All the union news that's fit to blog...
UNISON pensions team
July 2016
Protect your pension – sign the petition!
Dear John Nearly 85,000 people like you have already signed the LGPS parliamentary…Read more…
To all comrades in France currently suffering and facing the fascist threat. Solidarity! yes but “No Pasarán!Read more…
What a great speech by Anamul following the count announcement and how humble and gracious he is to his opponents. He won over 52% of the vote despite the complete and utter mess our National Party is in at the moment. He is a principled socialist and …Read more…
Better late than never but this is a speech I made at the UNISON NDC conference on the Housing crisis.
“Conference, President, John Gray, speaking on behalf of the NEC in support of Composite B.
Conference, I have worked in local authority and Housin…Read more…
Today is polling day in the Forest Gate North Council by election in Newham. Local candidate Anamul Islam is the Labour Party candidate.
Anamul is a leading community and trade union activist and will be an excellent Councillor.
He w…Read more…
I was very proud on Monday evening to take part in a peaceful protest against hate and racism.
An Asian Labour Party canvasser had been abused, attacked and hit on the head with a bottle the previous day. This was a completely unprovoked attack…Read more…
I was so, so relieved to hear tonight that the Labour Party NEC has decided that the elected Leader, Jeremy Corbyn, will be on the ballot paper for the forthcoming leadership challenge.
I honesty feared that the Party would implode if this did n…Read more…
Protest against #RaceHate outside Forest Gate station E7 at 8.30pm tonight after the GBH attack on a local Black Labour Party canvasser yesterday. Organised by Forest Gate North Labour Party and local Councillors. All welcome.Read more…
Dear Supporter
By-election – this Thursday
If you’ve got any free time please come and join us and Anam, our Labour Party candidate, in Forest Gate North. We’re also out 11am and 6pm Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday this week and all…Read more…
“Too many housing associations do not support the victims of workplace violence, says John Gray” Below is an opinion piece I wrote for Inside Housing last week (it is behind a paywall). I think you will find the same thing in many other sectors.
…Read more…
What a terrific street art painting in my West Ham ward at Holbrook Road junction with Plaistow Road, West Ham. E15.
I am not sure if there is a William Blake connection but it does remind me of his famous poem (see below – one of my favourties). I un…Read more…
BBC news. “Labour’s former deputy prime minister Lord Prescott has waded into the row over Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership saying: “He’s only been in the job nine months – do you know anyone who gets sacked within nine months?”
He says he doesn’t agre…Read more…
This is my latest opinion article for Professional Pensions magazine.
“John Gray asks why UK pension schemes do not have access to important information on charges.
Earlier this month I went to the CWC annual conference in Amsterdam. This was f…Read more…
The current crisis within the Parliamentary Labour Party is deeply regrettable and unnecessary. Last week’s vote to leave the European Union presents the entire labour movement with unprecedented challenges. Above all, we need to be fighting to preserve our members’ jobs, already under threat in…Read more…
Picture collage from the recent canvassing sessions in the Forest Gate North ward By election in Newham, East London. The candidate is Anam Islam, a top Labour trade unionist, anti-racist campaigner and committed socialist.
The campaig…Read more…
Unison statement “Last summer, our union nominated Jeremy Corbyn for Labour leader, and a great number of our members voted for him in the Labour leadership contest.Support for Jeremy remains the position of this union, as determined by our member…Read more…
UNISON Press release “Commenting on the news that the UK has voted to leave the EU, UNISON general secretary Dave Prentis said:
“The people have spoken, and they have made a clear call for change – and a different relationship with Europe.
“We will be working in the coming weeks and…Read more…
Dear John
The Referendum’s tomorrow. We’ve all heard the arguments from both sides, and although we think the EU is far from perfect, we at unionstogether strongly believe that we are all better off IN Europe.
We’re backing remaining in the EU for the following three reasons:
1….Read more…
Guest Post By NEC member Elizabeth Cameron. “And we’re off! !! #uNdc16 gets underway.
Fairly lengthy but also interesting standing orders report delivered by new chair Mark Rayner for whom this is a well deserved achievement,
Mark has worked tirelessly for years on this committee and…Read more…
Unison is back in Brighton for its National Delegate Conference. The NDC is the annual Parliament of our 1.3 million members. Over 2000 delegates and visitors will be in Brighton for the conference
Picture is from the London meeting this evening for de…Read more…