9 Staff numbers and remuneration
Key figures
- 12,835 — total number of staff currently employed in the UK Border Agency as of May 2012
- 11% - reduction in total headcount at the Agency since May 2011
- 56% of all staff work in the Immigration group
- 5,200 - the Agency's target reduction in headcount by 2015[60]
- 24% of the 62 senior Agency staff received a bonus in 2010/11, down from 67% the year before[61]
- 20% of senior staff bonuses were between £4,500 and £5,000 in 2010/11
- 4% of senior staff bonuses were between £5,000 and £10,000 in 2010/11
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Changes in staffing and remuneration
90. The Agency has reduced its total number of staff from 14,431
in May 2011 to 12,835[62]
in May 2012, a decrease of 11%.[63]
These figures are adjusted for the separation of the Border Force
and the Policy and Strategy unit from the Agency.[64]
Figure 11 UK Border Agency Staffing 2011-2012[65]
- The Immigration group has seen
the largest reduction of staff, 18%, but remains by far the largest
section of the agency accounting for 56% of all staff.
- Resource management has experienced the lowest
reduction in staff, 1%, it currently provides support services
for both the Agency and the Border Force.
- HR and organisational development has seen a
14% drop in staff numbers but also provides support to the Border
Force as well as the Agency.
- The International section has seen an 8% decrease
in headcount.
- The Strategy and Intelligence directorate and
Enforcement and Crime group are the only sections to see an increase
in staff of 22% and 9% respectively.
The Agency is reducing its headcount in line with
its commitment to reduce in size by 5,200 staff by 2015.
91. We are pleased to see that the Agency is sharing
support staff with Border Force, which will help to reduce costs.
We also welcome the increase in the Enforcement and Crime group,
an area of the Agency's work that has long needed addressing.
We are pleased that despite the need for budget cuts the Agency
is keeping a flexible view of staffing levels, increasing them
where there is need to improve results. We expect that it will
continue to do so.
Senior staff bonuses
92. In the last performance year, 2010-2011, the
Agency paid 24% of its senior staff a bonus. 20% received a bonus
of between £4,500 and £5,000 with the remaining 4% receiving
a bonus between £5,000 and £10,000.
| % of senior UKBA staff awarded a bonus
| % of senior UKBA staff awarded a bonus of £5k or more
| Minimum value bonus awarded
| Maximum value bonus awarded
|
| 2010-11
| 24 |
4 | £4,500
| £7,000
|
| 2009-10
| 67 |
30 | £3,500
| £10,000
|
| 2008-09
| 72 |
72 | £7,500
| £15,000
|
| 2007-08
| 65 |
65 | £6,000
| £22,000
|
Table 8: bonus information for senior Agency staff
over the past four years
93. We believe that it is good practice to reward
the highest performing staff who have made outstanding contributions
to the Agency and who are taking the lead in delivering the Agency's
core priorities as set out in their business plan. The number
of bonuses awarded to senior staff in 2010-11 is in line with
policy across the civil service, where bonuses are confined to
the top 25% of performers.
94. It is difficult however to see how such a large
proportion of senior staff can have met these criteria between
2007 and 2010 (over 50 % every year) given the Agency's notorious
failures in the areas of asylum, immigration, enforcement and
deporting foreign national offenders.
95. In our previous report we stated that the
senior Agency staff should not receive bonuses as the Agency's
performance was still poor overall. Since then the 2010/11 bonus
figures have been released which show that, despite a reduction
in the number of staff receiving bonuses, 24% of them still did.
We agree with the Prime Minister that
If agencies don't perform, just like if companies
don't perform, there should not be bonuses—that is absolutely
clear.[66]
As this report makes clear the Agency is not performing
as it should do in a number of important areas. Until it improves
its performance its senior staff should not receive bonuses.
96. We further recommend that bonuses that have
been paid in the past contrary to the recommendations of this
Committee should be repaid by the recipients.
Junior staff bonuses
97. The Agency awards modest bonuses to its top performing
staff in junior and middle grades. We support the payment of appropriate
incentives to front line staff as a means of rewarding good performance
and encouraging a high performance culture.
| Grade
| No. of staff at grade in 2012
| Bonuses in 2011/12
|
|
| No. of staff receiving a one-off bonus
| Total aggregate value of payments (£)
| Minimum payment
| Maximum payment
|
| AA | 1,279
| 307 |
88,603 |
295 | 314
|
| AO | 5,111
| 1316 |
455,680 |
346 | 425
|
| EO | 8,832
| 2373 |
1,150,533 |
476 | 607
|
| HEO | 3,038
| 114 |
743,292 |
595 | 1,518
|
| SEO | 1,265
| 516 |
429,091 |
759 | 1,804
|
| G7 | 485
| 210 |
273, 847 |
1,105 | 2,302
|
| G6 | 161
| 65 |
105,053 |
1,353 | 2,820
|
| Grand Total | 20,171
| 5901 |
3,246,099 |
| |
Note: Staff levels at UKBA fell between 2011 and
2012.
Table 9: UKBA staff bonuses for 2011/12[67]
60 UK Border Agency, Business Plan, April 2011-March
2015, p29. This figure is not adjusted for the separation of Border
Force from the Border Agency. Back
61
UK Border Agency Senior Staff data-March 2012, www.homeoffice.gov.uk
. This figure includes senior Border Force Staff who would have
been part of the Border Agency for the bonus year 2010/11. We
accept that the total number of staff in March 2012 may not be
directly comparable to the total number in the bonus year 2010/11. Back
6 62 1
Ev 56 Back
63
Ev 56 Back
64
Ev 56 Back
65
Ev 56. Note: Border Force and policy and strategy staff have been
removed from the May 2011 figures as both directorates have since
been split from the UK Border Agency. The Agency have said that
despite these removals the figures are not directly comparable
as some posts will have moved between directorates. However, we
cannot see that this could have occurred to any significant extent
unless the Agency had undergone a fundamental restructure. Back
66
Prime Minister, oral evidence to the Liaison Committee, 3 July
2012, Q92 Back
67
Ev 69, Annex B. Note: Bonus figures are not adjusted for the reduction
in staff over 2011. Back
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