Apologies for the lack of posts for the last couple of days and apologies in advance for the lack of posts over the next couple of days.
The devastating news that Malcolm Campbell branch secretary of Croydon UNISON and personal friend of mine died on Sunday night ive not been up to doing much.
I have set up a blog remembermalcolmcampbell.blogspot.com/ that is already carrying some tributes to Malcom please pop over and post your own thoughts.
Following on from my earlier post on the Peoples Charter motion at S TUC it seems the motion fell by 700 votes to 500.
This is a shame and as i said in the last post "
With indications today that massive job cuts are planned in local government, probably based upon enforced "shared services" and privatisation it's good to see UNISON backing a positive alternative to the cost-cutting, job-cutting policies shared by the New Labour Government and the Tory Opposition - it's a shame some of the other unions (including GMB, Unite, USDAW, FDA, Prospect and community) didn't also back it.
Hopefully the motion at UNISON's National Conference from the Southwark branch proposing that UNISON back the peoples charter will be allowed on the agenda
The Scottish TUC meeting this week in Perth will this morning be voting on Motion 82 from the RMT Union - this calls for support for the recently launched Peoples Charter.
I was pleased to hear that the UNISON delegation will be supporting this motion. We need a unified campaign bringing together as many trade unions as possible to put progressive policies which serve the interests of our members firmly on the political agenda.
With indications today that massive job cuts are planned in local government, probably based upon enforced "shared services" and privatisation it's good to see UNISON backing a positive alternative to the cost-cutting, job-cutting policies shared by the New Labour Government and the Tory Opposition.
I am pleased to be one of the candidates in the current elections to UNISON's NEC who has consistently backed the Peoples Charter and the positive policies our members need.
POLICE SHUT DOWN 11.30AM PROTEST… DEMONSTRATE OUTSIDE TREASURY 5PM-7PM!
The police have refused to authorise our planned demonstration on Whitehall at 11.30am and have made clear that, if it takes place, the organiser will be liable to arrest and imprisonment for up to a year.
To avoid any police action against protesters turning up, we have been forced to cancel this demonstration.
Our protest from 5pm-7pm outside the Treasury (1 Horse Guards Road , London SW1A 2HQ – click link for map) will still take place. Please spread the word and attend the protest to demand a People's Bailout – and defy police moves against demonstrations.
We will also be going ahead with our 7.30pm Question Time event with John McDonnell MP, economist Graham Turner and others in Committee Room 10, House of Commons.
Make sure you come along and exercise your right to protest.
Best wishes,
Owen Jones
Campaign Convenor
The plan for the day is as follows
11.30am: ASSEMBLE OUTSIDE DOWNING STREET . Protest with placards listing our demands on Whitehall along the route the Chancellor will take from No. 11 Downing Street to address Parliament.
5pm: Protest outside the Treasury near Whitehall on 1 Horse Guards Road , London SW1A 2HQ .
7.30pm: Budget Question Time event in Committee Room 10, House of Commons with panellists including John McDonnell MP, economist Graham Turner and Clara Osagiede (RMT Cleaner's Grade Secretary).
The campaign is backing the demands of the People's Charter which is now being backed by many UNISON members . On the day, we will call for a tax on the profits of big business and a crackdown on tax avoidance, an increase in pensions and unemployment benefit, an emergency council housing programme and an end to repossessions, a cap on energy prices, rail fares and rents, and free education for all.
Today is the day that the ballot papers go out officially in the elections for the UNISON National Executive Council.
Good luck to these candidates!
If you're a UNISON member - don't forget to vote!!
National Black members seats
Female seats April Ashley Lorraine Mngadi
Male seat Hugo Pierre
National young members seat
Chris Leary
Health Care service group
Female seats Kate Ahrens Karen Reissmann ;
Male seat Roger Davey
General seat Stephen Lintott
Local Government service group
Female seats Phoebe Watkins Marshajane Thompson
Male seat Glen Kelly
General seat Paul Holmes
Higher Education Service Group
Barry Blinko
Police staff service group
Female seat Rachel Hemingway
Water & Environment service group
General seat John Jones
Transport
Tony Wilson
Eastern region
Male seat Martin Booth
East Midlands region
Female seat Jean Thorpe ; Sharon Vasselin
Male seat Richard Buckwell
Reserved seat Ann Macmillan-Wood
Greater London region
Female seats Mandy Berger ; Sonya Howard;
Male seat Jon Rogers
Northern region
Female seat Hannah Walter
Male seat Alan Docherty ;
North West region
General seat Alex Mcfadden
Female seats Bernadette Gallagher Fran Kelly
Male seat Roger Bannister ;
Scotland
Male seat Gordon McKay
South East region
Female seats Diana Leach ; Jessie Russel
Male seat Mike Tucker
South West region
Male seat Nigel Behan
Reserved Seat Kath Budd
West Midlands region
Female seats Sue Gallagher
Male seat Clive Shakespeare
Reserved seat Claudia Campbell
Yorkshire & Humberside region
General Seat Brian Steele
Female seats Helen Jenner Vicky Perrin
Male seat John McDermott
Outrageous news today that the employers of victimised nurse Yunus Bakhsh have refused to reinstate him after his appeal against dismissal - given that it has become clear that crucial evidence against him was fabricated by racists and influenced by the BNP this looks like a blatantly political decision by employers influenced perhaps by Labour MPs embarrassed by the latest information which has been brought into the public domain by this case (and has now featured in Private Eye)
Watch this space for details of the outcome of the employment appeal tribunal case brought by UNISON after Yunus brought a succesful complaint to the certification officer - the decision is due out at 10.30am tomora and will be on the web at 2pm.
The Tory controlled Local Government Employers today confirmed an offer of 0.5% from 1 April 2009 to local government workers covered by the National Joint Council (NJC) in England, Wales and Northern Ireland - and said that if the deal hasn't been negotiated by 1 June they will withdraw the offer and pay nothing at all!
UNISON's official response - dismay - isn't online yet - representatives of UNISON, GMB and UNITE meet tomorrow to decide on a response. I think they need to reject this offer!
This isn't a good offer for us or a generous offer from them. Although the Retail Price Index (RPI) may have fallen close to zero, the Government's preferred measure - the Consumer Price Index(CPI) is above 3% - and of course we have been having real terms pay cuts for local government workers for several years.
We deserve more.
Local authorities haven't budgeted for only a 0.5% pay rise so no matter what they say about "affordability" there is more money already in local Council budgets for our pay.
They can afford more.
Also - and this is particularly important as the right wing press keep attacking public sector workers - a low pay rise for low paid local government workers won't help the economy. In fact it'll hurt recovery from the recession to hold down the living standards of local workers who would spend a pay rise in the local economy.
The NJC is the largest single bargaining group in the economy, setting the pay of more than a million workers. Increase the pay of local government workers and that will boost demand in the economy and help to combat the recession.
Clearly the Tories who run local government now don't want to do this - we need to start thinking not just about rejecting this offer but also about what we do to get a better offer, and how we link the campaign for fair pay for local government workers with the campaigns we need to defend our jobs, our conditions and our pensions over the next couple of years.
I hope that UNISON members will vote for myself and Phoebe Watkins to join Glenn Kelly and Paul Holmes as UNISON NEC members representing local government so that we can play a positive leadership role in the fight to defend our members' interests (and for the rest of the left candidates too of course :p)
