Deficiencies in the protection of operational staff in the water sector from exposure to COVID-19

This conference notes that the health, safety and wellbeing of workers providing services in the Water, Environment and Transport Sectors � as well as in the other more prominent sectors such as Health – has been paramount to UNISON during the COVID-19 pandemic, and will continue to be into the future. The Water Industry Sector […]

Feeling Good in the WET Service Group

Conference welcomes the fact that more conversations are being held around the issues of mental health, however, for many it is still a taboo subject and for others a painful subject. This however does not stop the effect it has on people, regardless of gender, race, sexual orientation, beliefs. Mental health does not discriminate and […]

The continuing drift from RPI to CPI and the impact on pay.

This conference notes the continuing desire by employers in the water sector to move away from RPI and embrace CPI when negotiating pay. Excuses abound, from the employers, to explain the reasoning to change to CPI. One of the main excuses being given, is the regulator Ofwat’s changes to the method used to increase consumer […]

LGBT Mental Health Workplace Initiatives

Conference notes that there have been some staff wellbeing initiatives by employers in the Water, Environment and Transport service group related to mental health support, these are not consistent and there is still further to go for employee wellbeing. Conference recognises that at least one in four of us will experience mental health problems at […]

UNISON Activists and Mental Health

Conference is concerned to note that increasingly both branch activists and lay officials are finding themselves suffering extreme stress and anxiety when dealing with the levels of case load that they are presented with. In some cases representatives in WET have been placed under extreme personal pressure by employers. Conference notes that these pressures on […]

Fair representation of Black people in the recruitment process

In 2009, the Department for Work and Pensions embarked on an experiment to understand the scarcity of non-white faces in top managerial posts in UK organisations. 2,000 fake job applications were created in response to 1,000 real vacancies across multiple sectors, professions and pay grades. Similar CVs – one with a “traditional Anglo-Saxon” name and […]

Bargaining for good Mental Health policies in WET workplaces

Conference notes that our workplaces are changing, with members in Water, Environment and Transport (WET) facing increased workloads as targets are increased year on year and working conditions often deteriorate under TUPE transfers. These pressures have made the importance of ensuring good mental health in WET workplaces clear. At least one in four of us […]

Lyme Disease

This Water, Environment and Transport Conference is aware of cases of Lyme disease to employees in the Water Industry and likely elsewhere to members within the Service Group. The disease is caused by bacteria transmitted to humans via the bite of an infected tick or other blood feeding insect. Most affected are likely to be […]

Angling Trust – Voluntary Bailiff Scheme

This Conference calls upon the Service Group Executive to work with the Environment Agency Sector Committee to investigate the cost / benefit of the Environment Agency funding a Voluntary Bailiff Scheme. The Environment Agency has used Rod Licence Income to fund staff at the Angling Trust to set up a volunteer system and has provided […]

Campaigning for quality clinical placements

The abolition of the NHS bursary in England took effect on 1 August 2017. The 2017 Health Conference called on the Health Service Executive Group to “monitor the quality of placements if there are additional training places” among other things. Conference notes that the finalisation of the funding arrangements for clinical placements in England happened […]

Agile or Fragile? Impact of Hot-desking on NHS Staff

Conference notes that NHS Employers are moving more towards agile working. The argument for implementing agile working is to increase productivity and to save money in the face of massive Cost Improvement Programmes forced on to NHS organisations. Conference understands that where agile working is implemented and driven as a measure to cut costs it […]

No role for private consultants in Job Evaluation

Bucks Health Care & Community has recognised that there is an inequality in pay banding across the NHS. Many NHS workers are doing similar roles in trusts for different pay; these differences can even be in neighbouring NHS Trusts. The inequality in pay banding becomes more apparent when the job role does not fit the […]

TACKLING THE UNDERFUNDING CRISIS IN HEALTH AND SOCIAL CARE.

UNISON Health Conference notes: 1)The alarming news that the government is encouraging councils to increase council tax in an attempt to fund massive funding gap in health and social care provision. 2)The King’s Fund has reported that the share of GDP spent on health has dropped from 8.8% in 2009, to 7.3% in 2014/15, and […]

Supporting members through service transformation

Conference notes that across the UK there are a number of current initiatives seeking to bring about service transformation. These include, but are not limited to, Sustainability and Transformation Plans (STPs) in England, the ten year vision for health and social care based on the Bengoa report in Northern Ireland, and further moves towards more […]

Thames Valley Cost of Living campaign

This Conference notes that NHS pay has not kept up with the cost of living. With a fall in pay of approximately 10-12% many regions are having major staffing and recruitment problems. Especially in London and the South East where the cost of living tends to be much higher. For example, Oxfordshire is the most […]