Get ready to answer the call for the NHS

UNISON members will be answering the call for the NHS at the TUC march and rally on 29 September in Manchester. If you're going, or if you can't make it but want to know how to get involved, here's what you need to know:
Coaches
If you are organising or looking for transport to Manchester on 29 September check the False Economy website http://falseeconomy.org.uk/nhs299
The march
The march is expected to move off at 12.15 and will go from Liverpool Road to Whitworth Park.
Access to the route along the way will restricted due to road closures and barriers in place for the Tory party conference. Stewards will be placed at key points around the route including when the route passes under tramlines. Those with large banners and balloons will be advised about lowering these.
Rally
The rally will start at 2.15pm or when the march reaches Whitworth Park, whichever is the later. It is expected to last for approximately two hours with speakers and music.
Accessible viewing area/sign language
A disabled people viewing area will be provided near to the stage to enable clear sight lines to the stage. There will also be sign language provided on the day. This area will be signposted and stewards will direct individuals to this area if required.
After the rally
At the end of the rally coach pick up points and directions to train stations will be advertised on the large screen. These pick up points will be those that coach passengers were advised off on their drop off. Stewards and police will be on hand to assist with dispersal from the park and signposting individuals to coach parking.
Social media
We want to get plenty of profile on social media for the day, so follow @UNISONournhs @unisontweets and use #nhs299 and #nhs999

UNISON’s LGBT conference preliminary agenda is now published

ou will need to sign in to read this document. The deadline for amendments to motions is 12 noon on Friday 27 September 2013, and should be submitted using UNISON’s Online Conference System. Further information is available at the LGBTconference webpage

Unison calls for ban on zero hours contracts

Taken from Dave Prentis ,General Secretary at UNISON, website

Post date: Monday, 5th August 2013

Dave Prentis of Unison on research from the CIPD that there could be one million workers on zero hours contracts.

The vast majority of workers are only on these contracts because they have no choice. They may give flexibility to a few, but the balance of power favors the employers and makes it hard for workers to complain.

Not knowing from week to week what money you have coming in to buy food and pay your bills is extremely nerve-wracking. Having your working hours varied at short notice is also stressful and it makes planning, childcare arrangements and budgeting hard.

The growing number of zero hours contracts also calls into question government unemployment figures.

It is clear that many people working on these contracts are not included as unemployed even if they have no work at all - at the very least we have hundreds of thousands who are under-employed. In turn, this plays havoc with the benefit and tax credit system.

Unison would like to see the use of these contracts banned - at the very least the government needs an official investigation to confirm the true scale of the problem.

National demonstration to defend the NHS

Sept 29 - Manchester - backed by UNISON, UNITE, GMB and the TUC.

Free transport for UNISON Health branch members and their families. £5 all others (if you are in a union they will be contacted to see if there is free tranport or subsidy to cover the £5)

What you can do to help make this event a success for the NHS:

• Book your seat on the transport to the national demonstration - click here to book your seat.  Bring your friends and family along - it is their NHS too.
• Ask your union branch to pay for memebrs to go to the march.

• Send us your orders for materials to display in your workplace and local shops, libraries and community centres (please specify amount of leaflets and posters and where to send them too).
• Mail back if you can spare an hour to campaign for your NHS - click here to volunteer
• Promote the face book event - click here to visit the facebook event (you will need to be signed up to facebook)

UNISON wins right to challenge tribunal fees

UNISON won the right to have the government's introduction of fees for taking cases to Employment Tribunals subjected to a judicial review, in a hearing at the Royal Courts of Justice this morning.

The fees, which can be as high as £1,200 for "complex" cases came into force today. UNISON's arguments against them are scheduled to be heard in October.

Full story can be found at http://www.unison.org.uk/news/unison-wins-judicial-review-hearing-into-tribunal-fees

LUCKY DAY... Enter our latest competition

This month there are £200 worth of holiday vouchers up for grabs! With the long school break just around the corner, what better way to get the summer off to a sizzling start than entering now for free. The winner can pick from Thomas Cook, Thomson or Love2Reward.com vouchers and enjoy fun in the sun, at home or away, without the financial baggage that often goes with it. You can forward the details to as many members as you like. Click here for the entry form and T&Cs. The closing date is August 19th. Good luck!

