BMA - Staff and associate specialist contracts

Staff and Associate Specialists contracts

The Staff and Associate Specialists Committee (SASC UK) were informed by the Government that the contract proposals as set out in the summary agreement have now been ratified in England.

However, the Government suggested a ‘transitional pay award’ and implementation from 1 April 2008. The Government has also clarified that they are not willing to negotiate any further amendments to the TCS.

SASC UK were extremely disappointed with the proposed transitional arrangements and the decision to undermine the negotiations process. They resolved to send the contract proposals (as final) to a vote of all SAS doctors. Voting closed on 14 March and results are available on the vote page.

Information on the contract negotiations can also be found on the NHS Employers website.

Essential contract information
Details of all the essential staff and associate specialists contract documentation.

SAS contract - Your decision. Contract implementation next steps, April 2008
An explanation of the next steps in the implementation process - including a flowchart of options and stages of the new contracts

SAS contract next steps, April 2008
Background to the current situation with the implementation of the staff and associate specialists contract, as well as the next steps, likely timings and additional points to consider.

Specialty Doctor and Associate Specialist Pay Scales
Pay scales for the new Associate Specialist and Specialty Doctor grades, including 2008 DDRB pay increases.

SAS contract implementation
Some initial points for consideration following SASC UKs decision to accept the contract.

Clarification on the extra Ł7m for SAS doctors, 12 March
The BMA sought clarification on the staff and associate doctors funding announcement and has received a letter from Health Minister Ann Keen.

Diary for the ‘ready reckoner’ and job planning
A ‘ready reckoner’ designed to give you an approximate idea of the kind of salary you are likely to receive under the terms of the new contract is available for you to use. It is crucial that you keep a diary of the hours you work so that you have the data you will need to enter into the ready reckoner to calculate an estimate of your new salary. A diary planning exercise is also extremely useful for job planning discussions.

Suggestions for SAS development funding use
Six suggestions for the use of the Ł12m allocated for Staff and Associate Specialist development from the Staff and Associate Specialists Committee as well as information on other work.

Pay for out of hours and on-call work, November 2006
Under the terms of the new contract, all emergency work that takes place at regular and predictable times will be programmed into the working week on a prospective basis and count towards programmed activities. For doctors working an on-call rota (rather than a full shift arrangement), emergency work that it is not possible to predict for the purposes of job planning will be remunerated via an on–call supplement which is calculated as a percentage of basic pay.