Clerical Officer

The Mental Health Commission (“the MHC”) wishes to create a panel of Clerical Officers to fill posts as they arise from time to time.

The MHC is an independent statutory body established in April 2002 under the provisions of the Mental Health Act 2001 (“the 2001 Act”). The principal functions of the MHC, as specified in the 2001 Act, are to promote, encourage and foster the establishment and maintenance of high standards and good practices in the delivery of mental health services and to take all reasonable steps to protect the interests of persons detained in approved centres. The MHC is also empowered to undertake such activities, as it deems appropriate to foster and promote these standards and practices.

The Assisted Decision Making (Capacity) Act 2015 (“the 2015 Act”) provides for the establishment of the Decision Support Service (“the DSS”) within the MHC to support decision-making by and for adults with capacity difficulties and to regulate individuals who are providing support to people with capacity difficulties. The 2015 Act reforms Ireland’s capacity legislation which has been in place since the 19th century. It establishes a modern statutory framework to support decision-making by adults who have difficulty in making decisions without help.

The Role

The Clerical Officer role is a key support position within the MHC. The role provides a comprehensive general administrative and clerical support to a team and assists with the smooth, efficient and professional operation of the division.

The successful candidate will be required to engage and communicate effectively with various internal and external stakeholders including staff, officials from government departments and public bodies, private sector bodies, disability organisations and others.

The duties of the Clerical Officer are varied and can involve assignment to different parts of the organisation or different areas of work. The performance of the entire range of duties is not necessarily confined to any one individual within a division as the work requires that employees in the role function in a flexible manner and work effectively together as a team to deliver required outcomes or outputs

As a Clerical Officer, the holder of the post will be expected to actively contribute to and participate in the overall development of the MHC and to promote its policies and values at all times.

Key Responsibilities

Under the overall direction of the relevant line manager, the Clerical Officer’s key duties and responsibilities include:

• Providing administrative assistance; filing, photocopying, answering/making telephone calls, dealing with emails, reception desk duties

• Supporting line managers and colleagues

• Working as part of a team in delivering services

• Communicating and dealing with the public and for example, responding to queries and providing information face-to- face, by telephone or via email

• Using Information Technology on a daily basis, for example, spreadsheets, databases, email and the internet

• Maintaining high-quality records in a thorough and organised manner

• Checking all work thoroughly to ensure it is completed to a high standard

• Approaching work in a careful and methodical manner, always displaying accuracy, even when conducting routine and repetitive work

• Any other duties that are deemed appropriate by the line manager

Reporting and Working Relationships

The Clerical Officer is accountable to the Chief Executive of the MHC and reports directly to the relevant line manager within the team.

Essential Requirements The candidate must possess, by the closing date, the following:

• Demonstrated experience in an administrative/clerical role

• Experience using Microsoft Office packages

• The requisite competencies to carry out the role as outlined below.

• Level 6 or higher on the National Framework of Qualifications

Desirable

The following criteria are considered desirable for the post:

• Experience in dealing with regulatory and/or compliance matters

• Understanding of mental health and / or mental health services

Eligibility to Compete

Candidates must, by the date of job offer, be:

a) A citizen of the European Economic Area. The EEA consists of the Member States of the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway; or

b) A citizen of the United Kingdom (UK); or

c) A citizen of Switzerland pursuant to the agreement between the EU and Switzerland on the free movement of persons; or

d) A non-EEA citizen who is a spouse or child of an EEA or Swiss citizen and has a stamp 4 visa; or

e) A person awarded international protection under the International Protection Act 2015 or any family member entitled to remain in the State as a result of family reunification and has a stamp 4 visa; or

f) A non-EEA citizen who is a parent of a dependent child who is a citizen of, and resident in, an EEA member state or Switzerland and has a stamp 4 visa

Contract Arrangements

A permanent, full-time contract of employment with the Commission will be offered to the Clerical Officer on terms and conditions determined by the Mental Health Commission, with the consent of the Minister for Health and the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform.

