Transport Salaried Staffs' Association

11 January 2016

Below are answers to some of the more common questions about participating in action short of strike and, particularly, not-participation in your P&D process.

If my manager asks me to take part in the P&D process, what should I do?

You should respond to your manager (in writing) telling them that you are taking part in lawful official industrial action and therefore you will not be participating in the P&D process.

What can TfL do if we don’t participate in the P&D process?

TSSA has sought legal advice on this matter. Refusing to participate in your personal P&D review could, potentially, be considered as part performance of your role. In this instance, the employer has a number of options. They could:

1. Refuse part performance and lock out staff, without pay.
2. Accept part performance and negotiate to resolve the problem.
3. Dock a portion of staffs’ salaries.

These are clearly worse case scenarios, but we must advise you that these are possible outcomes.

Thus far TfL has not taken any such action against members refusing to participate in their own P&D review, and we therefore urge all members to withhold forthwith your participation in the deeply flawed P&D process imposed upon staff.

The issue of part performance potentially applies to all those staff undertaking action short of strike. TSSA would need to take a position on this matter if the employer attempted to raise this issue with staff.

If you encounter any difficulties, pressure or threat of sanctions as a result of taking action, please get in touch immediately.

If we don’t engage with our end of year review, does that mean we won’t get any increase next year?

Your Unions have not yet begun negotiations on the pay award for the 2015-16 period. We will continue to challenge the deeply flawed Pay for Performance imposed by TfL, under which many staff will get no pay increase, regardless of their P&D ratings.

However, TSSA believes that competent managers can adequately assess staff performance through BAU line management without reference to TfL’s P&D forms.

However, the key point is that if you experience detriment, be it a lower P&D rating and/or non-payment of any uplift (should there be one), as a result of participating in industrial action (by refusing to participate in P&Ds) is likely be unlawful victimisation. If you experience such detriment then you should contact your local TSSA rep for advice and assistance.

Will I end up on a Performance Improvement Plan if I don’t comply/take part in my P&D end of year review?

Putting someone on a PIP because they are taking industrial action would be unlawful victimisation.

I have informed my managers that I will not be participating in the P&D process. They have contacted me to say that as a result they cannot assess my performance, and have asked me how they should proceed. How do I respond?

You are taking lawful action short of strike and have informed your employer that this is the case. It is not your responsibility to then advise your employer about how they should then proceed.

Remember, you are not the only member of staff taking this action, and your managers should seek advice about from HR. A template email for you to respond to your manager is available on the campaign website: http://www.tssa.org.uk/en/Your-union/Your-company/company-pages/transport-for-london/index.cfm/TfLtemplateletter-Jan2016

I am a manager responsible for undertaking P&Ds for my team. Should I carry them out or not, and if I don’t carry them out, can TfL take action against me?

If you are a manager then you should undertake P&D reviews for the staff that you manage who are not participating in the action short of strike. However, you should not participate in your own personal P&D review or any part of that process. Please refer to the (above) advice for refusing to participate in your own P&D meeting.

As a TSSA member we ask that you encourage other union members to participate in the action short of strike with regard to the P&D process.

What do I do if my manager is pressuring me to take part in the P&D process, or they are discriminating against me because I’m not participating?

If you encounter any difficulties, pressure, or threat of sanctions as a result of taking action, please get in touch with your local Rep immediately. If you are not sure who your local rep is, then please contact your local TSSA rep.

What if I have other questions about action short of strike?

If you have any further questions about non-participation in your personal P&D process or other forms of action short of strike then please contact your local TSSA rep or Mel Taylor, TSSA Organiser: taylorm@tssa.org.uk.