Recruiting and organising fire and rescue staff

Non-operational fire and rescue staff are a key but often overlooked part of the fire and rescue service. Technicians, driving instructors, administrators and many others work tirelessly alongside fire fighters and control room staff to keep businesses, communities and members of the public safe. The severe cuts to public spending in local government and their […]

Regional Pay Bargaining

Conference notes that the new NJC pay spine is not only being adopted by councils who had moved away from the NJC, but also by multi academy trusts who are increasingly coming onto NJC conditions. Both recognise the benefits of the new NJC pay spine in providing stability by future proofing them against future National […]

Abolish NHS Car Parking Charges

The exorbitant cost of car parking at hospitals and GP surgeries is putting an increasing financial burden on patients and carers, especially women who are traditionally the main carers for elderly family and children who need routine and regular appointments. For more serious ailments and long term stays in hospital, the cost become so expensive […]

Review of the Devolution Protocol

Post Brexit political scene merely heightens the constitutional debate in a “disunited kingdom” of growing civic nationalism and regionalisation, the unsettled will for political change, the growing plurality of politics, which will have further implications for government and governance. In turn, these are issues of plurality and diversification for the trade union to address in […]

Disability History Month

Conference believes that UNISON should celebrate Disability History Month on an annual basis. Disability History Month was set up in 2010 to provide a platform to focus on the work that has been done to fight for equality for disabled people. Each year the month has a theme – for example, the 2018 disability history […]

Racism is real

Conference in the climate of the rise of the far right, Brexit and the real impact of racism in our society we know that racism is real. UNISON’s previous objectives included the statement ‘including Racism’, but at the 6th December 2018 NEC meeting the NEC approved the 2019 objectives with this wording removed. Conference, the […]

Universal credit and mixed age couples

Conference condemns the Government’s decision to implement a benefits cut that impacts mixed-age couples – where one partner is of pension age and the other is not of pensionable age who are in receipt of Universal Credit. The charity Age UK has calculated that this change could leave some pensioners up to £7,000 worse off […]

Justice for the Windrush Generation

Arriving in UK between 1942 – 1971 from the Caribbean islands, at the invitation of the then government, came the generation named the ‘Windrush Generation’. The name came from the MV Empire Windrush, which arrived at Tilbury Docks, Essex, on 22 June 1948, bringing workers from Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago and other islands, as a […]

The Crisis in Social Care

Conference notes with alarm the ongoing crisis in social care and continues to be appalled by the cuts being made to vital social care services. Conference notes that, although social care has been relatively protected compared to other council services, care spending per adult resident has fallen substantially since 2009-10. Conference believes that the sector […]

Composite Amendment 7

In first paragraph, delete all after “(LGBT+) people,” in second sentence and insert “disabled people, women, and Black people, to consider apprenticeships. Potential members of the network have to demonstrate their commitment to make measurable improvements to diversity.” Insert new third paragraph: “Conference notes the disability employment gap is nearly 30%. There is limited research […]

Celebrate the concessionary bus pass and the bus

A recent report in the Journal of Transport and Health by Dr Sarah Jackson, highlighted important benefits for older people who use a concessionary bus pass: a) Older people who use a concessionary bus pass tend to be more happy and physically active; b) They are also less likely to be socially isolated when they […]

Tackling Stress, Bullying and Harassment

Conference understands the huge scale of harm being caused to members by work-related stress, including wrecked lives and relationships, debilitating mental and physical illness and sometimes, tragically, death. Such misery is often compounded by the insensitive treatment of victims by some employers who, far from acknowledging their own responsibility for causing excessive workplace stress, seek […]

BEWARE THAT SHARE!

Conference recognises the benefits of using social media to bring together communities and groups who have interests in common and congratulates our lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender plus (LGBT+) self-organised group on the many and varied ways social media has been used in branches, regions and nationally. We welcome and encourage our members to share […]

NO OUTSIDERS (LGBT+ EDUCATION RIGHTS)

Conference notes the recent protests against the ‘No Outsiders’ method of teaching young children about equality, in particular lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender plus (LGBT+) relationships, to encourage acceptance at an early age. There has been a misuse of religion as an excuse to attack LGBT+ rights, and this is not the first time religious […]

Fraud and the elderly

Conference notes with concern the ‘BBC 5 Live Investigates’ report on fraud broadcast in September 2018 stating that fraudsters scammed nearly 49,000 older people across the UK in the past year, equivalent to almost six reports every hour. Furthermore the total number of reports has nearly doubled in the past 3 years and one expert […]