Aggregation of all Previous Service for NJC and Scottish Joint Council Staff

Conference notes that NJC and the Scottish Joint Council staff must have continuous service in order to be entitled to any benefits including the ‘long service’ award (an extra 5 days holiday after 5 years service) and that this specifically disadvantages women who are more likely to have taken career breaks and will therefore have […]

Term Time Only Pay

This conference is dismayed that, despite the advances achieved by the schools remodelling agreement, support staff in schools are still treated less favourably than teachers. Already low paid support staff have been financially penalised by the withdrawal of their ability to claim benefits for school holidays, yet the majority do not get paid for the […]

Assessment of Ill Health

Conference notes the trend towards ever more rigorous application of varied standards before allowing access to pensions in cases of ill health While we are keen to explore all reasonable alternative work, especially within the rules of the Disabilities Discrimination Act, we are opposed to the termination of contracts due to incapacity without access to […]

Pensions

Conference notes that while UNISON has campaigned hard for the defence of the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS), pensions remains an issue which is difficult to raise effectively among young members. Conference also notes that this is undoubtedly in part due to the prospect of a long-term investment of a significant element of income to […]

Increase in Fuel Price – Negotiations

Conference calls upon the National Local Government Service Group Executive and the Scottish Local Government Committee to: 1)Re-negotiate the National Joint Council and the Scottish Joint Council rates on travelling in line with the increase in fuel prices; 2)Lobby for the Inland Revenue rate to be re-negotiated in line with the rise in fuel costs; […]

UNISON in Housing Associations

Conference recognises UNISON’s strong and consistent support for council stock. 2005 National Delegate Conference motion 51 builds on previous policy and continues the thread of Local Government Motion 37 (2004) and National Conference Composite D (2004) entitled “Housing”. Conference recalls the yearly Housing Seminar held nationally for UNISON activists and members. A key aim of […]

Developing Further Education College Organisation

This Conference notes that further education colleges face significant challenges in securing implementation of national pay and conditions agreements. These have recommendation status only and at least one third of colleges ignore them. This problem is compounded by the unstable and variable funding environment and the business ethos of colleges which are corporations. Over the […]

Nursery Nurse Pay

This Service Group Conference:- 1)Condemns the continuing failure of the employers to address the issue of Nursery Nurse pay on a national basis in England and Wales 2)welcomes the pay increases that nursery nurses achieved across Scotland and the Scottish Executive’s national review of the Early Years and childcare workforce due to be released for […]

ALMOs and Housing Stock Transfers

Conference notes the problems associated with Housing Stock transfers. Conference instructs the Service Group Executive to: 1)Produce a report identifying the “star ratings” for all Housing authorities and ALMO’s. This report should highlight any changes in the star ratings since the establishment of any individual ALMO. This report should be completed in time for Local […]

Amendments to Pay Consultation Procedures

This Conference agrees to the following amendments to the Pay Consultation Procedures agreed by the 2002 Local Government Service Group Conference: 8e – Regions – Add after first sentence – “Regions shall be encouraged to hold delegate meetings for branches covered by the pay offer, in order to debate the proposals and how to encourage […]

The Disability Equality Duty and Local Government

This Local Government Conference welcomes the Disability Discrimination Act 2005 which will impose a new Disability Equality Duty on local authorities from December 2006. We believe these duties could help reconstruct a barrier free society and provide equality of opportunity for the millions of disabled people who are in work or wanting work in local […]

Breast is Best

Conference notes and welcomes the drive to promote breastfeeding and to offer support to women who choose to breast feed. The health benefits of breastfeeding are well-known and the WHO recommends that babies are exclusively breast fed for the first six months. However, this increasingly means that the mother has returned to work before the […]

Rape

Conference is extremely concerned at the apparent increase in the incidence of rape and the concomitant decrease in convictions of men accused of rape. In recent months there have been alarming accounts in various national newspapers of women who pursued prosecutions with the support of the police, only for their alleged attacker to be acquitted […]

Support for Pathways Participants

Conference is pleased to see that women still comprise two-thirds of the membership of UNISON. Conference is concerned that every support should be given to women to ensure that they are enabled to take an active role within the union. Conference is pleased that the Pathways course was included in the national education programme and […]

Involving LGBT Women in Women’s Self-Organisation

Conference welcomes the successful rule amendment carried at last year’s National Delegate Conference introducing a LGBT self organised group into UNISON. Conference acknowledges the support given to the campaign by the National Women’s Committee, Regional Women’s Committees and Women members. Monitoring of attendance at Women’s Conferences and of the National Women’s Committee suggests that LGBT […]