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Does anybody know where the job title "Radiotherapy Electronics Advanced Practitioner" fits in with AfC, KSF, NOS or even the VRCT for that matter? I suppose as a band 7 the sucessful candidate will "R.E.A.P" the rewards ! Nice to see realistic salaries being put forward, I've seen similar Radiotherapy jobs advertised at bands 5 and 6.

The title does not matter but the contents of the job desciption does. Is the person running a service , managing lots of people and a large budget, or do they just hold the greasy rag for the real engineer?
It is all down to how many points you can score with the JD.
And remember "Points make Prizes"
RoJo

Here's one for you (Billy?) as noticed in a recently posted NHS job ad:-

"Fixed Term Temporary Position for 12 Months"

What's that all about I wonder? Cover for maternity leave or some such thing ... or the start of a New Trend?

I believe that NHS doctors etc. sometimes take on work under such (limited) conditions, but usually:-

1) As part of a career path progression
2) With suitable financial incentives

Do such comments apply to biomed posts, I wonder?

My brother, who works in an entirely different field, used to work on a yearly contract scheme that was renewed every year. However when he went to get a mortgage the providers were not interested as he was only on a years contract so could not guarantee any future income.
The up side - for the employer - is that there is no redundacy payments etc if you need to "down size". I wonder if this sort of thing will become more common.
There are peripheral problems to things like this that those "on the dark side" are probably well aware.

RoJo

Yes ... I can see the appeal from the "employer's" point of view. No doubt the Trust is getting let off the hook for all sorts of responsibilities.

It's a bit like getting an Agency Tech on the cheap!

Meanwhile, the thought occurs that this could well become a common tactic, especially as it allows managers to hedge their bets ... especially at sites under possible threat of closure (amalgamation, down-sizing, re-adjustment, re-structuring ... whatever).

It could be Geoff that the person previously there is emmigrating and has taken a career break until they know their settled.

Also the law has changed on continuous renewing of temporary contracts, once its renews a couple of times it automatically becomes permanent.

Now you're the one having a laugh, surely (re:- your first sentence):- everyone else is on hold until the wife decides whether or not she likes the new view? Yeah, right.

How about this take on it all, as (I suspect) a more plausible scenario:- having been, shall we say, "caught out" in the past, the Trust is looking to take on someone on an extended Probationary Period?

We took on a couple of guys on a 3 year contract which surprised me. Being cynical I think it gives us an easy way of "getting rid" if they are not up to scratch. Apparetnly it is very difficult in the NHS to show someone the door if they are not good enough.

A three year probation period sounds a bit long to me, Bill.

I rather suspect it would have been something to do with Pension Rights, or some such thing.

But I expect we shall be seeing this as an emerging trend. That is, techs on "short service commissions", and far more moving around (moving on) after every few years or so. In a way that could be a good thing. A broader experience for the techs, and a wider dispersal of ideas.

Meanwhile, in the Real World job security (security of tenure that is) went out the window long ago. And so, therefore, has loyalty (and, indeed, continuity).

Everyone's a freelance now, Bill (or in the near future, anyway). Especially as forces from the Dark Side continue their onward march* throughout the realms of NHS biomed shops.

Forget the VRCT (it's so yesterday, anyway). It's not proactive. The world moves on too fast for that sort of thing to be much use. Let's start our own gang!

Oh, the Power of Positive Thought!

* Have you heard of any reverting back to in-house? No, neither have I.

No, we had two people emigrate (or attempt to), one decided to stay other one came back after just under a year. During the time both jobs were advertised as temporary 12 months with possibility of becoming permanent if career break person did not return.

As for maximum lengths of temporary contacts, I've just checked and maximum temporary contract is two years, after two years you have the same redundancy rights as someone permanent so the contract automatically becomes permanent.