Conference believes that it is essential to recruit and organise apprentices, and to bargain for high quality apprenticeships to be available in local government. In the year 2022/2023, public sector targets were that 2.3% of all public sector employees should be apprentices. At this same time, according to the most recent UK Parliament report on […]
Conference motions
Conferences recognises and commends the efforts of UNISON members in Northern Ireland in campaigning for the introduction of universal, free school meals. Conference notes that the UNISON campaign in Northern Ireland has been for the introduction for universal, nutritious, free school meals for all children and young people, as a measure to promote child health […]
Conference recognises the determined efforts made by members in Education Support Services in Northern Ireland whose industrial action delivered the long-required pay and grading review, with the return of the devolved political institutions at Stormont in 2024. However, Conference notes that classroom assistants, including Special Educational Needs (SEN) assistants in Northern Ireland, continue to face […]
Conference notes that it is 30 years since the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) 1995 first gave disabled people the right to request reasonable adjustments at work. When the Equality Act became law in England, Scotland and Wales in 2010 the duty to make reasonable adjustments was included. The DDA remains in force in Northern Ireland. […]
The English Devolution White Paper, released in December 2024, proposes the reorganisation of local authorities, which could see the removal of all district and borough councils in favour of unitary authorities. Six areas: Cumbria, Cheshire & Warrington, Norfolk & Suffolk, Greater Essex, Sussex & Brighton and Hampshire & Solent have been included in the Devolution […]
Conference notes with concern the government’s proposals for wholesale local government reorganisation across England, particularly given that this was not in the recent Labour Party election manifesto or referred to anywhere prior to the Chancellor’s announcement in late 2024. Conference believes that any attempt to lift local government from out of the crisis inflicted upon […]
Cuts to housing budgets are having significant consequences for our members, who are already suffering 14 years of Tory austerity. Over the past number of years, we have seen this workforce depleted resulting in additional pressures for housing workers, a rise in absence and many leaving the service. This has also meant for many having […]
This conference notes that according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies, sixth form college funding was cut by around 17% between 2013 and 2019, with real terms funding in 2024 set to be below the level it was in 2010. The IFS also states that that funding for students in sixth form colleges is 22% […]
Conference notes the damage 14 years of the Conservative government’s austerity agenda has done to local government services and to tailored services for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, Plus (LGBT+) people. Libraries and community centres were closed and specialist LGBT+ Youth Workers, Housing Officers and sexual health staff were made redundant. Social care was left to […]
Conference welcomes the end of the disastrous Conservative government’s 14- year rule. In their time in government, the Tories stoked division and utilised anti-LGBT+ narratives for political gain, especially about trans people. In 2023, the Department for Education published their new guidance for teachers on how best to support pupils in schools “questioning” their gender. […]
Conference notes that Labour’s English Devolution white paper proposes reorganising large parts of local government. Merging many district councils into larger unitary authorities will impact local democracy and public services. Over half of the 21 county councils that had elections planned this year applied to postpone them as a result. Councillors across many counties, have […]
Conference recognises: 1) The social care system in the UK is in crisis, characterised by chronic underfunding, fragmented services, and a workforce that is undervalued, underpaid, and overworked; 2) The devastating consequences of a privatised and market-driven care system, which prioritises profit over people and fails to deliver the quality care that individuals and communities […]
Conference knows that poor behaviour in colleges leads to staff experiencing stress, mental health problems, physical injuries and high staff turnover. It is the time for us to focus our efforts on tackling learner behaviour in the college sector as lower-paid support staff across the UK must no longer bear the brunt of abuse and […]
Conference notes that our members employed by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) in England, Cymru/Wales, and Northern Ireland work diligently to ensure the public consumes safe and hygienic meat, dairy, and seafood. Our members work in slaughterhouses, offices, and from home, making UNISON the biggest union organising in the FSA. Conference also notes the vital […]
Everyday council workers in Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and England go to work knowing they cannot provide the level and quality of service they would wish because the deep spending cuts since 2010 make that impossible. Each local authority continues to grapple with an absolutely dire financial situation and core services are likely to be […]