Acas Council members reappointed
Employment Relations Minister announces the reappointment of 3 members to the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas) Council.
Employment Relations Minister Jo Swinson has announced the reappointment of 3 members to the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas) Council.
Vikki Hawes and Paul Butler have been reappointed as employer representative members and Paul Nowak has been reappointed as an employee representative member. The appointments are for a further 3 year term commencing from 21 November 2014 to 20 November 2017, and are made in accordance with the Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments (OCPA) guidelines.
Business Minister Jo Swinson said:
I am delighted to reappoint Vikki Hawes, Paul Butler and Paul Nowak to the Acas Council and look forward to continuing our work together.
They bring a wealth of skills and expertise to Acas as it supports businesses and employees to resolve problems at work and provides excellent workplace advice and guidance.
Sir Brendan Barber, Chair of the Acas Council said:
I am pleased that the Acas Council will continue to benefit from my colleagues’ experience and knowledge in employment relations. They have been invaluable to our role as independent, impartial and trusted workplace experts.
I look forward to continue working with them to maintain our reputation as Britain’s leading employment relations service for businesses and employees.
Acas is an independent non-departmental public body and the Acas Council is the overarching governance body for Acas. The Council consists of 12 members, including the Chair, and membership is drawn from employer, trade union and independent backgrounds.
Notes to Editors
- Acas is an independent non-departmental public body (NDPB) and the Acas Council is the overarching governance body for Acas. The Council consists of 12 members, including the Chair, and membership is drawn from employer, trade union and independent backgrounds. Acas aims to improve organisations and working life through better employment relations. It provides 3 main services: * advice on workplace matters through a helpline which received nearly 900,000 calls in 2013 to 2014 and Helpline online answered around a million questions last year * conciliation services which help resolve disputes between employers and individual employees or groups of employees - last year Acas advisers were involved in over 40,000 individual conciliations and more than 850 collective conciliations. * tailored training and advice for individual organisations. In 2013 to 2014, Acas trained around 30,000 delegates across over 2100 events.
- Acas is independent of ministers, but is one of BIS’ key partners. The government’s economic policy objective is to achieve ‘strong, sustainable and balanced growth that is more evenly shared across the country and between industries’ and Acas’ services contribute to delivering a competitive, efficient and effective labour market which supports economic growth and employment.
- The original appointments were made following an open selection process conducted in accordance with the Code of Practice and other guidance issued by the Commissioner for Public Appointments.
Biographies of the Council Members
Hawes - Director of Aldridge Consulting Ltd
Vikki Hawes’ career in brief:
- BA (Hons) European Studies, Post-graduate Diploma in Labour Studies
- Director of Aldridge Consulting Ltd providing strategic HR solutions and interim management 2011.
Between 2000 to 2010 held a variety of posts at Royal Mail:
- Human Resources Director (Midland Region) 2009 to 2010
- People and Organisational Development Director (Network Division) 2005 to 2009
- People and Organisational Development Director (Logistics) 2003 to 2005
- Head of Human Resources in the Logistics business of Royal Mail 2002 to 2003
- Head of Employee Relations in the Logistics business of Royal Mail 2000 to 2002.
Committee membership / representations:
- member of the European Coaching and Mentoring Council and accredited to Level 5 in business performance and executive coaching
- affiliate member of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport and Logistics Leaders Network
- member of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development
Paul Nowak - Heads the TUC’s Organisation & Services department
Paul Nowak, 41, was appointed Assistant General Secretary (AGS) of the TUC) in February 2013. He leads on a number of key policy areas including public services, welfare and unemployment, and transport. He also has responsibility for the TUC’s organisation in Wales and the English regions, annual Congress, union organising and inter-union relations.
Prior to taking up his appointment as AGS, Paul headed the TUC’s Organisation & Services department playing a key role in the TUC’s broader campaigning work.
Paul was one of the first intake of the TUC’s ‘Organising Academy’ in 1998 - and prior to this had been an active member of unions including the GMB, UNISON and CWU, working in a range of jobs in both the public and private sector.
Paul has also served as the TUC’s regional secretary in the North East & Cumbria and as the TUC’s national organiser, where he had responsibility for developing the TUC’s Organising Academy and supporting union efforts to reach out to the next generation of union members and activists.
Paul was appointed a member of the Acas Council in November 2011.
Paul Butler - Managing Director of Butler and Trinity Ltd
Paul Butler is Managing Director of Butler and Trinity Ltd, a company which provides management consultancy support to organisations in the voluntary, housing, education sectors.
Paul commenced his career in central government, where he worked in training and development as a national contracts manager, he subsequently moved on to a range of national and regional roles as Director and Chief Executive in skills, education and community development. He has also worked on a number of cross party panels with ministers on workforce, education and inclusion issues.
Paul is passionate about addressing issues of social and economic advancement of local communities, and is an active member of the college and community voluntary sectors, in addition to running his own business.