Health and Safety

UNISON is appalled by the continued attacks from the ConDem government on Health and Safety protection for workers. These attacks are despite a lack of any evidence from two government funded reviews to suggest any problems in the arrangements and legal protections afforded by the Health and Safety legislation, and European Directives. It is therefore […]

Defend the Knowledge and Skills Framework and promote the Equality Agenda

Conference notes that the Knowledge and Skills Framework (KSF) has had a turbulent integration within the NHS. There have been widespread variations regarding the success of the KSF across NHS employers. Conference remains committed to the belief that KSF is an in invaluable tool in the NHS and used properly it is a method of […]

Trade Union Representatives

Conference deplores the attacks on trade union facility time made by organisations such as Taxpayers Alliance (TPA) and the newly formed Trade Union Reform Campaign (TURC). Conference believes that the poorly conducted ‘research’ conducted by the Taxpayers Alliance, claiming that £113m was spent on trade unions, represented nothing more than an ideological attack on public […]

Public Services

Conference notes with concern the increasing number of service reforms facing public services the unrelenting attack on the public services being waged by the coalition government and the far reaching consequences that budget cuts, job losses and privatisation have on the fabric of our communities and the prospects for economic recovery. As recent Office of […]

Economy

Conference recognises that never has UNISON faced such an unprecedented fight for quality public services and members’ jobs. The public sector is being penalised for an economic crisis that is not of our making. The Coalition government’s policies are hitting public services hard across the board with threaten essential services. Not only are jobs at […]

NHS

Conference reaffirms its complete opposition to the government’s Health and Social Care Bill and other plans associated with the Liberating the NHS white paper. Conference believes that these represent the biggest threat to the integrity and values of the English NHS in its history. Conference asserts that the government’s moves towards a wholesale healthcare market […]

Trade Union Equality and Employment Rights

Conference is alarmed that employment rights are now firmly in the Coalition government’s sights for cutting as part of an alleged growth strategy for the Chancellor. This is rejected by Conference as making workers feel more insecure is both unfair, unequal and in fact decreases confidence in the economy. Conference deplores the increasing use by […]

Housing

Conference notes: 1) that the ConDem government is proposing cuts to housing benefits that will result in financial hardship and even evictions for hundreds of thousands of private and public sector tenants. This is not only the unemployed but families in work on low wages and pensioners; 2) new limits will restrict the maximum amount […]

Income Inequality

Conference notes 1) that the National Equality Panel report in 2010 noted that the gap between rich and poor in this country is the greatest it has been since the Second World War that the report of the High Pay Commission in 2011 predicts that if current trends continue, then by the year 2030 Britain […]

Oppose privatisation

Despite successfully fighting privatisation in the majority of the health service, UNISON in Northern Ireland, like other regions, is battling the continued outsourcing of domiciliary care services to the private sector. There is also a continued push for shared services across the health service. Our members are deeply worried about compulsory relocation and redundancies. Conference […]

Campaign against the cuts

Conference notes the Tory led attack on public services and the NHS across the UK. In Northern Ireland the £4.3 billion cut to the block grant to Northern Ireland has had a hugely detrimental impact on public service delivery. Conference is very aware of the significant drain on our Health and Social Care service budgets. […]

Pensions and disabled members

Drawing a pension is an important part of financial independence in older age. For disabled workers low pay, periods of unemployment, the additional costs associated with being disabled and rising living costs may make it seem too expensive to join – or to stay in – an occupational pension scheme. Government attacks on our pensions […]

Protecting the NHS from theft and fraud

This Conference believes that the Health and Social Care Bill as drafted will make the National Health Service a soft target for thieves and fraudsters. Conference notes with concern that the Bill does not make statutory provision for the prevention, detection or investigation of fraud and theft from the National Health Service and has left […]

Disability Leave Scheme

Conference notes that Disability Leave Scheme is not used consistently across all NHS employers because it may not be supported or easily available to employees within their NHS organisation. Disability Leave Scheme is fundamental in supporting employees with disabilities whose condition may have deteriorated or are receiving new medication, with a period of time off […]

Defending Admin & Clerical Jobs in the NHS

Conference is proud of the approach that UNISON has taken over the years that the NHS only functions efficiently because of “the whole team”. Conference notes that the Autumn Statement almost doubled the numbers of public service staff who will lose their jobs as part of the austerity UK Government’s programme. Conference believes that the […]