- Conference
- 2010 National Delegate Conference
- Date
- 22 February 2010
- Decision
- Carried
Conference notes UNISON’s commitment to supporting young people out of unemployment through campaigning for the creation of high-quality apprenticeships which do not replace existing jobs. Apprentices are not however, the only people in training; in our colleges and universities, students in nursing, social work, community and early years education are just some examples of students also training for public service work.
Conference also notes that with massive public funding cuts looming, the quality of apprenticeships will diminish as services become more and more stretched; workloads will increase, reducing the apprentice’s time available for studying. Conference also notes that while positions created through the Future Jobs Fund are a vital part in tackling youth unemployment, they must be in addition to and not in place of apprenticeships.
Conference believes that savage cuts to further education (FE) and higher education (HE) funding will cause unacceptable detriment to our members through redundancies and outsourcing.
Conference also believes that funding cuts also endanger the quality of training that our students receive, while reductions in student numbers also threaten the ability of students from non-traditional academic backgrounds to gain places on courses through increased academic requirements.
Conference also believes that organising students brings long-term benefits for our union; when student activists qualify, the practical organising experience gained in education will make a difference in addressing the shortage of activists in UNISON.
Conference therefore calls on the National Executive Council to:
1)Support branches to negotiate with employers to create high-quality apprenticeships and to then actively recruit apprentices;
2)Vigorously oppose any and all FE/HE spending cuts, linking up where relevant with other trade unions and the National Union of Students;
3)Work with regions, service groups and the National Young Members Forum to recruit and organise students on public service courses.