Equipping Staff with Skills

Conference notes that there is a distinct lack of training for Police Staff in operational roles within Police Forces across the country. New staff often have no formal training and are expected to shadow a more experienced staff member until the trainer feels the trainee is competent. No nationally agreed training manuals are available and […]

British Sign Language access to Unison Website

Conference welcomes a more accessible and inclusive UNISON Website. Conference requests that the National Disabled Members Committee work with the ‘Webmaster’ to look at different access mediums and that British Sign Language as well as text to speech interpretation is included in the access options available to our members. BSL as well as text to […]

Police & Justice Service Group

Conference welcomes the decision of National Delegate Conference to approve the establishment of a Police and Justice Service Group. Conference calls upon the Service Group Executive, in consultation with representatives from the National Probation Committee and other sectors within the proposed new service group, to develop proposals on the constitution of that new Service Group, […]

Improving self organisation in Police Staff Branches

Conference believes that equality is fundamental and that women, black, disabled, Lesbian, Gay Bisexual and transgender (LGBT) and young members may face particular barriers in the workplace and in getting involved in the union. Indeed many members may face multiple barriers. Conference notes that the police service has had problems in achieving Government recruitment targets […]

Workforce Modernisation and Flexibility

Conference welcomes the ongoing work by the NPIA and other key police stakeholders to take forward the workforce modernisation agenda. Conference believes that workforce modernisation holds the key to improved job opportunities, careers and job security for police staff in England, Scotland and Wales. Conference notes the results of the Deloittes’ Interim Report on Evaluation […]

Future of Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs)

Conference condemns the remarks of Shadow Home Secretary Christopher Grayling on the future of PCSOs under a Conservative Government. In an interview given to the Yorkshire Post, published on 5 May 2009, Mr Grayling said: “Doing away with PCSOs is something I’m looking at the moment. I’m minded to say that decisions about their futures […]

Campaign to Keep the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS)

Conference notes that Eric Pickles, former Shadow Local Government Minister and David Cameron, Leader of the Conservative Party, have both publicly stated that a Conservative Government would end the final salary LGPS. Furthermore, discussions about setting an inferior Defined Contribution Scheme to replace the LGPS have taken place across political groupings within the Local Government […]

Self Directed Support and Protection of Disabled People and their Employees

This Conference welcomes the introduction of Direct Payments for disabled and older people which has taken place over the past few years, along with the recent pilots of Individual Budgets which increase choice and control for disabled and older people over the services they receive. However, we are concerned that there are insufficient safeguards to […]

Access to Work

This Conference notes that many disabled people are unemployed and find it difficult to obtain work. Some employers, particularly those in the Private Sector, see disabled people as an ‘expensive’ choice due to the need for access arrangements. The current economic climate means that it is now even more likely that employers will not take […]

Failing UK Energy Market

Conference reiterates its long held belief that privatisation of energy companies and liberalisation of the energy market have not worked in the long term interests of consumers, the wider community or the employees. An unacceptable number of people are falling into ‘fuel poverty’ as energy bills remain too high and incomes fall. Conference regrets that […]

A New Economy Based on Green Energy

Conference recognises that many members employed by Energy Companies are suffering from the effects of the current international financial crisis. Although companies continue to report healthy profits, some have implemented cost savings leading to job losses and plans to invest in new greener energy infrastructure have been subjected to further reviews. Conference believes that both […]

Public Ownership of the Utilities

Conference Notes: i)The economic crisis which has spread rapidly across the globe, forcing thousands of businesses into bankruptcy and millions of workers into unemployment and poverty; ii)The hundreds of billions of pounds of public money which has been spent by governments across the world trying to prop up the world financial system in order to […]

Barriers to Attending LGBT Conference

Conference notes the importance of our union’s conferences, both in their democratic policy making role and also for the way they inform and inspire activists to return, re-energised, to their local union work. Conference notes with regret that only a minority of Energy branches send delegates to the annual UNISON lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender […]

Sickness Absence Management

Conference notes with concern that many employers have introduced draconian measures to reduce rates of sickness absence. These measures often seek to diminish the status of GP’s certificates in favour of assessments by company appointed private Occupational Health practitioners. They also attempt to marginalise existing collective agreements of sickness absence and often make no distinction […]