Agency workers on Strike

Being as Jon posted his bit I thought as an agency worker I would post the text of the leaflet that i have been giving around to try and encourage other agency workers to respect the picket lines.

The arguments for agency workers to support this are clear to see in my view as well as the basic solidarity of not crossing a picket line.

The pay I get as an agency worker in housing is loosely tied to the grade of the job - if the substantive post I am working to goes up then the employment budget my line manager has goes up and I can push for my hourly rate to raise aswell. Agency workers are facing the same price rises when they go shopping bread up 44% Pasta up 22% Petrtol up 20% etc etc etc - we also deserve to have a pay rise this year in line with inflation.

Also Im glad to see this press release being picked up in the national media

Local Authorities are sitting on billions of pounds of reserves which could be used to avert a strike by more than 600,000 council workers over pay, it has been claimed.

Unison said councils in England and Wales could afford to increase a rejected 2.45% offer without having to go to the Government for more money or raise council taxes.The union said the "secret" billions had built up largely because of efficiency savings achieved over the last few years.

Councils in England have £11 billion in the bank of which more than £3 billion is not earmarked for anything while authorities in Wales have more than £373 million in the bank of which £143 million is unallocated, said the union.

General Secretary Dave Prentis said: "These billions of pounds in the bank, put there by the hard work of hundreds of thousands of low paid Unison members, should be used by the employers to settle this potentially damaging dispute.

"The employers don't have to go to the Government with a begging bowl, or put up council tax or cut jobs or services or any other dire consequences they are threatening.

"They should face up to the fact that the solution is staring them in the face."

School assistants, caretakers, dinner ladies, refuse collectors, social workers, librarians, architects and other council staff in England, Wales and Northern Ireland will strike for two days on Wednesday and Thursday bringing huge disruptions to services.

Mr Prentis said the union could not stand by and see the workers facing a pay cut while food, fuel and energy bills were "going through the roof".

Anyway heres the text of the leaflet

Why should I strike?
The first 48-hour walkout will go ahead on 16 and 17 July. Make sure you're there. By supporting the strike, you can send a clear message to the employers that pay is an issue that will not go away.

Why should I strike?

Inflation is still rising and is set to continue. The 2.45% pay offer is a pay cut. Food is up 6% Bread is up by 44%, transport 7%, mortgages 8%, electricity and gas 15%. Pay in the private sector is rising by 4%.

I don't agree with the pay offer - but why strike action?

You are doing more for less. Pay rises have been below inflation for five years. It's time to take a stand against low pay.

Is my pay really that bad?

Local government workers have the worst pay and conditions in the public sector. Three-quarters of the workforce are women, but there's a 40% gap between part-time women's and full-time men's hourly pay. A 2.45% pay rise will have a damaging effect on women's pay and would widen the gap between local government pay and rest of economy too.

Can local government employers afford to pay more?

Local government has saved money through efficiencies delivered by you but is not sharing the benefits with you. Councils can't afford not to pay and treat you better if they want continuous improvement in service delivery.

Non-schools reserves total £11,605 billion – their highest-ever level, having more than doubled since 2002. During this time you have received below-inflation pay awards.

According to a recent update, local authorities in England alone are reporting cashable gains of £763 million by the end of the 2007/08 financial year – none of which has been invested in our members providing services.

But the government won't change its pay policy - will it?

Pressure made the government find £2.7billion to rescue people hit by scrapping the 10p tax band. It can change its mind again. And we've already told the employers that it's 'no deal'.

The low pay offer is only for one year. Wouldn't it be better to ride it out?

You need to take action now. Pay settlements have been low for the past five years. While this offer is for one year, the government wants three-year deals. The employers have said that they want to settle pay for 2009 and 2010 and review your conditions by December 2008; they aren't going to get much higher.

Will l lose pay when I'm on strike?

Your employer won't pay you and there won't be strike pay, but branches do have discretion to help members with hardship payments for those who need it most.

Can I really afford to strike? Money is so tight at the moment.

We know it's a tough decision. But doing nothing now will mean even more hardship next year. Your pay is not keeping up with price rises.

Will my employer pick on me?

You aren't alone. UNISON has over 600,000 members in local government and other employers delivering services for councils. If we stand together, they can't pick us off.

I'm not a member but I want to

strike?

Non- members can join anytime and still take part in strike action.

Can they get agency workers to cover the work?

No if they did the agencies would be breaking the law.

Employment Agencies will not want agency workers to do the work normally done by strikers.

The Conduct of Employment Agencies Regulations 2003 state that a "work seeker" (agency worker) "cannot be used to do the job of a worker who is taking part in a strike or other industrial action".

The Government can impose a fine up to £5,000 or a 10 year ban on operating if the agency is found guilty. Anyone who colluded with law breaking by trying to get agency workers to do the work of striking employees would be breaching the Council's Code of Conduct and disciplinary rules

If you're an Agency worker you have every right to join UNISON and participate in our action.

When UNISON members take strike action on Wednesday and Thursday next week many agency workers will respect picket lines and not come into work.

Speak to your rep if you want to be put in contact with other agency workers that are on strike.

Also don't forget the new regulations that UNISON fought for have given agency workers more rights in the workplace!

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