Karen Reissmann request for nomination to UNISON NEC North west seat
Dear branch secretary.
I am writing to ask if your branch would consider nominating me for the North West women's seat on the National Executive Committee. Nominations have to be made at a meeting held between 11/1/11 and 18/2/11.
I am standing because I feel we are facing the most serious attack on public services and living standards in our lifetime. The ConDem alliance is using the economic crisis to attack things like the NHS and social services which they never agreed with in the first place. We are not "all in it together". It is working class people who are bearing the brunt of the ConDem attacks.
In Ireland, trade unions accepted that cuts were needed to solve the economic crisis. They took 15-20% cuts and then the banks and government came back for more. We need to make sure unions in Britain do not do the same. Some may say we just need to wait to re-elect a Labour government next time. What will be left if we do? Why did Labour not win the last election? Because their cuts and privatisations opened the door to the Tories.
Despite the severity of the attack, UNISON has been slow at a national level to respond. The NEC has to organise a bigger and more effective campaign that the one it is currently planning. The national demo called by the TUC is a great step forward. All branches must and I am sure will organise lots of their members to attend. But why have we had to wait 9 months for a national demo.
Councils, education, NHS, civil servants, police, prisons, utilities etc are all facing the same attacks on jobs, services, and hard -on terms and conditions. Each sector and each workplace is being left to fight on their own. This has to stop. We are a union of 1.4 million members. We need to start acting like one.
In recent weeks tens of thousands of students have taken to the streets to oppose huge rises in tuition fees and the scrapping of the Education Maintenance Allowance. Student protests have rocked the ConDems, splitting the coalition down the middle.
There's a lesson here for all of us: fight back together and we can stop the attacks.
That also means industrial action against the cuts. We need to be more serious about coordinating action across UNISON sectors and across unions.
I have personal record of fighting back that I am proud of. I was sacked for standing up and defending mental health services in Manchester. Downgradings and closures proposed there 4 years ago have still not taken place. I am proud of all the support we received in Manchester from all of you.
But the NEC is not just about personal record. It is about being prepared to take on the ConDems and organise the sort of campaign we need to stop them now. Please nominate people who are fully committed to doing this. We have no more time to waste.
I am also asking you to consider nominating Roger Bannister for the male seat, Tony Wilson for the general seat in the North West, Bernadette Gallagher and myself for the female seats.
If you require any further information or would like me to attend your meeting then you can contact me on karen@reissmann.fsnet.co.uk or 07972 120 451.
Karen Reissmann.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I am writing to ask if your branch would consider nominating me for the North West women's seat on the National Executive Committee. Nominations have to be made at a meeting held between 11/1/11 and 18/2/11.
I am standing because I feel we are facing the most serious attack on public services and living standards in our lifetime. The ConDem alliance is using the economic crisis to attack things like the NHS and social services which they never agreed with in the first place. We are not "all in it together". It is working class people who are bearing the brunt of the ConDem attacks.
In Ireland, trade unions accepted that cuts were needed to solve the economic crisis. They took 15-20% cuts and then the banks and government came back for more. We need to make sure unions in Britain do not do the same. Some may say we just need to wait to re-elect a Labour government next time. What will be left if we do? Why did Labour not win the last election? Because their cuts and privatisations opened the door to the Tories.
Despite the severity of the attack, UNISON has been slow at a national level to respond. The NEC has to organise a bigger and more effective campaign that the one it is currently planning. The national demo called by the TUC is a great step forward. All branches must and I am sure will organise lots of their members to attend. But why have we had to wait 9 months for a national demo.
Councils, education, NHS, civil servants, police, prisons, utilities etc are all facing the same attacks on jobs, services, and hard -on terms and conditions. Each sector and each workplace is being left to fight on their own. This has to stop. We are a union of 1.4 million members. We need to start acting like one.
In recent weeks tens of thousands of students have taken to the streets to oppose huge rises in tuition fees and the scrapping of the Education Maintenance Allowance. Student protests have rocked the ConDems, splitting the coalition down the middle.
There's a lesson here for all of us: fight back together and we can stop the attacks.
That also means industrial action against the cuts. We need to be more serious about coordinating action across UNISON sectors and across unions.
I have personal record of fighting back that I am proud of. I was sacked for standing up and defending mental health services in Manchester. Downgradings and closures proposed there 4 years ago have still not taken place. I am proud of all the support we received in Manchester from all of you.
But the NEC is not just about personal record. It is about being prepared to take on the ConDems and organise the sort of campaign we need to stop them now. Please nominate people who are fully committed to doing this. We have no more time to waste.
I am also asking you to consider nominating Roger Bannister for the male seat, Tony Wilson for the general seat in the North West, Bernadette Gallagher and myself for the female seats.
If you require any further information or would like me to attend your meeting then you can contact me on karen@reissmann.fsnet.co.uk or 07972 120 451.
Karen Reissmann.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
0 comments:
Post a Comment