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Bank work is a form of zero-hour contract. In the NHS many bank workers also hold a substantive contract on NHS (Agenda for Change) Terms and Conditions, often at the same employer where they work ‘on the bank’.  Some bank workers choose to work as ‘bank-only’. Many ‘NHS’ bank-only workers do so because they have been unable to access the flexible working, or the fixed-shift certainty they are seeking, in substantive employment. 

Bank work is not the same as employment on substantive terms and conditions. Workers on a ‘NHS bank contract’ aren’t automatically entitled to the same contractual NHS Terms and Conditions as those employed on substantive NHS contracts. This includes employment rights, access to CPD, accrual of sickness absence pay, maternity pay, and pension contributions. NHS bank workers are also not guaranteed annual NHS pay uplifts.  

Staff employed on NHS Terms and Conditions in pay bands 1–7 are contractually entitled to overtime payments if they work more than a full-time week. The NHS overtime rate is x1.5 the standard hourly rate or x2 the standard hourly rate for overtime worked on bank holidays. Overtime rates do not apply to shifts worked through the bank. Bank rates are set by each bank organisation and if the bank contract is not using NHS Terms and Conditions the bank organisation can avoid paying contractual overtime and restrict access to other NHS Terms and Conditions. 

References

NHS Professionals Nursing, Midwifery and Healthcare Assistants. Available at:

¾ÅÓÎÌåÓý NHS Conditions of Employment. Available at: /employment-and-pay/NHS-Employment/NHS-conditions-of-employment