Volunteers in the Police Service

Tayside Police, like many other Forces throughout the UK are currently conducting reviews of efficiency savings. Our own ‘Transforming Tayside’ is effectively a Best Value Review of the business. This BVR highlighted in January 2010 the issue of other Forces utilising volunteers in expanding engagement with the community such as Nottinghamshire and North Yorkshire. Whilst […]

Post Offices

Conference Instructs the National Retired Members’ Committee and calls on the National Executive Council to liaise with the National Pensioners’ Convention, Trades Union Congress and all appropriate organisations to campaign for the cessation of the Post Office closure programme, with particular reference to rural areas as they are often the centre of village life for […]

Unpaid Carers

In the UK there are some six million unpaid carers who provide support for most of the elderly and vulnerable members of society, a saving for the State of £87 million per year. Conference therefore instructs the National Retired Committee and calls on the National Executive Council to liaise with the National Pensioners’ Convention, Trades […]

Right to Private life

As private citizens, our Police Staff members have a right to privacy, that right is fast being eroded by intrusive policies within the Police Service. Police Staff employees deserve the right to a private life and no legislation exists as it does for Police Officers which places restrictions on their private life. It is accepted […]

Trades Union Congress

The Trades Union Congress (TUC) has 58 affiliated trade unions with over 7 million members and states its aims as campaigning for a fair deal at work and social justice. However, Conference believes that retired members of the affiliated trade unions are not as involved in the TUC’s campaign for social justice as they could […]

National Pensioners’ Convention

The National Pensioners’ Convention (NPC) is Britain’s biggest independent campaigning organisation of older people, representing 1000 local, regional and national pensioner groups with a total of 1.5 million members. The NPC’s main objective is to promote the welfare and interests of pensioners, both now and in the future, as a way of securing dignity, respect […]

Improvements to the State Pension

Conference is concerned at the ever-increasing discrepancy between the basic state pension and the poverty threshold. In 2009 the NPC’s figures state that the poverty threshold is £165 pw whilst the basic state pension is £97.25 pw, a discrepancy of £65.75 pw. Much of the blame for this can be laid at the door of […]

Depression in Older People

Conference is concerned that depression in older people goes undiagnosed and that hundreds of thousands of older people may be denied treatment because depression is wrongly seen as a natural part of getting older. Conference, therefore instructs the National Retired Members’ Committee to liaise with the National Executive Council and UNISON’s UK publicity outlets to […]

Hospitals and Wards, Treatment and Support Services

Many hospitals and wards, treatment and support services are being closed or threatened with closure up and down the country. Before hospital closures and mergers started most hospitals were serviced by a good bus service, but now many elderly patients have to travel on two or three buses in order to reach their alternative establishments. […]

Pay

Conference notes – 1)Local Government employers are condemning Council workers to an effective pay cut in 2010/11. 2)That pay restraint for public sector workers will be a key element of the Government’s policy to reduce public spending. 3)The Government and employers are seeking to undermine national pay bargaining. Conference agrees a)The campaign for real improvements […]

Adult Funding Cuts and Redundancies in Further Education

Conference is extremely concerned by the cuts in adult further education (FE) funding and the impact these cuts will have on our members and communities. The Association of College (AoC) claims colleges in England alone will see cuts of between 10 – 25% in their adult learner responsive budgets for 2010//11. They estimate that unless […]

Youth and Community Workers and Outsourcing

Conference is very concerned about the effects of the recession on young people and their high unemployment rate. The mental health of young people suffered greatly in the 1980s recession. According to UNICEF, children and young people growing up in the UK suffer greater deprivation, worse relationships with their parents and are exposed to more […]

Defending and Reforming the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS)

Conference is alarmed by the ongoing attacks on the LGPS from politicians, local councils, the Taxpayers’ Alliance, the CBI, the Institute of Directors and others. Conference also notes with concern the government’s ‘cap and share’ proposals for cost-sharing within the LGPS. Conference welcomes the response by UNISON and the LGPS Trade Union Side and the […]

Two-Tier Workforce

This Conference notes that large-scale privatisation is growing as a response to political ideology and finance pressures. This affects individual UNISON members in the Local Government Service Group and also affects our ability to organise collectively and effectively. TUPE and the “Two-Tier Code” were designed to provide legal protection for transferred and new employees, although […]

Regulatory Authorities in Social Work

This Conference recognises the importance of ensuring that social work and related practice is of a high standard, and that regulatory authorities have a role to play in this process. The regulatory system must be one that has the confidence of the workers who are subject to its regulation, and must therefore to be seen […]