Conference motions

Conference recognises the current crisis surrounding pensions and all our futures upon retirement. We also recognise that for women the situation is far worse than that of men and are, therefore, grateful for the work that UNISON continues to do with the Fawcett Society on the inequality for women in our pensions systems. Conference welcomes […]

Conference notes with concern the findings of the ICM opinion poll commissioned by Amnesty International which indicates that a third of people in the United Kingdom believe that a woman is partially or totally responsible for being raped. The Amnesty report Sexual Assault Research published on 21 November 2005 shows that 26 per cent of […]

Conference is concerned at the increasing number of women suffering from ovarian cancer. Ovarian cancer is the fourth most common cause of death from cancer amongst women in the UK and is known as the silent killer. Every year about 6,000 women in the UK are diagnosed with this disease, the majority of these cases […]

Conference welcomes the decision of the European Social Fund equality programme to award £2.45 million to Healthy Minds at Work in Wales. Conference notes that UNISON Cymru/Wales are founding members of the development partnership. Research has shown that twice as many women than men in the United Kingdom have a diagnosis of a depressive illness. […]

Conference welcomes the work carried out by the National Women’s Committee in promoting the need for a work/life balance and flexible working. Conference also believes that there is also a need for a union/life balance and notes with concern that at last year’s National Women’s Conference the black caucus was held at 6.00 p.m., one […]

Delete 14.1 and replace with: “The mover of a motion or an amendment shall speak for no more than five minutes, and each subsequent speaker shall speak for no more than three minutes.”

Delete 15.3 and replace with: “The Point of Order shall not be debated or amended, and the Chairperson shall make an immediate ruling under S.O.6.1.”

Conference notes the success of Euro 2005, the EUFA (European Football Associations) women’s tournament played in England last summer. Conference applauds the BBC for its comprehensive coverage of the event, with both live matches and highlights on every evening games were played. This brought the women’s game to a much wider audience and at the […]

Conference notes that at present the Self-Organised Groups (SOGs),as well as regions, the Young Members’ Forum and retired members, are only permitted to submit a total of two motions, including any rule amendments, to National Delegate Conference. Furthermore, a proposal to increase this to four motions was defeated at National Delegate Conference 2005. Conference believes […]

Conference congratulates the National Women’s Committee for its joint campaign with the Women’s Environmental Network for breast cancer month last year called the big see. The campaign raised awareness amongst many of our women members about the links between some toxic chemicals in everyday use and the rising incidence of breast cancer. Many hundreds of […]

Conference notes that the government recently carried out a comprehensive public consultation on the Human Fertility and Embryology Act. Matters subject to the review included: 1) access to IVF – at the time of launch of the consultation the government reiterated its view that it considered that it is in the best interests of a […]

Conference recognises that pension holidays taken by employers and without consultation have caused a deficiency in public service pension funds. Many women rely on their private pensions to top up the state pension, as many will not qualify for the full state pension, putting many women below the poverty line in retirement. Conference believes that […]

Conference is proud to note that there are now over one million women members of UNISON, which equates to 75 per cent of our union’s membership. Conference welcomes initiatives such as the Pathways programme and the introduction of union learning representatives which have encouraged more women into active membership and has increased their participation as […]

For women today in the 21st century domestic abuse still remains taboo and hidden in society and in the workplace. For many women, the fear is of not being believed by work colleagues and management. Conference believes that too many women are suffering unnecessarily as a consequence of employers using absence management policies against employees. […]