NHSE employing temporary workers on up to £900 a day
NHS England is employing temporary workers for several years on up to £900 a day, new figures show, well above the level at which trusts looking to bring in interim staff must secure central sign-off.
The national body has more than 200 off-payroll workers who have been engaged for more than two years, according to a freedom of information request.
The highest earner in this group receives £900 a day, which would equate to a full-time salary of more than £200,000.
A spokesman said the roles were mostly digital specialists and that NHSE had made significant savings in pay costs in recent years. HSJ reported last week that more than 500 staff across commissioning bodies had received redundancy payments of £100,000 or more in the last two years.
Accounts published this week say: “…in some specific circumstances the use of off-payroll workers, working alongside our on-payroll workforce, can be helpful. For some of our time-limited programmes, short-term contracts are appropriate.”
NHSE had 336 workers in this category as of the end of July this year, of which around two-thirds had been engaged for two years or more, with the highest daily rate reaching £900.
Just over 50 contractors had been working with NHSE for four years or more. The highest rate in this group was little over £750 a day, just over the threshold at which trusts looking to hire interim managers must get central approval.
In previous years, NHS Digital, which is now part of NHSE, was reprimanded by the Treasury for “irregular” payments to temporary staff.
The tech body also spent more than £7m on external contractors without prior approval from the DHSC, which it said were necessary to meet the timeline for the merger.
In 2020-21 it was also sanctioned by the Treasury for breaching payment rules for three contractors, including one who was also the part owner of a firm that received at least £3m from the agency.
An NHS spokesperson said: “While NHS England has significantly reduced its workforce and pay spend over the last three years, and in most cases off-payroll arrangements are for digital roles with specialist skills, the use of off-payroll workers, working alongside our own current staff, can be helpful.”