National Officer (Health and Safety) - RCN01446

Negotiable Location

£61,080 (including inner London weighting of £4314)

Contract type: Permanent

At the Royal College of Nursing we’re an optimistic organisation. And we’ve got good reason to be. We all share the same voice when it comes to changing the shape of the health policies of the future. And as the largest trade union of nursing staff and students in the UK – with over 450,000 members – all we can see are the infinite possibilities for a brighter future. Join us and you will too. We’re accredited with Investors in People Gold Standard.

National Officer (Health & Safety)

Negotiable location, 35 Hours per week, Permanent

Please note, should we receive a high volume of applications for this role, your application may not be shortlisted if you do not submit a Supporting Statement. A Supporting Statement is an important part of our application process, so we would encourage you to submit one as part of your application.

The RCN’s Employment Relations Department (ERD) provides the UK strategic lead for the RCN on the pay and conditions of nursing staff, wherever they are employed. We negotiate, lobby and influence on the employment issues that affect nursing staff wherever they work in the NHS, private and independent sectors. As well as pay and conditions, and pensions, our work includes occupational health, safety and well-being, and ensures that equality and diversity are recognised as valuable and essential features of work. We are responsible for supporting an effective representative structure for stewards, safety and learning representatives across the UK. Our research function gathers intelligence on the nursing labour market, including trends, policies and workforce developments.

This specialist post is the RCN’s UK employment relations policy lead with respect to the physical and psychological working environments for nurses and nursing staff, wherever they work. This includes being responsible for developing employment relations strategy and policy advice and guidance relating to the improvement of the working environment and the promotion of health and safety. Monitoring the external environment for new and emerging hazards, you will develop comprehensive, proactive and structured strategy and activity responses to deal with these, working closely with internal and external stakeholders to achieve improvements in nurses’ and nursing staffs physical and psychological working environment, promoting health and safety. This includes support and guidance to the safety representatives’ structure and governance as well as the delivery of national projects and campaigns on specific health and safety issues.

This specialist post is the Royal College of Nursing’s UK employment relations policy lead with respect to the physical and psychological working environments for nurses and nursing staff, wherever they work.

What we offer you

We expect you to look after our members. And we expect you to be rewarded for it. As well as a whole range of learning and development opportunities we can also offer you an impressive range of benefits. We have a highly competitive pay structure, as well as flexible working, and annual leave of up to 32 days.

Balancing work and life commitments is important to us as an organisation. We are a diverse organisation and understand everyone has different needs. All employees can ask for flexible working and when personal circumstances change, we will work with you to find a smarter working solution that suits everyone. In fact, many of our employees enjoy home working, flexible working or compressed hours, enabling them to deliver results with minimum impact to their professional and personal commitments. We also offer generous Maternity, Paternity and Adoption leave packages.

We’re seeking an experienced and passionate professional who has ambition for change in support of our membership. With deep understanding and knowledge of health and safety issues, you’ll also understand the different sectors and areas where nursing staff are employed, with knowledge of the particular health and safety issues for these sectors. You’ll hold a post graduate degree or further qualification in Occupational Health & Safety and Graduate or Chartered Membership of the Institute of Occupational Safety and Health.

Experienced in strategic working with trade unions, employer organisations and statutory bodies, you’ll be expert in working with a wide range of stakeholders. This includes undertaking negotiations with unions, employers and national bodies. Using successful project management practice you’ll also design and implement lobbying and/or campaigning strategies for change.

With a demonstrable commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion and excellent interpersonal communication skills you’ll enjoy team working as much as you enjoy leading work with diverse groups of people.

To succeed at the Royal College of Nursing all you need to do is think bigger, better and brighter. And with an attitude like that, anything’s possible.

Please note, that due to Covid-19, while we are trying our best to accommodate our Assessment Centres and Interviews on the dates outlined in our adverts, we may need to be flexible about how and when we run our Recruitment processes for the time being.

We are currently running Assessments and Interviews remotely should we need to, in accordance with Government advice, so if you envisage any issues with accessing a computer, webcam or a sufficient internet connection for a video call, then please do highlight this in your Supporting Statement. We will of course do all we can to ensure you have the best experience in applying to work with us during this challenging period.

For more information or for an informal discussion please contact Lara Carmona (Associate Director, Employment Relations) via her PA Janice Morton at janice.morton@rcn.org uk or 020 7647 3569

For more information on the Recruitment & Selection process, please contact recruit@rcn.org.uk

Please note, should we receive a suitable number of applications for this post after a week of posting this advert, this vacancy may close early, before the closure date stated below.

Opening Date: 23 April 2021

Closing Date: 11.59pm on 12 May 2021

Assessment Centre and Interview Date: 20 and 21 May 2021

Please click the “Apply” button