This branch has found that in many community workplaces since the COVID-19 pandemic, many employees now opt for complete homeworking or hybrid working (coming into the office two days a week) if they have the option to do so. Furthermore, many charities have closed their offices, forcing their workers to become homeworkers. Many community employers […]
Conference motions
Conference is well aware that disabled workers are paid £3,700 less than non-disabled workers. But conference notes that disabled women are paid even less than disabled men. According to TUC analysis, disabled women face an even bigger pay gap of over £7,000 a year. The gap also increases as women age. Conference recognises that there […]
Workplace Sexual Harassment Numerous surveys run over the course of the pandemic have demonstrated an increase in workplace sexual harassment, with most experiences being online. Homeworking has left women workers unsafe and unprotected from sexual harassment at work. Current protections are clearly not enough. Women have experienced harassment on various online platforms and felt unable […]
Please note, in this context, when we refer to Women, the term encompasses women and pregnant people. Conference notes that there is currently a disparity around attendance management policies for pregnancy losses of less than 24 weeks gestation when compared to pregnancy related illness in an ongoing pregnancy. Our members can unfairly fall through the […]
Conference notes and welcomes the new protection from redundancy for pregnant workers and new parents. Conference thanks Dan Jarvis MP for working in support with UNISON on the new law – the Protection from Redundancy (Pregnancy and Family Leave) Bill – to prevent employers from laying off expectant mothers and new parents, by extending redundancy […]
Conference notes that 2023 was designated UNISON’s year of Black workers, with the aim of ‘establishing legacy to generate change’. Conference welcomes all the work that has been put into marking the year of Black workers, but notes that there is still a long way to go, particularly in regards to young Black members in […]
Conference is clear about the impact of HR processes can have in fairness and equality at work. One example is talent management strategies, which are often designed and implemented in a manner that can lead to a significant disparity in opportunities for Black employees across sectors. The Chartered Institute of People Development (CIPD) defines Talent […]
The National Health Service (NHS) reported that 3.25 million individuals had contact with mental health services during 2021/22 which is approximately 5.8 percent of the population. The Mental Health Foundation tells us that 50% of mental health problems are established by age 14 and 75% by age 24, yet many young people have not had […]
It was reported in 2022 via a leaked National Health Service (NHS) report that Black youth and Black individuals in general were being failed by the system. They now make up 11 per cent of the population however 36 per cent of individuals detained in the highest level units are Black, with limited access to […]
Conference notes barriers faced by Black people when accessing information and treatment for mental health care. Black communities are more likely to experience stigma and shame due to negative stereotyping and attitudes of rejection around mental health awareness. In our region, Black individuals are significantly affected due to racism, discrimination and cultural insensitivity. Work-related stress […]
The history of Black women’s involvement in the union in the UK is an extended, valuable and greatly inspiring one, yet the narratives of Black women activists have often been wiped away or minimised. Black women have long led the way in organising strategies and mobilising communities in the fight against racism and justice for […]
This conference believes that we need to stop the regressive practice of some organisations in the Community and Voluntary sector charging their new employees to get their Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) done. In the midst of a cost of living crisis which is impacting the working of people the hardest, this conference motion contends […]
Conference, it cannot be right, that employees within social care with increasing rent/mortgage payments, fuel, food and utilities, can be left when they fall ill on £100 a week. This is totally unacceptable. Everyone in this room will know someone working in the social care sector, that has fallen ill and has reached crisis point […]
Conference notes that more than 82,000 UNISON members work in the community and voluntary sector. Many of them are women and a significant number work in social care, where women outnumber men four to one. Generally, women tend to have lower paid jobs and fewer hours than men. Also, there are three times as many […]
Conference last year resolved to campaign on sick pay, noting that many workers in our sectors receive only statutory sick pay. That means they receive hopelessly inadequate pay when sick, and nothing at all for the first three days of any sickness absence. Workers are forced to choose between going into work sick and feeding […]