Agenda and draft minutes

The Chair welcomed Councillor Alan Cullens, the Executive Member for Resources, to the meeting. 

Apologies for absence were submitted on behalf of Councillors Danny Gee and Joyce Snape. 

Members are reminded of their responsibility to declare any personal interest in respect of matters contained in this agenda. If the interest arises only as result of your membership of another public body or one to which you have been appointed by the Council then you only need to declare it if you intend to speak.

If the personal interest is a prejudicial interest, you must withdraw from the meeting. Normally you should leave the room before the business starts to be discussed. You do, however, have the same right to speak as a member of the public and may remain in the room to enable you to exercise that right and then leave immediately. In either case you must not seek to improperly influence a decision on the matter.

There were no declarations of interest by Members relating to the items on the agenda.

To confirm as a correct record the minutes of meeting of the Corporate and Customer Overview and Scrutiny Panel - Absence Management Sub-Group held on 16th January 2008 (enclosed). 

RESOLVED – That the minutes of the meeting of the Corporate and Customer Overview and Scrutiny Panel – Absence Management Sub-Group held on 16 January 2008 be confirmed as a correct record and signed by the Chair.

Members of the public who have requested the opportunity to ask a question(s) on an item(s) on the agenda will be asked to put their question(s) to the Panel. Each member of the public will be allowed to ask one supplementary question within his/her allocated 3 minutes.  

No members of the public requested to speak at the meeting.

The Sub-Group are asked to consider the enclosed scoping document, project plan, information checklist and witness checklist.

The Sub-Group considered the enclosed scoping document, project plan, information checklist and witness checklist.

RESOLVED – That the Inquiry documentation be noted.

To consider the draft Final Report of the Sub-Group (to follow). 

The report will be presented to the meeting of the Corporate and Customer Overview and Scrutiny Panel to be held on 11 March. 

The Chair introduced the report and asked the sub-group for comments page by page.  Members clarified several points on the return to work interviews figures and graph. 

The Corporate Director of Human Resources reported that at end of January 2008 the performance indicator stood at 6.38 days sickness absence per employee.  This was an excellent achievement. 

The Chair thanked the Members and officers for their contribution to the inquiry. 

RESOLVED – That the report be presented to the meeting of the Corporate and Customer Overview and Scrutiny Panel to be held on 11 March.

The Sub-Group will discuss the draft report and recommendations with the Executive Member for Resources (Councillor Alan Cullens). 

The Chair welcomed Councillor Alan Cullens, the Executive Member for Resources.  Councillor Cullens welcomed the report and the work gone in to inquiry. 

Councillor Cullens suggested a recommendation to have an internal target for absence in addition to the best value performance indicator. 

RESOLVED – That a recommendation to added to the report: “To set an annual target of 8.5 working days lost due to sickness for internal Council use”.