About the job

Job summary

Would you like to get involved in designing the UK’s current and future policy on labour/employment issues?

We have an exciting opportunity for you to help make improvements to employment policy that will save businesses time and money, while also protecting workers’ rights. 

This is part of the Government’s work to improve how it regulates the economy, and is known as the smarter regulation programme. The Government wants to support British businesses by delivering simpler regulations, so that businesses can focus on investing and growing. 

We are advertising for a Senior Policy Advisor (Grade 7) in the Trade and International team in the Labour Markets Directorate. You would be joining us at an exciting time. Our work moves quickly, and has a lot of interest from the general public, the media, UK Parliament and stakeholders in Brussels and around the world.

You would have lots of opportunities to gain new skills and knowledge: to work with ministers; to get a good understanding of how Parliament and the media work; to influence work in other government departments and get involved in international engagement to help shape the European Commission’s perception of the UK.

You would be joining a very friendly and welcoming team. Our staff survey results show that managers have a high level of trust in their teams, that colleagues feel they are treated fairly and that staff have confidence in their managers. Our Directorate is inclusive, non-hierarchical and a fun place to work. Wouldn’t you love to work on something that positively affects millions of people’s lives? 

Job description

• Lead on delivering an important part of the Government’s work on smarter  regulation of the labour market. This will include developing the policy by reviewing responses to the public consultation, writing advice for ministers, and seeking any necessary agreement from other government departments.  

• For this area of work, lead on communications planning; responses to enquiries from the media and the public; and manage relationships with the Devolved Administrations. 

• Work with legal colleagues to draft a Statutory Instrument to deliver the policy changes.   

• Draft a plan to help ensure the policy changes are agreed by MPs and members of the House of Lords; and brief ministers for their debates in Parliament on the Statutory Instrument.  

• With the election coming up this year, you will also have the chance to help advise incoming ministers after the election.   

Person specification

Skills and Experience

Essential Criteria 

The successful candidate will be able to:

• Confidently lead on projects, to meet the goals of the department/the Government; to quickly gain the confidence of your colleagues, senior leaders, and ministers. 

• Take decisions based on evidence, and to solve complex issues; to successfully explain these complex issues to different audiences including senior colleagues and ministers.  

• Write clearly and persuasively, and communicate well orally, adapting your style to the audience. 

• Quickly spot patterns, and to bring in what is happening outside your own work area; to always be thinking about the ‘big picture’ while also understanding how the smaller pieces fit together. 

• Produce work that always meets high standards, often to short deadlines. 

Personal Attributes  

We are looking for someone who is:

• Comfortable working in a politicised environment and good at navigating uncertainty and controversy to deliver high quality outcomes for ministers and the public. Someone works in a flexible way, and who will be happy to take on additional areas of work where needed.  

• Resilient and able to produce high quality work at pace. And someone who can stay focused in an environment where things change fast and where there can be a lot of uncertainty.   

• Works well with others, and influences other people successfully. They should be able to develop good working relationships, and to know how to use these to achieve their work goals. They should also be keen to play their part in building a positive team culture, and to push themselves to learn new skills and take on new challenges.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £53,560, Department for Business and Trade contributes £14,998 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

Things you need to know

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours and Experience.

Interviews for this vacancy will be conducted virtually. We will, however, consider in-person interviews by exception.

Please ensure that you check your emails regularly as all updates from us will be sent to you this way.

To apply for this post, you will be asked to complete the following as part of the online application:    

•  A CV setting out your career history, with key responsibilities and achievements. Provide employment history that relates to the essential criteria, and that any gaps in employment history within the last 2 years are explained. The CV should not exceed more than 2 x A4 pages.  

• A Personal Statement of up to 500 words, explaining your motivation for applying for this role and the extent to which you satisfy the essential requirements of the role. 

It is likely that the sift will take place 1-2 weeks after the closing date and interviews 3-5 weeks after the closing date though this is subject to change.

In the event of a large number of applicants, an initial short sift will be conducted on the Personal Statement. Candidates who pass the initial sift may be progressed to a full sift or progressed straight to assessment/interview.   

As part of your interview, you will be asked to deliver a short oral presentation, details will be provided prior to your interview.  

This role is available in seven UK locations and can only be worked from within the UK, not overseas.

Travel to your primary office location will not be paid for by DBT, but costs for travel to an office which is not your main location will be covered.   

Reasonable Adjustments

We are committed to supporting candidates so they can perform at their best throughout the recruitment process. This includes making reasonable adjustments to our process. In order to request an adjustment: 

Complete the ‘Assistance required’ section on the ‘Additional requirements’ page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need further on in the recruitment process. 

Alternatively contact the Government Recruitment Service at DBTrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.  

If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section.

Candidate Support

You may want to join a virtual Candidate Support Session. These sessions include helpful tips and advice on the recruitment process, from application to interview.  

Please see attached Candidate Pack for further information on: Diversity and Inclusion; Benefits; Learning and Development; Working Patterns and what we deliver as a department. 

Further Information:

• A reserve list may be held for a period of 12 months from which further appointments can be made. Reserve Lists will be for each location and appointments made in merit order based on location preferences.   
• Any move to the Department for Business and Trade from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments.
• The Department will not consider sponsoring a visa or issuing a Certificate of Sponsorship. We are unable to offer advice on any Visa and Immigration cases.  
• New entrants are expected to join on the minimum of the pay band.  
• Applicants who are successful at interview will be, as part of pre-employment screening, subject to a check on the Internal Fraud Database (IFD). This check will provide information about employees who have been dismissed for fraud or dishonesty offences. This check also applies to employees who resign or otherwise leave before being dismissed for fraud or dishonesty. Any applicant who has details held on the IFD will be refused employment.   
• A candidate is not eligible to apply for a role within the Civil Service if the application is made within a 5 year period following a dismissal for carrying out internal fraud against government.  
• Terms and Conditions are attached. Please take time to read the document to determine how these may affect you.
• Please note – the successful candidate will be expected to remain in post for a minimum of 18 months before being released for another role.

In order to process applications without delay, we will be sending a Criminal Record Check to Disclosure and Barring Service, Disclosure Scotland and Access NI on your behalf.

However, we recognise in exceptional circumstances some candidates will want to send their completed forms direct. If you will be doing this, please advise Government Recruitment Service of your intention by emailing Pre-EmploymentChecks.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk stating the job reference number in the subject heading. 

For further information on the Disclosure Scotland confidential checking service telephone: the Disclosure Scotland Helpline on 0870 609 6006 and ask to speak to the operations manager in confidence, or email Info@disclosurescotland.co.uk 

For further information on the Access NI confidential checking service telephone: the Access NI Helpline on 0300 200 7888 and ask to speak to the operations manager in confidence, or email accessni@ani.x.gsi.gov.uk 

Vetting

The requirement for SC clearance is to have been present in the UK for at least 3 of the last 5 years. Failure to meet the residency requirements will result in your security clearance application being rejected.   

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check. Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is security check (opens in a new window).

See our vetting charter (opens in a new window). People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window). The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria. The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.