Salary

The Clerical Officer salary scale (rates effective 1 February 2022) is as follows:

€25,339 – €26,963 – €27,375 – €28,181 – €29,368 – €30,555 – €31,740 – €32,604 – €33,581 – €34,717 – €35,517 – €36,642 – €37,760 – €39,504 – *€40, 876¹ – **€41, 504²

Candidates should note that entry will be at the minimum point of the scale and will not be subject to negotiation and the rate of remuneration may be adjusted from time to time in line with Government pay policy.

This rate will apply where the appointee is an existing civil or public servant appointed on or after 6 April 1995 or is newly recruited to the MHC and is required to make a personal pension contribution.

Different terms and conditions may apply if immediately before appointment you are a current serving civil/public servant.

Note: Salary for the purposes of calculation of superannuation benefits may differ from the above depending on individual circumstances. *LSI 1 after 3 years satisfactory service at the maximum. **LSI 2 after 6 years satisfactory service at the maximum

Payment Arrangements Payment will be made fortnightly in arrears by Electronic Fund Transfer (EFT) into a bank account of the successful candidate’s choice. Payment cannot be made until a bank account number, and bank sort code has been supplied to the MHC. Statutory deductions from salary will be made as appropriate.

A staff member appointed to this post will agree that any overpayment of salary or travel and subsistence may be deducted from future salary payments due in accordance with the Payment of Wages Act 1991 (as amended). In accordance with that Act, the MHC will advise the staff member in writing of the amount and details of such overpayment and give at least one week’s notice of the deduction to take place and will deduct the overpayment, at an amount that is fair and reasonable having regard to all the circumstances, within six months of such notice in accordance with the Act.

Tenure

The appointment will be based on a permanent contract of employment with the MHC. The probationary period will be for a period of nine months from the date of appointment. Notwithstanding this paragraph and the paragraph immediately following below, this will not preclude an extension of the probationary period in appropriate circumstances.

During the probationary period, a staff member’s performance will be subject to review by the line manager to determine whether the staff member:

(i) has performed in a satisfactory manner; and

(ii) has been satisfactory in general conduct.

Prior to completion of the probationary period a decision will be made as to whether the staff member will be retained. This decision will be based on the staff member’s performance assessed against the criteria set out in (i) and (ii) above. The detail of the probationary process will be explained to the staff member by the MHC on commencement of employment.

Notwithstanding the preceding paragraphs in this section, the probationary period may be terminated at any time prior to the expiry of the term of the contract by either side in accordance with the Minimum Notice and Terms of Employment Acts 1973 to 2005.

Location

The usual place of work will be the Mental Health Commission, Waterloo Exchange, Waterloo Road, D04 E5W7. The MHC reserves the right, at its discretion, to change this location to any other place within Ireland.

Staff at the MHC can apply for a blended working arrangement as per the MHC Blended Working Policy.

Hours of Attendance

Hours of attendance will be fixed from time to time but will amount, on average, to not less than 40 hours gross of rest breaks or 35 hours net of rest breaks per week.

The successful candidate will be required to work such additional hours from time to time as may be reasonable and necessary for the proper performance of his/her duties, subject to the limits set down in the working time regulations. This may include working evenings and weekends. The rate of remuneration payable covers any extra attendance liability that may arise from time to time.

Outside Employment: The position will be full-time, and the appointee shall not engage in private practice or be connected with any outside business which conflicts in any way with his/her official duties, impairs performance or compromises his/her integrity.

Annual Leave

The annual leave allowance for the position of Clerical Officer will be 22 days per annum. This allowance is subject to the usual conditions regarding the granting of annual leave in the public sector, is based on a five-day week and is exclusive of the usual public holidays.

Closing Date The recruitment process is being managed by the HR Team at Osborne Recruitment.

Applicants must submit their completed application form to MHC@osborne.ie

Deadline for application: Tuesday, 8 November 2022 at 5pm

Applications will not be accepted after the closing date and time. Late applications will be ineligible for consideration. Therefore, it is your responsibility to ensure that you have allowed sufficient transmission time of your application. Applicants must ensure they retain a copy of the email submitted to MHC@osborne.ie including the date and time in case of any queries.