Information for Departments/Services

To request a temporary worker from the TSB, please complete this TR1 Form.

• Claims/TSB pay rates
• Business Rules

The University Temporary Staff Bank (TSB) has been established to provide temporary administrative services to Colleges and Professional Services at short notice to cover such instances as sickness, holidays, special projects and vacancies etc. Temporary workers can also provide cover for unpredictable and irregular patterns of work.

Assignments should not last longer than 3 months. Arrangements that are expected to last longer than three months should be appointed through a fixed term contract (i.e. via ESR1 and recruitment). We now have new approval paths in place to speed up the SR1 process. In cases of doubt, the College / Service should consult with their HR Business Partner. Although the SR1 process has been streamlined, we can appreciate your needs maybe immediate and are able to provide short term temporary support whilst you are recruiting. Please also view the guidelines for engaging staff here.

The Temporary Staff Bank ensures that workers are legally able to work in the UK, issued with a University Card and given IT access. It is therefore important that temporary workers are offered work via the TSB and not directly by Colleges/Services.

The minimum length of an assignment through the TSB is four weeks, with the exception of Campus Servicesroles.

While some assignments may occasionally require the TSB worker to work more than 36.5 hours in a week, this should not become a regular pattern. Any additional hours worked will be paid at the standard hourly rate.

Workers will submit weekly pay claims via the eClaims system. An appropriate Manager must be set up on an approval path for the worker's job in eClaims, and is expected to check the system on a weekly basis to approve awaiting claims. It is the Manager's responsibility to ensure they approve awaiting claims by the allocated monthly deadline.

The TSB Office will ensure that there are appropriate gaps between a worker’s assignments. Following consecutive assignments which together have lasted 12 months, the TSB office will ensure that there is a four week gap before the worker’s next assignments.

The Temporary Worker’s assignment may be terminated at any time without prior notice or liability. However, the College/Service should endeavour, so far as is reasonably practicable, to give one week’s notification of the termination of any assignment which lasts longer than four weeks.

For general administrative work remuneration should be based on the first point of the grade (B, C, or D) which best matches the role to be undertaken. The College/Service should prepare a short job description and consult with their HR Business Partner if they are unsure of the appropriate grade.

For assignments which are to cover existing staff members (i.e. sick leave) and for specific vacant posts, where the temporary worker will be covering the full duties of the role, the grading should be the same as the existing member of staff. The temporary worker should be placed on the bottom point of the grade and the existing job description should be included with the temp request.

University Temporary Worker Rates are subject to cost of living increases in line with these increases in University rates. 

More information on the  About your pay pages.

Former employees of the University, whether retired, redundant (including the expiry of fixed term contract) or left voluntarily, are eligible for engagement through the TSB provided that: (a) there is a gap of one full week (Sunday to Saturday) after their contracted employment ends and their first assignment begins; and (b) no work (i.e. TSB assignment or other contract) is offered before the employee’s current contracted employment ends; and (c) they are not re-engaged in their previous role. Additionally, the standards applicable to all TSB assignments on length of assignments and gaps between assignments apply.

After early retirement there should be a break of at least one full calendar month after the employee’s contracted employment ends and their first TSB assignment begins.

If a University employee left as part of the Voluntary Release Scheme they are not eligible for Claims or TSB registration for two years after their release date.

The aim of this Induction Checklist is to provide essential information to your new temporary member of staff and to help them settle in as quickly as possible and, more importantly, to make them feel 'part of the team'.

The items listed below should preferably be covered within the first week of their employment (this will depend on the length of their assignment). You can also download a printable version of the Induction checklist.

Minor shortfalls in performance or minor breaches of discipline (e.g. lateness, careless mistakes, lack of attention to detail/instructions/procedures) should be discussed with the Temporary Worker by the manager of the assignment or the TSB Manager, as appropriate. The Temporary Worker may be offered additional support, training, advice, guidance or counselling, as appropriate.

In cases of more serious shortfalls in performance or breaches of discipline or repeated minor shortfalls/breaches, the TSB Manager (or other manager in Human Resources) will invite the Temporary Worker to a meeting to discuss the concerns. The Temporary Worker may be accompanied by a trade union representative or fellow worker. Following the meeting, the manager will write to the Temporary Worker advising of their decision. The manager may give the Temporary Worker a written warning or, where appropriate, may decide that the Temporary Worker should be removed from the TSB and terminate any current assignment. The Temporary Worker will be able to appeal against this decision.

If a TSB worker is subsequently appointed to a contracted position with the University their continuous service date will normally be as of the start of the latest continuous assignment(s).