- Conference
- 2007 Health Care Service Group Conference
- Date
- 28 December 2006
- Decision
- Carried
Conference welcomes the implementation of Agenda for Change (AfC) for Soft Facilities Management (FM) staff employed by private contractors and sees this as the minimum rate for all staff working in the NHS irrespective of employer. However we recognise that this agreement does not cover members employed in Hard FM and asks that negotiation continue to ensure access to AfC for all groups.
Pay and conditions of service under PFI/PPP contracts in Scotland are now governed by the Scottish Executive/STUC Protocol which means that workers will enjoy the same pay rates and conditions of service whether employed in the private sector.
With the moral arguments asides of profiting from essential public services, we believe that what is urgently required is a change in strategic thinking by the government and the Health Departments to re-examine the whole reform agenda and evaluate the real cost of favouring market mechanisms and private for-profit providers over in-house NHS services. Trusts and Health Boards are now being asked to pick up the bill for implementing AfC for contractor staff, with private multi-national companies still making huge profits with no return to the staff they employ.
As the major cost of the contract is labour costs conference believes there is no longer an economic case for privatising services. Contractors have enjoyed a number of years up until now of making profit from reduced pay and conditions and inferior pension provision for its workers relative to the NHS.
Conference sees the continued use of private providers within our NHS as unacceptable and, therefore, instructs the Health Service Group Executive to work with regions and branches to:
1.Develop an intelligence network using UNISON’s Bargaining Information Support system to monitor the contract arrangements pre and post sign off.
2.Ensure information goes out to branches and regions alerting them as to when contracts are up for review/re-tender.
3.Develop a tool kit to support branches to organise around bringing staff back in-house.