Pregnancy Rights

Conference notes that some women still face discrimination in the workplace purely because they are pregnant. Each year, around 30,000 working women are sacked, made redundant or leave their jobs due to pregnancy discrimination. No woman should be penalised for being pregnant. An investigation recently found that some women are unaware of their rights during […]

For A Shorter Working Week

Local government workers are coming under increasing pressure to work longer hours, often for no extra recompense, to cover for staff cuts and shortages. This is causing massive increases in stress levels exacerbating the situation and leading to further absence and staffing shortfalls. This spiral has been clearly demonstrated in the opinion polls conducted for […]

Playworkers

Conference believes that Playwork and Playworkers are having a very difficult and threatening time due to various local authorities making cuts in play provision and services at a time when they are already grossly underfunded. Playwork has been disrespected and misunderstood despite vast evidence of the great value of the work. Cuts are being made […]

Strategic Area Reviews (STARS) and FE/6th Form Colleges

This Local Government Service Group Conference notes with concern the vast amounts of money controlled by unelected, unaccountable quangos in the UK and the influence, for good or bad, on the lives of all of our members. This is perhaps demonstrated most clearly in the case of Boards of Management, which are the governing bodies […]

Agency Workers in Local Government

This Conference notes: 1)The large number of staff employed as agency staff within local government 2)That the employers in local government use agency staff as a measure to deal with what are long term recruitment and retention problems which are attributable to poor pay, terms and conditions 3)Agency staff are also used as a measure […]

Privatisation of Education

Conference notes with concern the undermining of comprehensive education and the incremental and multi faceted process of privatisation and the continued marketisation of education which has taken place since 1997 through private management of state schools; privatisation of LEA functions; and the continued use of PFI. The Government’s 5 year strategy for education will speed […]

Associate Mental Health Practitioner

This conference is becoming increasingly alarmed at the introduction of a new worker called the Associate Mental Health Practitioner (AMHP) within a large mental health trust in the South East of England. The AMHP was originally introduced in response to a shortage of registered mental health nurses in that particular geographical area but is now […]

Mental Health Services

This conference recognises that much of the current mental health legislation dates back to the 1950’s and that even the most recent amendments to the Mental Health Act in 1983 are now seriously out of date. Many improvements to mental health services, particularly over the last 5 years, have necessitated a root and branch review […]

Completing the Picture – Raising the Profile of Non-Clinical NHS Staff

Conference welcomes the campaign ‘Completing the Picture’ which aims to raise the profile of clerical, administrative and managerial staff in the NHS. This campaign, organised by UNISON with the NHS Confederation, won the support of 116 MP’s who signed an Early Day Motion in October/November 2004. The campaign pack features real people doing real jobs, […]

Unsocial Hours and Agenda for Change

Conference notes that negotiations are to continue later this year on harmonised unsocial hours payments under AfC. 1.Conference believes that unsocial hours payment should be directly linked to unsocial hours worked as in the current Whitley system; 2.Conference does not believe that the introduction of a percentage addition to basic pay, dependant on average unsocial […]

Funding for Back-Fill to Implement Agenda for Change

Conference notes that just prior to the Special Conference on Agenda for Change the Government announced £30 million would be made available to support the funding of back-fill for union activists to enable us to implement it properly. This was then clarified as being £15 million in 2004/5 and £15 million in 2005/6. Facility time […]

Back Door Cuts in NHS Funding

Conference notes that ‘recycling’ money, annual ‘efficiency savings’, ‘top-slicing’ for different purposes, ‘brokerage’ and multiple announcements of the same pots of new money have long been features of Government funding of the NHS. Making sense of the direct funding of individual Trusts has become a nightmare, even before variable, activity-based funding and PFI contracts are […]

Recruitment of Overseas Nurses and Carers

Conference notes the continued recruitment of Overseas Nurses and Carers into the Healthcare Sector of the United Kingdom and in particular those recruited to work in the Private Healthcare Sector. UNISON has been at the forefront of many initiatives to highlight the exploitation of overseas nurses, and a number of helpful initiatives have emerged. Despite […]

Agenda for Change

Conference notes that the Agenda for Change proposals were accepted in the ballot of UNISON members and are now being implemented. Acceptance and implementation do not mark the end of the process of negotiations on new terms and conditions and pay structure but only an interim stage. Conference affirms that UNISON regards Agenda for Change […]

Sector Committees

Conference notes that with the introduction of Agenda for Change and the demise of the Whitley Councils, UNISONS National Sector Committees come under the spotlight. Areas currently covered by National Sector Committees are: Administrative and Clerical Ambulance services Ancillary and Maintenance Nursing and midwifery Professional and Technical “B” PT “A” (Professions allied to medicine) Senior […]