Conference recognises the nature of poverty has changed and that even people on what may be considered to be reasonable salaries are struggling and in need of support. Unrealistic rhetoric from politicians who are out of touch with reality, who use offensive commentary to describe people in need and how they should be living, drives […]
Conference motions
Conference is concerned by certain IOPC (Independent Office of Police Complaints) investigations relating to Police Staff are failing to be investigated proportionately. Some cases relating to police contact are demonstrably targeted at Police Staff unjustifiably. It has been shown that investigations are centred in apportioning blame to our members when evidence suggests that they are […]
Conference notes with concern that a number of complaints relating to our members that could be considered as vexatious (purely to cause annoyance to the subject). We have seen examples within the workplace and from members of the public who have used the police complaints procedure to damage members, particularly where there is a relationship […]
Conference, funding cuts and the government’s long-delayed plans to address social inequalities is one of the major causes of in-work poverty experienced by Black Workers and the cause of severe inter-generational inequality in Black communities. Recent funding increases have not undone £15bn of cuts in central government grants to public services between 2010 and 2020, […]
This conference notes that the ambitious environmental rhetoric used by all governments in the UK stands in direct opposition to the long-term fall in resources and support for the country’s environmental protection agencies which regulate and enforce environmental legislation. Why action is needed: For over a decade, our environmental protection agencies have been subject to […]
The toxic debate ignited by the United Kingdom government’s consultation on reforming the Gender Recognition Act underlined the importance of our union, including branches in the Water, Environment and Transport service group, supporting and representing our Trans members effectively. Attacks on Trans rights have escalated further in the past year. There has been a sustained […]
Conference notes that UNISON has declared 2022 the year of disabled workers, which is a great opportunity for WET branches to organise, bargain and campaign on the issues that matter to our disabled members and to increase recruitment and retention as a result. WET branches can use 2022 to highlight the experience of our disabled […]
Conference notes that the proposed revisions to the WET constitution have been overseen by the WET Executive and in particular by the policy sub-group, which is made up of representatives of all WET sectors. The key changes to the constitution can be found on: a. Page 2, sub-section 3.3: Sector seats reduced to 3 instead […]
Conference recalls that the “Net Zero” motion passed at the 2021 WET conference called for the service group to work with all appropriate stakeholders in UNISON to promote policies that support a net zero strategy, including proper funding for a ‘Just Transition’ and a significant increase in employment in WET alongside new skills and training […]
A number of posts within the Environment Agency have been transferred to the Department for Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) over the past few years. Also, some new Environment Agency vacancies are advertised as Defra posts. UNISON has strong representation on behalf of our members in the Environment Agency. 1)We are entitled to elect representatives […]
Conference, during the COVID-19 pandemic water industry workers started to hear the terminology that they were key workers. Conference notes the huge impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health, whether on staff working under stressful conditions, people isolated from friends and family by lockdown measures, the physical impact of the virus itself, or the […]
Conference is deeply concerned at the violence, including threats and physical violence, that is shown towards those working in local government. The latest Health & Safety Executive statistics show that around 307,000 adults of working age in employment experienced violence at work, with an estimated 688,000 individual incidents of violence. According to the Labour Force […]
As we emerge from the pandemic, usage of buses is 70-80% of the 2019 level. The figures for rail travel and tram journeys are slightly below that level. Transport companies are facing greater staff shortages than at any time during the pandemic. This is a result of staff leaving for alternative jobs, such as Heavy […]
Recent pay campaigns across the UK have demonstrated that we need to do much more in order to build the confidence of our members in challenging bad practice by their employers. We know that pay matters to members, who have suffered years of austerity, pay cuts/freezes and threats to jobs/services, but they often do not […]
The school system has continued to fragment away from local authorities with the expansion of academies and large Multi Academy Trusts (MATs). Conference notes that Local Authorities have been consistently undermined by the government to drive maintained schools to convert. Strategies have ranged from temporary MAT membership for schools that are ‘nervous’ about joining Trusts, […]