- Conference
- 2006 National Delegate Conference
- Date
- 28 February 2006
- Decision
- Carried
Conference notes with concern the recent findings of the Commission for Racial Equality on the spectacular failure of government departments and public bodies to meet, in the most elementary way, the statutory duty on the promotion of racial equality. This failure impacts on UNISON members as service users and employees.
Application of a similar but much wider statutory duty in Northern Ireland, while continually resisted, has been used by UNISON to resist privatisation, attach core equality and social inclusion requirements in public procurement (including private finance initiative) and to promote equality of opportunity in line with core UNISON policy.
Successive National Delegate Conferences have agreed that this is a priority issue. To give effect to it, Conference proposes to prioritise, with immediate effect, a UNISON task force, reflecting devolution and exisiting good practice expertise. The aim of the task force will be to force the effective and transparent implementation of the statutory duties in the policy and practice of government and public bodies at central and devolved level.