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Standing firm
(16/08/07) The mood is solid among Manchester health workers, 87.3% of whom have voted to strike in defence of suspended union activist Karen Reissmann.
In a ballot which closed today, UNISON members employed by Manchester Mental Health trust -- 684 in total -- were asked if they were prepared to strike in protest at the "victimisation" of their staff side chair, and to press for her reinstatement.
The proposed strike will cover all inpatient, hospital and community psychiatric services across the city of Manchester.
Ms Reissmann, a community mental health nurse and member of the union's national health executive, was suspended eight weeks ago.
UNISON said she had been targeted for speaking out against health service cuts.
The union has vowed to "vigorously defend" the rights of all its members to speak out without fear of persecution.
Meanwhile, UNISON is claiming victory in another dispute at the trust, following a decision this week to put planned staffing changes on hold.
The changes to the community mental health teams, which led to two strike days earlier this year, were to be put in place today.
They would have seen a reallocation of clients to carers - a move staff have been saying would leave vulnerable patients without care.
There has been a long-standing disagreement about the number of patients treated by the teams, with staff saying they treated hundreds more patients than the 2,500 claimed by management.
"It is absolutely astonishing that the trust could get it so wrong," said a UNISON spokesperson. "But the trust has finally accepted what staff have been saying all along, and is not going ahead with its plans. The teams will stay as they are for now."
As one nurse put it, "This is fantastic news. All of us have been terrified about what will happen to our patients. Thank god the managers have seen sense. Although we would ask, why did it take them so long?"
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