Conference notes that the Disability Rights Commission (DRC) states that one in five of the population has a disability. A greater number of people are affected by disability by virtue of their role as a worker with disabled people or as a carer. As the population and workforce profiles age, it is likely that even […]
Conference motions
Conference welcomes the work done by UNISON’s branches, regions and at national level to promote equal opportunities in employment, wider society and our own organisation. In particular, Conference applauds UNISON’s initiative regarding implementation of the Stephen Lawrence report and the Race Relations (Amendment) Act, our lead in the campaign against racism, and recent advice and […]
Conference notes that the government is determined to introduce still another round of asylum/immigration legislation that will further restrict refugee rights, having already announced dramatic cuts in legal aid for asylum cases. Features of the forthcoming legislation will include: 1)added restrictions on the right to appeal negative decisions, with little or no access to higher […]
Conference notes that young lesbians and gay men are six times more likely to attempt suicide than other young people. They are also more likely to succeed, so they account for over half of actual youth suicide in the UK. Conference therefore welcomes the repeal of Section 28 as the single most effective step to […]
We call upon Conference to adopt this motion to press for the inclusion of the recognition of stress to be included in regulation 3(1)(a) of The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999. The main problems are that under the current legislation there are no laws that recognise work-related stress as an illness. […]
Conference notes with concern: 1)the number of our low paid members in front line public service jobs who have their employment terminated on the grounds of incapacity; 2)that conditions affecting those members, such as vibration white finger, cervical spondylitis, carpel tunnel syndrome and tennis elbow are invariably caused by the nature of the job involving […]
This Conference notes: 1.The successful regrading campaign for Health Care Assistants undertaken by Newcastle City Health UNISON; 2.This has involved updating the B Grade job description to take into account the changes and the development in roles of HCA’s since the grading structure came into being in 1998; 3.The campaign has involved HCA’s themselves re-evaluating […]
Because of the lack of job profiles a considerable amount of information from Early Implementers has been lacking, especially around unsocial hours supplements. Therefore the SGE should be clear in its communication to members about information from Early Implementers especially calculating unsocial hours payments and how their calculations can be made when an individual is […]
This conference calls upon the SGE and National negotiators to make representation on behalf of staff who need to be mobile to carry out their work or wear mufti instead of uniforms. Current rates of remuneration date from as far back as the 1970’s, when the tax threshold was set at £8,000. For staff who […]
Conference notes the success of learning initiatives in health branches, and the productive relationship between the Culture of Learning Project and health branches. Conference recognises that the Learning agenda provides UNISON with important opportunities for branches to organise and recruit new members, in addition to other organising activities such as campaigns, representation and negotiations. Lifelong […]
This Conference believes that wherever possible the NHS should access its supplies using “fair trade” principals. We are aware that the NHS Procurement and Supplies Agency is in the process of developing a fair trade policy together with NHS Estates and that a Head of Sustainable Development has been appointed with a remit that covers […]
This Conference notes: a.The deplorable statements made by health ministers with regards to the issue of so called “health tourists”; b.This included reference to failed asylum seekers and figures up to 200 million pounds were mentioned; c.This comes at a time when there are continuing attacks on asylum seekers and refugees, and that fasict organisations […]
Conference notes that despite a wide range of positive initiatives to recruit staff there is still a shortage of staff working in the NHS. Positive recruitment initiatives only partly meet the challenging needs of the NHS. Retention of staff is equally if not more important in maintaining service delivery and continuity of staffing skills and […]
This Conference is deeply disappointed that the Government won a narrow majority to establish Foundation Trusts. However it believes that the strong campaign of opposition led by UNISON at all levels of the organisation achieved significant concessions from the Government. The NHS continues to face significant attacks from the privateers both within and outside of […]
Conference is concerned that access to training and education for “non-professional” staff is very limited or in reality non-existent in some workplaces. All staff in the NHS are important and essential to the delivery of services in the NHS. Therefore all staff should have equal access to training and education. Staff classified as “professional” are […]