The National Retired Members’ Committee continues to work to ensure that the UNISON website serves as an efficient means of communicating with over 166,000 Retired members. It is vital that members are provided with information about campaigns that they can get involved with and the activities being undertaken by UNISON. Conference notes that since the […]
Conference motions
Conference opposes any attempts by Governments across the UK to cut universal benefits for older people such as the winter fuel payment, free bus pass, free prescriptions and free TV licences. These benefits are essential to ensuring a decent standard of living and social inclusion for millions of pensioners who face daily poverty, fuel poverty […]
UNISON research into zero hours contracts shows that more than 40% of care workers are on these contracts. Activists are reporting that more employers are using zero hours contracts more widely across the NHS. This also includes operational service staff. Zero hours contracts are imbalanced and the employer reaps all the benefits. Members are asked […]
Our NHS is facing the biggest threats in its 65 year history. The impact of the Health and Social Care Act is being felt across all four countries and austerity measures, reorganisations, funding cuts and freezes that are being imposed by the Westminster Government has led to increasing fragmentation of health services. Since 2013 when […]
CEDAW (19 19.1,20) In July 2013 the UK Government was called to give evidence to the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). This requirement to give evidence happens every three years. Women’s organisations came together to produce a shadow report – that was given in evidence to CEDAW. The […]
UNISON branches and members have been at the forefront of campaigns over the last two decades and more to keep our National Health Service public. When necessary and allowed, UNISON branches and members have taken industrial action to maintain and promote the National Health Service. Conference condemns the shameful decision of Nottingham University Hospitals NHS […]
Conference condemns the wholesale privatisation of large parts of the NHS by the Con / Dem government. Without any democratic mandate the NHS is being dismantled bit by bit and handed over to private sector providers who are driven by the profit motive rather than a commitment to deliver quality care for patients. Conference rejects […]
Conference is all too aware that the Coalition Government led by the Tories are ideologically committed to dismantling the NHS and selling it off to their friends in the private healthcare sector. Cameron’s pre election promise that there would be no top down reorganisation of the NHS was mere hypocrisy. Their underfunding of the NHS […]
Male Violence against Women (26 26.1, 30, 31) Conference welcomes the decision by UNISON National Delegate Conference 2013, in passing Motion 8, to encourage women’s activism in our trade union. We recognise that this particular effort is necessary because, in a sexist society, women face particular obstacles to participation in all areas of life, including […]
Conference proposes that UNISON campaigns to bring front line ambulance workers pension retirement age in line with other emergency workers. Front line ambulance staff are soon to be expected to work until they are 67 years old, this is unrealistic bearing in mind the arduous and unpredictable nature of the work. Shift work and long […]
Conference notes with concern the negative impact job re-design and privatisation is having on career pathways in the ambulance service. The increased use of private ambulance companies in the provision of patient transport services (PTS) has seen significant numbers of UNISON members being transferred outside of the NHS. Not only does this represent a threat […]
The current pilot arrangements for aspiring student nurses to experience 12 months work in an HCA role are a knee jerk response to the Francis Report, and fail to fully take account of current experiential learning which many students experience prior to commencing their formal studies. UNISON fully supports the principle of widening participation and […]
National guidelines state that at least 75% of the most serious Category ‘A’ 999 calls should be responded to within eight minutes (Red 1 target). But less than half of trusts are able to meet their target to reach the most critically ill patients within this time. These delays are caused by a range of […]
Conference notes the continuing trend for NHS Trusts to outsource services such as Learning Disability Services, to companies such as Thera, Creative Support, and others. Increasingly members who are transferred to such organisations under TUPE, have seen serious attacks on terms and conditions. In some cases, the transferred staff, on protected NHS terms and conditions, […]
At the public launch of the World Health Organisation Europe Report on health inequalities in 2013, internationally acclaimed Chairperson, Professor Michael Marmot stated that, “The Conservative-led Coalition government uses the word ‘fairness’ as if it has no meaning at all. They cut the top rate of tax – and they call it ‘fair’. They cut […]