The employment gap between disabled and non-disabled people has hit 31 per cent, having remained stubbornly above 30 per cent since 2008. Progress in reducing the gap remains stuck, with less…Read more…
Breaking down barriers
For our last part in UNITElive’s series for Disability History Month this, we speak to Marsha de Cordova who explains how people with disabilities are being shortchanged by employers and the…Read more…
Stand up
In part 4 of our Disability History Month series, UNITElive speaks to Unite equalities rep Marina Gunn about changing perceptions that others have about people with disabilities. Dry humour…Read more…
Better understanding
In the third part of our week-long series for Disability History Month, UNITElive speaks to Unite Welsh disabilites committee chair Ceri Wright, who was diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome,…Read more…
Lend a hand
In part 2 of our week-long series for Disability History Month, UNITElive speaks to Unite vice-chair of the South East region Ian Lidbetter. Having a disability that isn’t immediately apparent,…Read more…
Fight for rights
As part of Disability History Month this month, UNITElive will publish one story each day featuring the many Unite members with disabilities who are fighting for a better world for all. Today,…Read more…
“You don’t look disabled”
To mark international day of disabled people on 3 December, the TUC has published guidance for trade union representatives and disabled workers under the title “You don’t look disabled”. The individual case studies it presents show why it is needed. Much of the population assumes that disabled…Read more…
WOWPetition to assess full impact of all cuts to support & social care for disabled people
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The poverty gap between disabled and non-disabled people has got worse
Is Britain fairer for disabled people? No, if you read across all the findings in the report of the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) published on 30 October, their five-yearly survey into “fairness” in Britain. This will come as no surprise to millions of disabled people living with the…Read more…
Disabled Members’ Self Organised Group
The branch is seeking to launch a Disabled Members’ Self Organised Group. A full size poster is available for display – Disabled Members SOG Launch October 2015 If you are interested in joining the group, have any ideas on how the … Continue reading →Read more…
UNISON Champion – June Poole RIP
I was shocked to hear the sad news that UNISON stalwart, June Poole, has passed away after a short illness. We were supposed to meet yesterday at the UNISON centre in London for a Board meeting of the Welfare Trustees.This meeting was cancelled out of …Read more…
Checking for discrimination in selection
There are many situations, from recruitment to promotion to redundancies, where employers make selections between people. You often hear people talking about the importance of doing “Equality Impact Assessments” and checking for discrimination, but I’v…Read more…
The truth must out
Two years into the coalition government’s austerity programme in 2012, routine figures released by the department of work and pensions revealed a shocking phenomenon – in just one year (2011) more…Read more…
Nasty business in Bromley
Eviction threat to diabetic carer and daughter AS a responsible council worker and trade unionist, Paul Rooney thought it his duty to criticize the policy and workings of Tory-controlled…Read more…
Unite Rules Conference – day three
The main excitement on Wednesday was motion 2/1 from the Executive Council, which removed “so far as may be lawful from rule “2.1 The objects of the Union shall, as far as may be lawful, be:”. Len McCluskey gave a great speech arguing why it was …Read more…
What if I’m not a participant?
On the day the independent living fund ends, Unite Community member Robert Punton tells us how it changed his life – and how it’s demise will affect him. He writes: It is often…Read more…
Disabled workers in Great Britain: What now?
The TUC released a comprehensive report today revealing just how little progress for disabled people in the workforce was achieved under the 2010-15 government. The headline employment and unemployment rate figures paint a picture of essential stagnati…Read more…
Just one simple step
When Cathy Cobbold goes to an airport people begin doing funny things. Although Cathy, who is profoundly deaf, shrugs her experiences off with a laugh, she has been working with Unite members…Read more…