Nominate John Gray to UNISON Community SGE elections for Greater London General Seat

Dear London Branch Secretary and Chair

Your branch is entitled to nominate candidates to the London SGE Community General seat for this years’ Service Group Executive elections. If you are not a Community specific branch please put this request to your Community members for consideration - John Gray for the Greater London General Seat

I am standing on a platform to unite the leadership of our union. Our General Secretary needs unity and support not factions fighting internally. A united leadership will ensure UNISON concentrates on taking on the government, making sure our members don't pay for the cost of Covid and fighting their plans to divide workers with below inflation pay offers.

If your branch is organising hustings I am more than willing to attend.

I have been an activist in UNISON for many years and held a number of different National, Regional and Branch positions. My special interest is pensions. I work for a large London based Housing Association and am its National Convenor as well as a front line worker specialising in complex ASB. I am also a former Branch Secretary, Chair of the GLR Housing Associations Branch.

Covid 19 Pandemic These past 2 years has been the most difficult time in generations. UNISON should be so proud of our members for continuing to provide much needed public services.  Also UNISON activists and staff have supported sometimes very frightened members and fought hard for adequate PPE and risk assessments. But the impact of the pandemic on our members physically and mentally can't be underestimated- proper support needs to be in place for those who got the country through the pandemic as we hopefully come out of this crisis

 Austerity. All of us deserve decent wages and decent terms and conditions. Instead many of us are facing cuts in pay, reduced benefits and redundancies. If elected to the SGE I will be working and campaigning hard with branches and regions to oppose these measures. I believe that Community members must play our part in opposing further Covid related austerity.

 Equalities: The pandemic has highlighted the health inequalities with women and Black communities impacted the hardest. UNISON should be leading campaigns to end the disgraceful health inequalities in this country and holding the government and employers to their commitment to end systemic racism.

I also support the Community specific campaigns below:-

• Better funding & resources for branches that support Community member who often work for small employers and in isolated workplaces.
• No public money for “union busters”. Any employer that does not have a union recognition agreement should be barred from public grants or contracts
• Sector Wage Councils. Set up to decide the pay and conditions of all staff by collective bargaining including a real living wage minimum for all Community workers and agency/sub-contractors.
• UNISON Ethical Care Charter. All employers must be called upon to sign up.
• Better governance and democracy.  Many of our employer management boards are unelected and unrepresentative. We need worker reps on Boards and trustee bodies.
• Defend Pensions. Protect the Social Housing Pension fund and the Pension Trust from further cuts. A decent defined benefit pension scheme for all.
• Better health & safety at work in particular protecting members by supporting the UNISON “End Violence at Work” charter.
• Recruit & train more activists to support members