Decolonising LGBT equality: aid conditionality and LGBT human rights

Conference notes with concern the statement by UK Prime Minister David Cameron that overseas aid should be cut to countries which criminalise homosexuality. Conference notes that UNISON is opposed to such aid conditionality. Conference believes that it would not advance lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) human rights or equality but rather would create a […]

UNISON calling

Conference notes that in 2012, UNISON launched the call centre charter, which calls on all employers who have UNISON members working in a call centre or in call handling operations to commit to improving the standards which those staff operate under. Conference notes that the charter was primarily aimed at branches in the energy service […]

Outsourcing, the privatisation agenda and disabled workers

Conference is concerned about increased outsourcing and hidden privatisation in local government and the impact on disabled workers. Local authorities who oppose privatisation are looking at mutuals, cooperatives and social enterprises, all privatisation by another name. Public services by their nature are under-provided by the market because they do not make a profit. They are […]

Living Wage

Conference recognises the success of the campaigns to achieve the Living Wage in councils and notes that the pay offer from the Scottish employers for 2013 included a Living Wage for all 32 councils in Scotland of a Living wage of at least £7.50. Conference notes however that not all councils have agreed to pay […]

Attacks on facility time

Conference is concerned at this government’s concerted attacks on trade union facility time in the public sector. The United Kingdom has a proud tradition of progressing industrial relations through a joint approach with trade unions. Public sector employers recognise the worth of allocating facility time as a means of supporting trade union activists to fulfil […]

The true cost of Local governments’ pay and increment freezes on Black staff

Local government employees have had their pay and in some instances increments frozen for the past three years. Councils like Sheffield are planning to dismiss and re-engage staff to force through yet another pay and increment freeze. Black staff employed in the public sector are concentrated in the lower grades and the impact on such […]

The Black Experience – UNISON’s Freedom of Informatiom

UNISON’s initial Freedom of Information (FOI) exercise conducted in the Greater London, West Midlands and North West regions has revealed that a significant number of local authorities are shedding hundreds of thousands of jobs across the UK. Those FOIs show the number of Black staff that have been made redundant in the financial year 2010/2011. […]

UNISON women – active, campaigning, leading

UNISON is proud to be the leading trade union for women. We have a solid history of women being at the heart of the union; through enshrining self organisation into our rule book along with proportionality. As a union which has a majority of women members we do not just talk the talk. Women are […]

Negotiating for equality in a time of local government cuts

Conference notes that the Tory-led government’s onslaught on public service workers and their failed austerity measures have led to worsening terms and conditions for local government workers. Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) workers are affected like any other local government worker as pay and conditions are undermined. But the impact on terms and conditions […]

The Gender Agenda

Conference commends the proposal to set a “gender agenda” in local government pay negotiations. The government’s austerity measures and the pay freeze in local government have impacted disproportionally on women, not least because three quarters of workers in local government are women and more than half of these women work part-time, in low paid jobs […]

Free Schools and Studio Schools

Conference is totally against the setting up of Free Schools and Studio Schools. Unlike Academies which are existing schools that have changed status; Free Schools and Studio Schools are brand new schools. Often these new schools are located next to established existing community schools and threaten their very existence. In the majority of cases staff […]

Local Government Funding Cuts

Conference is alarmed that many Councils have faced unprecedented reductions in Government grants since the 2010 Comprehensive Spending Review. Since then, the position has deteriorated for local government with many councils now forecasting that central Government support over the six year period 2011-2017 will see reductions in excess of £100m. The December 2012 Autumn Statement […]

Cooperative Councils – Mutualisation or Marketisation

Conference notes the continued promotion of co-ops, mutual and social enterprise by the Coalition Government as being a preferred delivery of local council services. This interest in mutualism is driven by the Coalition Government’s flagship agenda of the Big Society. By giving public sector workers a right to form mutuals and co-operatives, the government claims […]

Demise of the state education system

Conference believes that this government is intent on dismantling state education in the same way they are dismantling our National Health Service. The views of support staff, parents and teachers are being ignored whilst the Coalition government’s Secretary of State for Education, Michael Gove, arrogantly decides that he has the freedom to overturn 150 years […]

Regional Representation on the UNISON NJC Committee

Conference notes that the current constitution for regional representation on the UNISON NJC Committee is as follows: Regions with up to 65,000 local 1 general representative government members elect: 1 women’s representative Regions with 65,001 to 100,000 1 general representative local government members elect: 1 women’s representative 1 low paid women’s rep Regions with over […]