- Conference
- 2016 Health Care Service Group Conference
- Date
- 16 December 2015
- Decision
- Carried
Conference reaffirms our belief that health services are best delivered by a public sector workforce directly employed by the NHS. However, the Tory government shows no signs of diverting from its ideological task of privatising health services. Increasing numbers of our members – and potential members – are now working for private companies. Their need for UNISON’s support is greater than ever.
Conference acknowledges the challenges of giving workers scattered across private employers the strong sense of collective union identity and solidarity that has characterised the NHS from its birth. Conference welcomes work underway to develop our organising of privatised members, including members delivering health services.
Conference believes that UNISON’s well-established and active self-organisation of Black members, disabled members, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) members and organisation of young members, nationally, regionally and locally, can play an important part in uniting scattered members. For example, UNISON’s presence at LGBT pride events may recruit and engage LGBT workers from health workplaces where there is currently no UNISON rep. Attendance at UNISON’s LGBT conference has inspired many fledgling health activists to become branch LGBT officers and then take on the whole range of activist positions.
Conference therefore calls on the health service group executive, working with the self-organised groups, young members group and private contractors unit to keep self-organisation, young members organisation and equality at the heart of these organising strategies.