TN130 Appoint a 'Staff Action Group'

First published on this website in April 2021 and last updated in March 2023

Synopsis

If your church employs paid staff the Trustees are legally responsible for their selection, employment and management. But most Trustees fail to appreciate this. So the advice here is to appoint a specialist group to take on this role on behalf of the legal employers as delegated responsibility. The notes ask four questions.

1.  What is this group’s purpose?
2.  Who should be chosen?
3.  What might the group be called?
4.  What are their key responsibilities?

Seven possible responsibilities are suggested:

• To ensure compliance with employment legislation
• To seek best practice in the selection of new staff
• To ensure that staff are properly managed
• To take pastoral interest in the well-being of staff
• To recommend appropriate pay scales, pensions and other financial benefits
• To recommend staff training within agreed budgets
• To guide the Trustees when problems occur.

These Notes were updated in March 2023 with alterations to the layout.