlled, community special and maintained nursery schools);

“fire and rescue function employees” means employees employed to carry out functions that the authority or Council has because it is a fire and rescue authority (see section 1 of the Fire and Rescue Services Act 2004 ).

Section 1

A local authority within the meaning of the Local Government Act 1972 .

Section 2

The Council of the Isles of Scilly.

Section 3

The Common Council of the City of London.

Section 4

The Greater London Authority as established under section 1 of the Greater London Authority Act 1999 .

Section 5

An economic prosperity board established under section 88 of the Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009 .

Section 6

A combined authority established under section 103 of the Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009.

Section 7

A council constituted under section 2 of the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994 .

Section 8

A joint board, within the meaning of section 235(1) of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 .

Section 9

A fire and rescue authority constituted by a scheme under section 2 of the Fire and Rescue Services Act 2004 or a scheme to which section 4 of that Act applies.

Section 9A

A fire and rescue authority created by an order under section 4A of the Fire and Rescue Services Act 2004.

Section 10

A joint fire authority established under Part 4 of the Local Government Act 1985 (police, fire services, civil defence and transport) .

Section 11

Any body established pursuant to an order under section 67 of the Local Government Act 1985 (successors to residuary bodies).

Section 12

The London Fire Commissioner.

Section 13

The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service established under section 1A of the Fire (Scotland) Act 2005 .

Section 14

An internal drainage board which is being continued by virtue of section 1 of the Land Drainage Act 1991 .

Section 15

Transport for London as established under section 154 of the Greater London Authority Act 1999 .

Section 16

The London Transport Users’ Committee as established under section 247 of the Greater London Authority Act 1999.

Section 17

A Passenger Transport Executive for an integrated transport area or a passenger transport area within the meaning of Part 2 of the Transport Act 1968 .

Section 18

The Passengers’ Council as established by section 19 of the Railways Act 2005 .

Section 19

A Transport Partnership established under section 1 of the Transport (Scotland) Act 2005 .

Section 20

A sub-national transport body established under section 102E of the Local Transport Act 2008 .

Section 21

A National Park Authority established by an order under section 63 of the Environment Act 1995 .

Section 22

A National Park Authority established by virtue of Schedule 1 to the National Parks (Scotland) Act 2000 .

Section 23

The Broads Authority established by section 1 of the Norfolk and Suffolk Broads Act 1988 .

Section 24

A Conservation Board established under section 86 of the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 .

Section 25

An integrated care board established under Chapter A3 of Part 2 of the National Health Service Act 2006 .

Section 26

A National Health Service Foundation Trust established under section 35 of the National Health Service Act 2006 .

Section 27

A National Health Service Trust established under section 25 of the National Health Service Act 2006.

Section 28

A special health authority established under section 28 of the National Health Service Act 2006 or section 22 of the National Health Service (Wales) Act 2006 .

Section 29

The Common Services Agency for the Scottish Health Service established under section 10 of the National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978 .

Section 30

A Health Board, or Special Health Board, constituted under section 2 of the National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978 .

Section 31

Healthcare Improvement Scotland established under section 10A of the National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978 .

Section 32

NHS England, the body corporate established under section 1H of the National Health Service Act 2006.

Section 33

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Section 34

The governing body of a foundation school, voluntary aided school or foundation special school.

Section 35

The proprietor (as defined in section 579(1) of the Education Act 1996 ) of—

(a) an Academy school within the meaning of section 1A of the Academies Act 2010 ;

(b) a 16 to 19 Academy within the meaning of section 1B of that Act;

(c) an alternative provision Academy within the meaning of section 1C of that Act.

Section 36

The governing body (as defined in section 90 of the Further and Higher Education Act 1992 ) of—

(a) an institution in the further education sector within the meaning of section 91(3) and (3A) of that Act ;

(b) an institution conducted by a higher education corporation within the meaning of section 90(1) of that Act;

(c) a designated institution for the purposes of Part 2 of that Act, as defined by section 72(3) of that Act;

(d) a registered higher education provider of a description prescribed by regulations made by the Secretary of State for the purposes of section 39(1) of the Higher Education and Research Act 2017.

Section 37

A university, including any college, school, hall or other institution of that university, receiving financial support under section 65 of the Further and Higher Education Act 1992 .

Section 38

A manager (as defined by section 135 of the Education (Scotland) Act 1980 ) of a central institution within the meaning of that Act.

Section 39

The governing body (as defined by section 35 of the Further and Higher Education (Scotland) Act 2005 ) of an institution in receipt of funding from the Scottish Further and Higher Education Funding Council or a regional strategic body within the meaning of that Act.

Section 40

A police and crime commissioner as established by section 1 of the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011 .

Section 41

A chief officer of a police force in England or Wales.