- Conference
- 2012 Local Government Service Group Conference
- Date
- 1 January 2012
- Decision
- Carried
Composite C
Devolution and the Impact on our Local Government Members
Conference notes the developing debate on constitutional change within the nations and regions of the United Kingdom, particularly Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland, particularly the further devolution of powers in Wales and the independence referendum in Scotland.
Conference notes the union’s ‘Devolution Protocol for Bargaining, Communication and Policy Development’ which sets out principles, issues and steps to take to ensure UNISON is a UK union.
Conference recognises all local government and further education members in Scotland are covered by bargaining arrangements that are entirely devolved already and that significant numbers of members in the Community sector, similarly, are involved in Scottish only bargaining arrangements. At the same time legislation covering these areas is entirely devolved to Scotland. This includes the Local Government Pension Scheme which is already a different scheme from that in the rest of the United Kingdom and that these differences could increase in future years.
Members in Wales and Northern Ireland also have a number of areas where bargaining and legislation covering the services we work in are devolved.
This situation presents challenges for the Local Government Service Group and Service Group Executive which should be considered and addressed. These challenges include:
1) Recognising where there is a different legislative base for the provision of services and where this impacts on the development of policy, campaigns and publications;
2) Differing timetables and priorities in relation to bargaining on pay
3) Competing priorities for resources available to the SGE;
4) Tensions in relation to the democratic structures within the local government service group where the use of Rule P.1.3.6 is an imperfect mechanism.
Conference recognises that some of these issues have been addressed in the devolved nations by developing effective structures to deal with the bargaining, campaigning and democratic issues created by these challenges. However Conference recognises that this is not always a coherent and consistent response and can lead to other consequences which could cause difficulties for the union.
Conference calls for the Service Group Executive to:
a) Ensure that publications, communications, mailings and briefings are “devolution proofed” so that they are either clearly identified as being relevant only to one sector or another, or that they are suitably amended or added to in order to make them applicable to all nations and regions. For Wales this would also include the provision of bi-lingual literature, so that campaigning material is as equally accessible to both our English and Welsh speaking members and communities.
b) Where it is not appropriate to “devolution proof”, separate publications, mailings and briefings on the subject are produced. They should be clearly marked who they are relevant to
c) Ensure that all sectors communicate with relevant parts of the union as set out in UNISON’s devolution protocol
d) Ensure that resources within the local government sector are deployed in campaigns which reflect the respective priorities in each region and nation with Regional Service Group Executives being consulted on priorities and timings
e) Review the democratic arrangements within the Local Government Service Group to consider proposals to ensure that branches in different bargaining sectors have appropriate democratic structures to oversee their bargaining and policy development in line with the devolution protocol.
Cymru/Wales Region
Scotland Region
Local Government Service Group Executive