999: answer the call for your NHS

29 September is a date for your diary for a mass rally to save the NHS at the Tory party conference in Manchester. More info will be available on the UNISON website soon. #NHS999

Is Local government in meltdown ?

UNISON, the UK’s largest union, today added its voice to calls from the Local Government Association (LGA) for urgent action to address the funding shortfall in local councils, or face complete meltdown. The union is warning that it is becoming increasingly impossible to provide vital local services against a backdrop of savage government funding and staff cuts.

The £2.1bn shortfall facing local government each year is down to Tory party politics says UNISON. The tax cut for millionaires has cost the Treasury £2.255bn a year – money that should have been used to provide the essential support services to the children, elderly and vulnerable that the LGA say are under threat because of cuts.


Heather Wakefield, UNISON head of local government, said:

“The cuts are striking at the very heart of local government. They are a false economy, which are not just damaging the services that people rely on but also the economy. While UNISON backs the principle of agencies working together outlined by the LGA, the driving force must be to deliver quality, professional services and not just an excuse for cutting more staff.

“Hundreds of thousands of jobs have already been lost from the local government workforce and the resulting loss in spending power in local economies has hit local shops and businesses hard. When you factor in the loss of tax and National Insurance revenue because of public sector redundancies, the picture is worse. Evidence from all economies is that you need a strong public sector to generate growth and a healthy economy, something that this Government ignores at its peril.”

Watchdog reprimands Eric Pickles' department for £217m overdraft

Check out the full story at http://m.guardian.co.uk/politics/2013/jun/28/eric-pickles-communities-department-overdraft 

General secretary's blog...

Why not take at look at the general secretary's blog

New presidential team

Maureen Le Marinel has been elected president of UNISON for the next 12 months. She was elected at the first meeting of the union's national executive council after last week's national delegate conference.

Ms Le Marinel is branch secretary of the Lancashire police branch and is the union's first gay president.

Lucia McKeever, a nursing assistant and branch secretary of Armagh Dungannon health branch, is the new senior vice-president, having been elected to the presidential team last year.

She is the first woman from Northern Ireland to hold this position since the union was formed in 1993.

They are joined by North Yorkshire County Council branch secretary Wendy Nichols as the junior vice-president - making this the union's first-ever all-woman presidential team.

Government mutuals plan

Commenting on the news that the government will sell off dozens of state owned services into so-called mutuals, Dave Prentis, UNISON General Secretary, said:

“This is privatisation by stealth. The involvement of big private companies makes mutuals just another Tory party ploy to sell off public services. The government is stretching the definition of mutuals to the limit – genuine co-ops and mutuals will be up in arms.

“Staff will be plunged into confusion and could face being taken out of public sector pension schemes and having their pay and conditions seriously harmed. Community organisations will struggle to win contracts without harsh measures such as freezing pay and reducing leave and sick pay.

“Mutuals are dangerously untested in this context. At the very least, we need a serious investigation as to how mutuals would deliver public services in the interest of the public and employees.”

See coverage os Dave's comments in today's Independent: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/the-great-civil-service-selloff-dozens-of-services-and-75000-staff-set-to-be-transferred-to-private-sector-8598188.html

Legal helpline launches on May Day

UNISON is launching a legal helpline to assist hard-pressed activists needing urgent legal advice.  The helpline will launch on 1 May and has been set up in response to feedback from UNISON activists. It aims to provide urgent initial legal help on employment matters. Launching the helpline, general secretary Dave Prentis said: "Our activists are working hard to look after our members and this government is set on making their lives harder. Activists told us they needed access to quick legal advice and this is what the helpline aims to provide."

The helpline will be monitored and reviewed to make sure the service it is providing an effective and efficient service. Press to Read more