Transphobia – Is this the last acceptable form of discrimination on television?

Over the last 50 years society has made significant progress in adjusting its views on what is deemed to be acceptable when discussing and portraying people from a wide range of minority groups. Racism, anti Semitism, religious hatred, disability discrimination, homophobia etc are now commonly viewed as unacceptable. In addition to laws enforcing these issues […]

Trans equality is everyone’s business

Conference recognises there is still a long way to go to realise equality for all trans people in the United Kingdom (UK), as demonstrated in the Women and Equality Select Committee’s trans equality inquiry report published in January 2016. This report made a number of recommendations following a public consultation with trans communities highlighting the […]

ILGA – European Solidarity

Conference notes our union’s rich history of international work and the increased importance of having a global perspective in many areas of our work. Conference recognises that UNISON’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) group also has a strong tradition and practice of undertaking international work and regularly engages with and plays an important role […]

Welcoming UNISON’s new Private Contractors National Forum

This conference welcomes new UNISON Rule D 4 which introduces a new Private Contractors National Forum. Conference recognises that some private sector employers discourage trade union membership, raise barriers to trade union organising, may not recognise our union, and place equality initiatives at a low priority. UNISON members who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual and […]

LGBT Financial Capability

Conference will note that there has long been a myth about the “pink pound”, which imagines lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people as living wildly hedonistic lifestyles and consuming luxury goods and services out of the reach of the rest of society. The reality is that LGBT people are far more likely to live […]

Isle of Man

Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people on the Isle of Man are not protected from unfair treatment and discrimination in the workplace and in access to public and private service. There are no legal protections for LGBT people in the form of anti-discrimination laws relating to specifically to sexual orientation or gender and there […]

Police & Justice Constitution

This Conference agrees to update the Police & Justice Constitution to reflect that Conference in 2015 did not support a proposal to introduce direct elections for sector committees. Conference therefore agrees the following amendments to the current Constitution In Section 3 Sector Committee, 3.1 Delete “recognising that currently, in accordance with Rule 3.7.3, any sector […]

Staff care = staff retention

Conference is concerned to note the impact that the previous government’s ‘Transforming Rehabilitation (TR) agenda’ had had on a previously successful and effective Probation Service. As well as a significant dramatic loss of jobs in the Community Rehabilitation Companies (CRCs) we have also seen the imposition of untested payment by results models of working, and […]

Improving workplace equality and diversity in the National Probation Service and Community Rehabilitation Companies

Conference, Disabled members are concerned about monitoring, or the lack of it, within the National Probation Service (NPS) and Community Rehabilitation Companies (CRCs) In the 2016 report “Equality Analysis of NPS Operating Model: Service Users and Staff” shows that staff declaration rates for disabled staff (and many other protected characteristic) in the NPS are at […]

Recruiting and organising LGBT members in police and justice

Conference notes the sustained attack on trade unions and trade union members carried out by the Tory government through what is now the 2016 Trade Union Act. Conference welcomes UNISON’s strong response during the passage of the Bill and affirms that our response now must be to increase our strength, recruiting more members and encouraging […]

Budget cuts and the effect on equalities training

Conference notes that in-service equality training for police and justice staff has many important functions. It helps make the workplace a safe place for all, gives staff the chance to have more equal access to career development and opportunities; and improves service delivery. For example, it can help staff to see beyond societal stereotypes and […]

Blue light proposals – a threat to police staff jobs

Conference is concerned that the Government proposals on emergency service collaboration is a threat to the further erosion of Police Staff roles. The initiative seeks to collaborate all ‘blue lights’ through the sharing of facilities, control rooms and support services and poses a further threat to Police Staff jobs. The work has started in many […]

ELDERLY CARERS

Conference is concerned that hundreds of thousands of carers over retirement age receive no Carers Allowance in recognition of their efforts in caring for their sick, frail or disabled family members, friends or neighbours. In a press release of May 2016, Age UK estimates that carers aged over 80 now number 417,000, most of them […]

CAMPAIGN TO REDUCE LONELINESS IN OLDER PERSONS

Conference notes that there is growing evidence of elderly people suffering from loneliness. By deduction, this will include a large number of UNISON retired members. Recent research has found:- • 17% of older people are in contact with family, friends and neighbours less than once a week and 11% are in contact less than once […]

FIGHT AGAINST FUEL POVERTY

Conference notes that many pensioners in the UK are losing their lives through cold. It has recently been revealed that 43,000 pensioners lost their lives last year, largely assumed to the bad weather. Yet not one politician from any party uttered a word about this national disgrace. We repeat not one of our so called […]