All the union news that's fit to blog...
There is an ongoing selection process to replace London Assembly Member, John Biggs, who has been elected as Mayor of Tower Hamlets and will be stepping down from his City and East London seat.
There are 18 candidates!
Greater London UNISON L…Read more…
Derbyshire scraps school crossings A total of 54 Derbyshire schools will have no crossing patrol and 42 more could lose theirs Almost 100 schools in Derbyshire could be without a crossing patrol if…Read more…
Today the Chancellor made a number of announcements in relation to housing, primarily in relation to people claiming benefits for social housing. Young people in particular will suffer as the government are abolishing the automatic entitlement for youn…Read more…
The Chancellor’s summer UK budget today was long on spin, but the substance was less impressive once you delve into the detail.
The headlines are about wages with the introduction of a new national…Read more…
Five years ago, the Chancellor set out policies to bring the public finances back under control. On the basis of any definition, these policies failed. Deficit reduction proceeded greatly slower than planned; public sector debt rose even higher than ex…Read more…
Massive and unfair cuts in tax credits and benefits are going to hit low-paid workers. Can the Chancellor hope to justify his claim that this is a “one nation Budget”? The key to any Budget is how it answers the question who gains and who loses? The big picture is explained well in the…Read more…
“This is a one nation Budget,” announced the Chancellor in his introduction to today’s Budget, before announcing reforms that exclude under 25s from higher pay and 18-21 year olds from housing benefit, scrapping maintenance grants for students, and permitting elite (“high-quality teaching”)…Read more…
After a headlong rush into so-called pensions freedom, someone responsible for pensions policy in government appears to have found the brake pedal. Tucked away in the Budget announcements was the news that attempts to launch a secondary annuity market …Read more…
Wednesday 8 July 2015
UNISON | Budget shuts public sector workers out of the recovery, says UNISON
Budget shuts public sector workers out of the recovery, says UNISON
Responding to the Chancellor’s Budget Statement today (Wednesday) UNISON General Secretary Dave Prentis said:
“Capping
wages at a miserly one per cent for four more years for public sector
workers will hasten theRead more…
Although the Chancellor said today, “We will be bold in delivering the Northern Powerhouse,” he had little to add on his big, unifying idea of “connectivity.” The theory (that I’ve not been able to track down to its evidence base) is that “a transformation in connections between the great cities of…Read more…
George Osborne announced today that the government would introduce a new National Living Wage of £7.20 per hour for workers aged 25 and above, to apply from April 2016 onwards (Budget Report, p32, Para 1.121). This will take the form of an initial 50p supplement to the existing adult rate National…Read more…
It’s a hard sale to make. “See that bird in your hand? Well I am taking it away. But don’t worry – in 50 years time you will get two, actually make that one, pecking around over there in the bush.” This is the scenario the Treasury is effectively exploring with its…Read more…
caef@caef.org.uk Greece No! to austerity CAEF statement [7.7.15] The position of the Greek Government and No! vote to austerity in the referendum does not alter the eurozone operation or the thrust…Read more…
The historic leader of the Revolution congratulated the Hon. Mr. Alexis Tsipras for his political victory and courage regarding the current situation facing the country Author: Fidel Castro Ruz…Read more…
Unite today (July 8) welcomed new arrangements with North Ayrshire Council (NAC) to improve the rights of casual workers across the local authority’s operations, calling the agreement a step forward…Read more…
George Osborne’s budget risks taking Britain backwards with further austerity and fails to realise the government’s ambition of boosting productivity, Unite warned today (Wednesday July 8). …Read more…
There is a lot to absorb in this astonishing budget where those who have suffered most in the recession appear to be paying most for a partial ending of austerity. But in spite of the claimed ‘plan for working people’, it appears that the OBR think households will end up worse not better…Read more…
The headlines from today’s Budget are pretty clear to see: the National Living Wage, an apprenticeship levy for large employers, a further squeeze on benefits. There is little to say on industrial policy and whilst today’s Budget can be viewed as a statement about big themes, concerns that the…Read more…
Another unhappy budget for the green economy, confirming the sale of the Green Investment Bank, a sovereign wealth fund for communities that host shale gas development, more roads investment, and expanding the North Sea allowances to include additional…Read more…
George Osborne is giving with one hand and taking away with the other in today’s Budget. The Chancellor has finally woken up to the fact that Britain needs a pay rise. The TUC has long campaigned for the minimum wage to rise faster and it’s good to see that the Chancellor has listened…Read more…