Mental Ill- Health, Mental Health Related Illnesses and Awareness Monitoring.

The problems of mental ill-health and mental health related illnesses are some of the biggest difficulties facing our members at work today. When jobs are under threat, pay packets are being frozen and workloads are increasing, the mental health of employees is always likely to be affected. Over the last two decades, we have all […]

CAMPAIGNING AGAINST LOW & LOWER PAY.

UNISON remains committed to gender equality within all our pay structures and we commend the highly successful on-going campaign financed and delivered by our organisation to achieve this end. At the same time low pay and lower pay appears to have been largely ignored by UNISON as a priority of our members and most development […]

Negotiating workplace domestic abuse policies

Conference notes that the majority of victims of the most severe forms of domestic abuse – and therefore those who are most affected – are women. In the energy service group women account for around 75% of the membership, and this is therefore an issue which has a significant impact on our members in the […]

Black Mental Health

Composite B BLACK MENTAL HEALTH. Conference, the theme of mental health crops up a lot at these conferences and with good reason. The Mental Health Foundation which is the leading mental health research organisation in the UK states that black people from the UK are: More likely to be diagnosed with mental health problems More […]

Closer Working with Students’ Unions

Conference notes the vital importance of expanding the spirit and ethos of trade unionism amongst students. To this end, as a highly politically sensitive area of the union, we need to foster closer relations with students unions through the UK. Students, as a group of ‘consumers’, need to realise that with increased tuition fees, they […]

Death of the Racial Equality Movement

This conference notes the 50th anniversary of the 1965 Race Relations Act in 2015 and the 40th anniversary of the 1976 Race Relations Act next year. Conference notes that the 1976 Act was instrumental to the development of racial equality for Black communities and Black trade unionists in that in addition to the definitions of […]

Higher Education deserves Fair Pay

Conference notes that Higher Education pay and conditions continue to erode following the year on year meagre pay offer from UCEA (Universities and Colleges Employers Association). We know that Universities budget for a figure higher than what is eventually offered by the UCEA negotiators. UK Universities have been described by the Tory Chancellor as the […]

Assessing the value of the Race Equality Charter Mark for Black staff and students in Public Services/Higher Education

Conference, the Equality Challenge Unit (ECU) piloted a Race Equality Charter Mark with the aim to inspire a strategic approach to making cultural and systemic changes that will make a real difference to Black staff and students. The Charter covered: a)Professional and support staff b)Academic staff c)Student attainment, diversity of the curriculum and progression of […]

New ways of working and reasonable adjustments

Conference notes that government cuts mean employers are looking for new ways of working to save money without cutting jobs. Often referred to as Lean or Agile Working, these methods were developed by Toyota and are predominantly used in manufacturing industries. If implemented correctly they can bring financial savings and improve working conditions. While we […]

LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender) staff working overseas

Conference recognises over the last 10 years there has been a massive growth in UK University’s opening overseas facilities, UK Universities are also increasingly involved in offshore campus partnerships. Conference believes that working overseas can be beneficial, both professionally and personally, for the members involved and can provide a new and challenging context for teaching, […]

Preserve our terms and conditions

Conference, we are experiencing many attacks to our funding in the housing association sector with the 1% cut to rents and the right to buy. Where are housing associations going to make the cuts to balance their books? We know from our experience elsewhere it will be the usual response by employers to cut terms […]

Good Care Costs

Disabled members of the community service group are particularly concerned that in August 2015 five of the biggest care providers wrote to the Chancellor stating that the National Living Wage could result in a “catastrophic collapse” in the number of care homes. UNISON believes that the living wage (set by the independent Living Wage Foundation) […]

Living Wage

Conference notes the success of Living Wage Campaigns across the UK in exposing low pay in the community sector and putting poverty pay on the political and bargaining agenda. Conference also notes the success of UNISON legal service in forcing community sector employers to comply with National Minimum Wage rules on sleepovers, travel time and […]

Encouraging More Women to be Active in UNISON

Austerity has resulted in severe jobs losses within the public sector and the disappearance of many essential services. As women make up a core part of the workforce, and are also the main users of many public services, they have been impacted disproportionally. It is therefore essential that women are at the forefront of fighting […]

What’s Europe ever done for us?

The government has announced that, by the end of 2017, they will conduct a referendum on whether the UK should remain within the EU. Conference acknowledges that years of recession, soaring unemployment, and lacklustre leadership have left the public with little faith in the EU and its ability to improve the lives of ordinary working […]