Temporary Injury Allowance for NHS Staff

Conference at a time when NHS staff suffer injury as a direct result of assault and are absent from work for some time, they often suffer financial detriment. At present Temporary Injury Allowance is paid @ 85% of average earnings based on the previous twelve months. This is a significant drop in earnings at a […]

Blame Culture within the NHS

Conference believes far too little has been done by the Department of Health and the devolved health departments to tackle the damaging deep-rooted “blame culture” within the Service. Despite the introduction of clinical governance the search for scapegoats often takes precedence over tackling the root causes of mistakes, and poor practice. This approach may actually […]

NHS and VAT

This conference believes that UNISON should campaign for NHS organisations to have parity with local authorities in recovery of VAT on new build projects. Local authorities are able to claim a full refund of VAT while the NHS is unable to recover a penny. This artificially enhances PFI contractors in relation to in-house NHS bids. […]

Developing an Organising Culture in Health

Conference notes that the challenges facing UNISON’s health sector have never been greater. Proposals for radical changes in pay are only the latest of a very long list of challenges we face – restructuring of employers, improving working lives, major changes in acute hospitals, mental health, and primary care, the involvement of the private sector, […]

Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Bill

Conference deplores the fact that during the Labour Government’s second term of office, asylum and immigration legislation remains oppressive and racially discriminatory. This Conference further condemns the Labour Government’s proposal in the Asylum, Immigration and Nationality Bill that proposes to withdraw the right of appeal from asylum seekers in this country. Conference applauds the work […]

Life Long Learning

Conference congratulates UNISON on its excellent Lifelong Learning Programme, which is encouraging an increasing number of members to return to learning. However, Conference believes that further positive measures should be implemented to ensure the increased participation of women in education and training as a precondition for increased empowerment and gender equality. Conference remains extremely concerned […]

Term Time Workers

The National Women’s Committee welcomes the work that UNISON has done on highlighting particular issues affecting term time workers and their employment status and the campaign for improvements in their terms and conditions of employment. The rights of term time workers are often inferior due to qualifying periods based on weeks worked and diluted annualised […]

Equal Pay

Conference welcomes the work done by the National Women’s Committee to promote UNISON’s equal pay campaign. Conference is pleased to note that the campaign for equal pay remains a priority area for UNISON nationally, which means that it should be prioritised for action in all service groups and regions. Conference also welcomes the announcement of […]

Working Mothers Still Find Childcare Provision Lacking

Last year the provision of childcare and early year’s development formed two separate motions at National Women’s Conference, they were supported but were not selected to go through to the mainstream National Delegate Conference. This Conference calls upon the National Women’s Committee to take steps to research and co-ordinate examples of good employer childcare practices. […]

Breaking the Glass Ceiling

This Conference congratulates UNISON’s work on developing the Pathways Training initiative and its many other life enhancing training events for its members. This Conference resolves that this work should be built on to give UNISON women members a real opportunity to reach their full potential both personally and professionally. We therefore instruct the National Women’s […]

Chemicals and Cosmetics in Household Products

There is growing evidence linking breast cancer to the cocktail of chemicals in the air, water, land and our food which we are exposed to every day. These chemicals are commonly used in a variety of products found in the home and the workplace. Breast cancer is a symbolic illness, symbolising the harm being done […]

Transfer of Call Centres

We condemn the transfer of Bank call centres from Great Britain to other countries, i.e. India, just to save money. This will cause much hardship amongst our low paid mainly women workers. These banks are exploiting the women of these third world countries, a miserly £2,500 per year. In Great Britain they will have to […]

Body Fascism

Conference is concerned about the promotion of ever more restrictive and narrowly defined images of girls and women together with similarly narrow definitions of femininity in what Anna Ford so aptly dubbed body fascism, and the relationship between this and the increase in anorexia and bulimia in girls and young women. This is most notably […]

Reserved Low Paid Women’s Seats

This Conference notes with concern the number of reserved seats vacant at regional and national level. These reserved seats are restricted to women members earning less than a basic hourly rate of £5.90 (January 2001) to be uprated annually by the increase in median earnings as defined by the New Earnings Survey. These seats are […]

Self Harm

Conference welcomes the work done regarding Work Life Balance, however we believe issues affecting young women still need to be addressed. Many young women struggle to cope with the pressures of work and also family life. Stress affects people in many different ways. Some young women may turn to drink, drugs or even self harm. […]