9/10 lose sleep over money and job worries

Nine out of 10 public service workers told a UNISON online poll they were losing sleep worrying about money and jobs.
UNISON ran the poll over the summer, asking people What Keeps You Awake at Night and the results show how public service workers are increasingly struggling to make ends meet.

They showed:

  • 63 per cent worried about being able to save for the future;
  • 57 per cent worried about being able to pay bills; and
  • one in three were worried about being able to feed themselves and their families.

Britain’s public service workers cited pay cuts, redundancy, outsourcing and unfair treatment at work as major concerns. Perhaps not surprisingly, only 3 per cent said they felt that the government was acting in their interests.

The results of the poll – part of UNISON’s Essential Cover recruitment campaign, designed to show how the union can support workers worried about their jobs and family finances – can be seen at the What Keeps you Awake webpage

Some 3,000 people responded to the survey, many adding their comments to our interactive map. UNISON is responding to all those who added their voice and asking non-members to join the union to get support.

Assistant general secretary Liz Snape said: “Our recruitment campaign has been all about reaching out to those public service workers who we know are feeling the pressure but who haven’t yet joined a union.

“This survey was all about having a conversation on social media with these hard-pressed public service workers. We’ll be making sure their voices are heard, but it’s also a timely reminder that when the going gets tough, you need a union to support you.”

What Keeps you Awake

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