Conference is concerned about the level of discrimination that disabled women are subjected to every day. Conference is further concerned at the government’s continuing failure to implement Section 14 of the Equality Act 2010 which offers protection against dual and multiple discrimination. At 14%, the Disability Pay Gap is the UK’s biggest pay gap and […]
Conference motions
Conference notes that the decision to seek an abortion is never an easy one for a woman, and is a very stressful time of life. Conference also notes the recent attacks on Roe Vs Wade in the USA have given encouragement to anti-choice protesters and activists internationally. Such protests frequently take the form of picketing […]
Yorkshire & Humberside Regional Women’s Committee believe free, community-based provision of sanitary and incontinence products should be available for all women and girls. A 2022 Action Aid UK Survey, as part of the Menstrual Hygiene Day; showed that in the UK 12% of women are now struggling to purchase sanitary products. They are now using […]
“UNISON has approximately 5,000 Health and Safety representatives across the union working hard to defend members’ health and safety at work. Over the past few years health and safety has emerged again as critical for protecting members’ rights at work. However, the gender balance of Health and Safety representatives in UNISON does not reflect the […]
This conference notes that whilst there is a better awareness and knowledge of menopause and perimenopause generally, some of which has been helped by Unisons comprehensive guidance on the Menopause, we as a union still need to further focus on specifically promoting this within the workplace. Women make up over 70% of Unison membership and […]
Conference believes that everyone deserves to be paid a real living wage. We call upon the National Higher Education Service Group Executive to ensure that in the next round of The New Joint Negotiating Committee for Higher Education Staff (JNCHES) negotiations a pay spine is proposed and promoted by UNISON representatives in which the lowest […]
Conference believes it is time that Universities actively participated in 4-day work week trials. Universities are centres of research and innovation and many want to be ‘employers of choice’ (employers that people actively want to work for). They are the perfect institutions to try new approaches to work. Findings suggest that a 4-day week enhances […]
Conference we are living in dangerous and difficult times for workers, for our members and specifically our women members. The basic necessities of life – food and heating are increasing at alarming rates. As a majority women members union, we are fighting to prevent pay awards becoming pay cuts. Whilst its true that this will […]
This conference notes that whilst there is often a proactive approach, policies, and systems in place for customers that organizations serve when it comes to tackling domestic abuse and violence there may not be the same levels of provision for staff. It is also recognized that whilst there may be workplace policies in existence; the […]
Universities are autonomous organisations, delivering higher education and research, with the freedom to manage their own finances, subject to regulation. Each institution is different, with a complex mix of income streams depending on the nature of the students it teaches, the quantity and perceived quality of research it conducts to drive research income, and the […]
Higher education pay has fallen behind. Since 2009 our pay has lost around 28% of its value as a result of below inflation cost-of-living rises year on year. The extreme increase in prices during 2022 has brought this to a crisis point, and UNISON members working in Higher Education are facing real hardship as a […]
Conference notes the success of UNISON’s Year of Disabled Workers 2022. Throughout the year we saw renewed focus on the experience of disabled members in our union, in the workplace and in society, including those in the Higher Education service group. We used the year to highlight the important contribution our disabled members make to […]
The Women’s Budget Group (WBG) have in 2022 produced a series of reports clearly highlighting the impact this post pandemic cost of living crisis will have on women. We are in the midst of combined high inflation rates, across the board price increases and significant income deficit for many through historic and ongoing low wage […]
The Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA) gives people the right to request information from universities. The Act aims to promote a culture of transparency and accountability, and therefore facilitate better understanding of how the universities carry out their duties, why they make the decisions they do, and how they spend public money and that […]
Higher Education professional support staff across the country provide a vital service to our universities and students by carrying out hugely varied roles across our Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), though too often this work is not given the recognition it deserves by employers. UNISON has a brilliant membership benefits package. There are opportunities to promote […]