Young people in care

Conference notes the research commissioned by the Rowntree Foundation (Black Youth on the Margins, Ravinder Barn, 2001). The report noted that about 50,000 children and young people were looked after by local authorities in England in 2000. There was no ethnic monitoring of the young people at this point. However in a study of 6 […]

Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Bill

Conference notes that in 2010 the Ugandan newspaper ‘Rolling Stone’ published a list of 100 lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people with their pictures set against a headline of ‘Hang Them’. The photograph of David Kato the founder of Sexual Minorities Uganda (SM-UG) featured prominently on the front page. David, whilst actively fighting against […]

Developing Links in Colombia

It is well known that Colombia continues to be the most dangerous place in the world to be a trade unionist or social movement leader. Between January 2007 and June 2012, 225 trade unionists were murdered for campaigning for their members’ rights and social justice. What is less known by many is that the situation […]

Save legal aid before it is too late

This Conference condemns the cuts implemented to legal aid by this government. Legal aid is the means by which everyone in this country should be able to get access to legal advice and representation. However whole classes of legal aid have been removed that affect the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community. Broken Rainbow, […]

GET ACTIVE – AND KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK

Conference recognises the priority that lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) self organisation has given, along with the wider union, to recruiting new members and engaging existing members in self-organisation. It is to our credit that not only do we encourage membership and participation in the self-organised groups but we also encourage activists to operate […]

Working for Inclusion

Conference believes a growing number of people identify with sexual orientations or gender identities outside of or in addition to the traditional concepts of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT). Conference believes that the most obvious place for these identities to be represented is within the LGBT Self Organised Group (SOG) due to the fact […]

Language Matters

Conference believes that inclusive language is important in ensuring that all people within the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community feel welcome and valued. Conference also believes that language, and our understanding of language, is constantly evolving, and that as LGBT activists we should always be mindful of this. Conference is aware that within […]

LGBT workers’ rights – home and away

Conference recognises that, whilst there is still work to be done in improving rights and conditions for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people in the United Kingdom, these are still significantly better than those endured by many abroad. Homosexuality is still illegal and punishable in varying degrees in dozens of countries, one of which […]

Challenging sexism in the Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender community

Conference notes that because the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community does not exist in a vacuum, sexism looks fairly similar: white men hold power in our community; just as white (straight) men hold the power in the general population. Conference congratulates the National Union of Students (NUS) LGBT conference 2012 for overturning the […]

HIV Prevention and Early Diagnosis

That this Conference notes that as of June 2013, 131,327 human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infections have been diagnosed in the UK since the epidemic (pandemic) began in the early 1980s: at least 21,350 are known to have died. The overwhelming majority (>95%) of HIV infections reported over the past 10 years in the UK were […]

Rise of Homophobia Abroad and international LGBT rights

Conference is concerned about the spread of anti-gay legislation in a number of countries and alarmed at the growing cycle of intolerance where the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community are openly targeted and in many cases attacked. The growing evidence easily accessible on social media, for example, in parts of Russia where young […]

Transphobia in the Media

Conference congratulates Conchita Wurst on her Eurovision win and applauds her work in bringing lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer/questioning (LGBTQ) issues to an international stage. Conchita Wurst is the drag alter ego of Tom Neuwirth who created the character to “call for tolerance for everything that is different.” It was fantastic to see a […]

Root and Branch

With a static or decreasing number of members in our branches we need to review how we organise within the Water, Environment and Transport Service Group (WET). As moves are made to change our branches we need to find a structure that suits us before one is imposed. There seems to be a coordinated effort […]

Review of Organisation and Branch Structure in the Environment Agency

Conference notes that: a) The existing branch structure within the Environment Agency was established at the time that the Environment Agency was created and was based largely on water company boundaries. b) The structure of the Environment Agency has changed significantly since this time and concern has been expressed that certain bargaining groups are no […]

Pension Fund Trustees

Conference notes: a) Many funded pension schemes include provision for member nominated trustees. b) The financial crisis has highlighted the need for appropriate oversight and responsible management of workers capital. c) Proposed changes to the Local Government Pension Scheme are likely to extend the rights of workers to be represented on pensions committees; d) In […]