Care of older people

Conference supports integrating health and social care services providing the principal aim of doing so is to improve the quality of services particularly for older people. Conference believes that services can only be successfully integrated if social care is made, like health, free at the point of need. Conference therefore welcomes: 1)The Labour Party’s policy […]

Young Workers Month

Conference welcomes the work of UNISON’s National and Regional Young Members Forums to raise the profile of young workers and young members through activity during young workers month, which is now held in November each year under the auspices of the TUC. Conference believes that recruiting young workers and organising young members is an all-year-round […]

Devolution: seizing the opportunities, avoiding the threats

Conference notes that issues around the scale of governance have come to the fore in political debate in recent months. Questions that have become more prominent in the political discussion include: 1)The relationship between the UK and Europe; 2)The relationship between the nations of the UK; 3)The relationship between central and local government. Conference notes […]

Solidarity with Palestine

Conference hopes that a lasting ceasefire between the Israeli Government and Palestinian Organisations can be established, but recognises that this will not happen or be sufficient unless the illegal siege and occupation are ended. UNISON welcomes Palestinian attempts to establish a unity government and urges the UK Government and the EU to support and encourage […]

REVIEW COMMUNICATIONS WITH RETIRED MEMBERS

Conference notes that communications between branch, regional and national levels remains unsatisfactory as far as UNISON retired members are concerned. Conference is also concerned that there has been a failure to produce updated literature on retired members matters such as the Branch Retired Members Secretary’s Handbook, the UNISON Code of Practice for Older People and […]

Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership

Conference notes that the European Union (EU) is currently negotiating three free trade agreements including the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP). The others are the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement with Canada (CETA) and the Trade in Services Agreement (TiSA). These agreements threaten public services by harmonising regulatory standards, forcing through market liberalisation and […]

Housing

Conference recognises the massive housing crisis which exists in London and nationally. Conference condemns the UK Government’s financial policies that have focused upon “Buy to Let” as the main source of housing and rented housing in the UK. The result has been growing inequality, poverty, the break up of families and communities across the UK […]

SOCIAL CARE IN ENGLAND

The election of a Conservative government means, in England at least, that there is no end in sight to the crisis in social care nor to the quandary of many lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people seeking safe and appropriate care. Conference welcomes the launch of UNISON’s Save Care Now campaign to build on […]

Organising

Conference recognises that activism is at the very heart of UNISON. Activists ensure that the union is accessible to members in the workplace giving day to day support and representation to members, encouraging other workers to join the union and building our organisation. Without activists we could not function as a democratic lay member led […]

An Organising Response to the Result of the 2015 G

Conference notes the unanticipated outcome of the 2015 General Election which produced a majority Conservative Government. The new Government is set to intensify austerity in the public sector and increase privatisation and outsourcing of public services. The Conservatives also explicitly targeted the right of workers to organise by including the following commitments in their manifesto: […]

Funding Public Services

Conference is angered that between 2010 and 2015 a five year austerity programme, driven by Conservative ideology rather than national necessity, saw massive cuts in public spending, huge public sector redundancies and pay restraint across the public services on an unprecedented scale. In his 2014 Autumn Statement last year, George Osborne let it slip that […]

EQUAL PENSIONS: END DISCRIMINATION IN SURVIVOR PEN

Conference condemns the continuing discrimination against civil partners and same sex married couples with regard to pensions and deplores the failure of the government to address the inequality of survivor pensions within occupational schemes. Conference asserts that the Treasury’s claims that equalisation in line with other survivors is unaffordable were misleading and inaccurate and that […]

Following through on reasonable adjustments

Composite A Following through on reasonable adjustments (Motions 2 and 3, Amendments 2.1, 2.2 and 3.1) This Conference welcomes the continued support at Young Members’ Weekend for a meeting of disabled young members, a process by which those members can feed their issues into the National Young Members’ Forum work plan. This Conference notes that […]

A SINGLE COMBINED FREE TRAVEL PASS FOR BUS AND RAI

The bus pass providing pensioners for free off peak bus travel in England and Wales has helped their mobility largely on a local basis. However, many pensioners find the cost of rail fares, even after using the 30% discount of a Senior Rail Card, an expensive hindrance to frequent visiting of friends and family across […]

UNISON’s Political Campaign After the 2015 General

Conference notes that the Conservative Party’s success at the General and local elections on May 7th carries with it significant threats to public services, our members’ jobs and standard of living and growing levels of inequality. As such Conference calls upon the National Executive Council to develop and put in place a comprehensive political campaign […]