Almost time to have your say on who leads us next

 The following have been confirmed as candidates in the election to choose a new general secretary for UNISON.

Their names are listed below in the order they will appear on the ballot paper and in the election address booklet.

Paul Holmes

Nominated by one service group executive, two regional councils and 99 branches.

Christina McAnea

Nominated by the national executive council (NEC), five service group executives, nine regional councils and 210 branches.

Roger McKenzie

Nominated by one service group executive, one regional council and 104 branches.

Hugo Pierre

Nominated by 31 branches.

Ballot papers will be sent to members’ home or other notified address in writing. Members will be provided with a pre-paid envelope for the return of the ballot paper to the independent scrutineer. All voting will be by post

Your chance to choose who leads UNISON

Dave Prentis, our current general secretary, retires at the end of this year after 20 years leading the UK's biggest union. Soon you'll get a chance to decide who leads the union for the next five years.

The general secretary represents you and 1.3 million members of UNISON, so it's important that you use your vote and have your say.

The ballot opens on 28 October so please look out for your ballot paper, which will be sent by post to your home address.

The ballot is being run on our behalf by an independent organisation called Civica Election Services (CES).

Make sure you post your completed ballot in plenty of time to CES by 5pm on November 27. It will be freepost, so don’t worry about a stamp.

Your election pack will include the ballot paper and the pre-paid return envelope. There will also be information about the candidates who are standing to be general secretary.

If anything is missing from your election pack, or you lose your ballot paper please call our ballot helpline free on 0800 0 857 857 or on textphone 0800 0 967 968. The helpline opens on 10 November and closes on 20 November.

More info and a Q&A can be found HERE

This is why you're in this UNISON

 Recently UNISON had another major victory in the courts. This time it was for homecare workers and concerned how they were paid – or not – for the time it took to travel between visits.

The case means 10 UNISON members have received thousands in backpay – but it could have implications for thousands of other home care workers. 

And behind the headlines, it's been a fascinating four-year battle involving members, branch officers and UNISON's legal team, and it sums up what being in a trade union is all about.

If you would like to read the story behind this click HERE

We are still OPEN and here when you need us

Following the recent announcements from the government – we’d like to reassure you that it’s very much business as usual here.

During these unsettling times, we wanted to let you know that we are open as normal. Our opening hours and the ways in which you can contact us are still the same, so you can rest assured that we're on hand to provide the same great service that you expect from us! 

Like everyone, we’ve found ourselves in a very strange situation over the last six months. But be rest assured we are still fighting for you.

A cold, flu or coronavirus - which one do I have?

A blocked or runny nose, a sore throat and a cough are common, especially in the winter. But how do you know if you have coronavirus? 

Check out the video from the BBC for a little guidance, to watch just click the below link:-

Oxford City Branch of UNISON: A cold, flu or coronavirus - which one do I have?

Disabled and LGBT+ members are invited to remotely attend a series of events organised specifically for them – online and live

Like many other organisations, UNISON has had to cancel many of its conferences and meetings as a result of COVID-19.

But the UK’s biggest union has democracy at its heart and still wants its members to be involved.

With this in mind, UNISON’s disabled and LGBT+ members have organised a series of virtual events in place of their usual conferences – online and live.

We will be holding the following events:

Disability Live! – 19 to 24 October.

LGBT+ Live! – 13 to 15 November.

There will be a variety of online sessions that members can participate in during the events.

These events are only open to UNISON members. To attend Disability Live! you must be a disabled member of UNISON. And to attend LGBT+ Live! you must be an LGBT+ member of UNISON. This is in line with UNISON’s commitment to self-organisation for under-represented groups.

In order to make Disability Live! as accessible as possible, please let us know if there are any adjustments you will need to allow you to take part in a virtual event.

To register your interest in attending either event, please email conferences@unison.co.uk as follows:

Subject heading – the event you would like to attend (if both, please send separate emails)

In your email – please provide:

• Your name
• Your membership number
• Your branch name
• Any reasonable adjustments you need to participate

The registration deadlines are:

Disability Live! –  Thursday 8 October at 5pm

LGBT+ Live! – Thursday 5 November at 5pm

Once you’ve been registered for an event, you will be sent an email giving details of the virtual sessions you can attend, so you can register for these individually. You can attend as many or as few as you like.

So get active! Email conferences@unison.co.uk today to register to attend.

Time for us to do our bit.