Source · Select Committees · Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee
Recommendation 16
16
Acknowledged
Paragraph: 56
The Committee welcomes the positive results of the staff survey, which saw increases in scores...
Conclusion
The Committee welcomes the positive results of the staff survey, which saw increases in scores in headline areas, such as leadership and managing change, inclusion, and learning and development. The only headline score to deteriorate was related to pay and benefits, which the Committee recognises reflects similar trends across the public sector and wider economy, alongside difficulties in recruiting in areas such as digital and programming. The Committee also welcomes the continued positive statistics on the diversity of the PHSO’s workforce, particularly in terms of gender and Asian, Black, Mixed Ethnicity and Other Ethnicity Group representation, and the culture of diversity and inclusion the leadership team are seeking to embed in the organisation. However, we note the under representation of employees aged over 50 compared to the population benchmark.
Government Response Summary
The PHSO notes that the current labour market is challenging, but they have successfully recruited to roles which have historically been difficult to fill. They do not have plans to target applicants who are over the age of 50 as workforce data shows that they have good representation from this age group.
Paragraph Reference:
56
Government Response
Acknowledged
HM Government
Acknowledged
The current labour market is challenging however we have now successfully recruited to roles which have historically been difficult to fill. This includes areas such as ICT and digital, although these specialisms do remain challenging due to public sector pay constraints and market conditions. The review of pay and grading will further enhance our ability to respond to changes in the labour market and remain competitive within the public sector. We do not have plans to target applicants who are over the age of 50 as workforce data shows that we have good representation from this age group in PHSO’s workforce.