The Government is currently consulting on what they euphemistically refer to as “reforms” of “public sector exit payments” – in other words a wholesale attack upon the rights of public servants facing redundancy.You can read the complete consultation document online – and you should. What began as…Read more…

https://www.supremecourt.uk/news/permission-to-appeal-decision-26-february-2016.html
UNISON has been granted leave to appeal to the Supreme Court against our defeat on employment tribunal fees in the Court of Appeal.
With mounting evidence of the way i…Read more…

‎Here is the answer from Anna Soubry, Minister of State, Department for Business Innovation and Skills yesterday (with thanks to a colleague on the employers’ side who spotted this);”To answer the hon. Gentleman’s question directly, the regulations giving effect to the cap will not be in force…Read more…

https://www.unison.org.uk/at-work/education-services/key-issues/further-education-pay-2016/
UNISON and UCU members are striking today in English Further Education (FE) colleges in opposition to a zero per cent pay “offer.”
Even if there weren’t a compe…Read more…

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https://www.unison.org.uk/?p=152180
Today’s news about the positive result secured by UNISON in the case of Lock -v- British Gas may have positive implications beyond the case of those like Mr Lock, a salesman, who earned commission (which was not, but…Read more…

‎Wednesday’s meeting of UNISON’s National Executive Council (NEC) received positive reports of the lobbying being done by our Union in the House of Lords (and Commons) to try to limit the damage the Trade Union Bill may do to our movement.
Whilst reports of the work of UNISON officials received by…Read more…

Normal 0 false false false EN-GB X-NONE X-NONE …Read more…

‎UNISON President Wendy Nichols addressed the elephant (not) in the room at the start of today’s meeting of the UNISON National Executive Council (NEC) (of which, more later) when she reported that UNISON is still waiting for the report from the Returning Officer appointed in relation to the…Read more…

http://wire.novaramedia.com/2016/01/rebuilding-radical-unionism-an-organisers-notes/
This anonymous contribution to the debate that isn’t really happening about the crisis of our trade union movement is well worth a read.
For many at the top of our tra…Read more…

As a UNISON Branch Secretary in London local government I get all manner of excitement. This Thursday that will include a meeting of the Greater London Employers Forum, the remnant of the provincial bargaining machinery which the employers’ sabotaged during the London Weighting dispute early this…Read more…

Anyone who saw the Health Secretary speaking over the weekend will understand why the junior doctors’ strike is going ahead from 8am on Wednesday 10 February.You can show your support online or support picket lines across England.
The junior doctors are not the only group of public servants under…Read more…

A reader recently asked the question above.The draft Regulations to implement the public sector exit payment cap don’t (yet) help us to know when the cap will come into force (they currently say it will come into force on XXX…)They do reveal that, for those local government workers whose total…Read more…

On Tuesday 9 February, as part of the strangely-titled “heart unions” week, the TUC will be staging a big workplace meeting, which we can all access online.Although you may need to use your own device if your employer (like mine) blocks live streaming of videos over their network.The point of the…Read more…

UNISON members in Lambeth libraries and UNITE members in Greenwich libraries are on strike on Monday 8 February to defend library services. It is good to see that action can be coordinated between members of different trade unions!In Lambeth the strike is to defend all ten of Lambeth’s libraries in…Read more…

https://www.unison.org.uk/news/press-release/2016/02/staff-to-strike-in-further-education-colleges-on-24-february/
Members of UNISON and of our sister union for lecturers UCU (the University and Colleges Union) employed in Further Education (FE) in Eng…Read more…

‎I was very pleased to move (very briefly as I still have an impressive cough) a report from National Executive Council (NEC) members to the Annual General Meeting of UNISON’s Greater London Regional Council this morning.
There had been an earlier misunderstanding, in that the report circulated…Read more…

Today saw the Annual General Meeting of the Greater London Regional Council of UNISON.
The meeting was noteworthy for the absence of the Regional Secretary, whose colleague from the Eastern Region ably filled in.
(It’s worth reflecting that, since the …Read more…

http://heartunions.org/ This is the link to the TUC site promoting next week’s “heart unions” week. Go there and sign up to the campaign.
(As an ageing curmudgeon and pedant I am happy to say that I love trade unionism and trade unionists but wouldn’t …Read more…

http://lambeth-unison.org/ is the web address for Lambeth UNISON, and I recommend readers of this blog bookmark the site to keep up to date with developments in the only borough to have a music hall song named for us.
This week the branch site will be …Read more…