UNISON Says Fair Pay for NHS staff

"The real value of NHS pay has been falling for five years 

Pay in the NHS has not kept in line with inflation and staff have not received an above-inflation pay rise since 2009.

NHS workers in England are under paid

 This year 60% of NHS staff will not get any pay rise and only those at the top of their bands will receive a 1% unconsolidated lump sum. The 1% unconsolidated lump sum is a one-off payment which does not alter the hourly rate, so it will not count towards unsocial hours for evening, weekend or night shifts, it will not be added to overtime, it will not be added to any supplements (such as high cost area supplements, local recruitment and retention premia, or on-call arrangements) and it does not count towards pensionable pay.

UNISON members working in the NHS in England are now being balloted for industrial action

UNISON’s healthcare service group executive has agreed to ballot members in England on pay for strike action and action short of strike action. 

The ballot will open on 28 August 2014 and close at 10am on 18 September 2014. Members will vote on strike action and action short of strike.

If members vote ‘yes’, it is proposed that members will take action during a week in October. This is likely to start with a short stoppage followed by a defined form of action short of strike, such as insisting that members take their breaks.

Members will be sent a ballot paper with questions asking whether they are prepared to take strike action and/or action short of strike action.

We are urging members to vote yes for both strike action and action short of strike. However, we are also urging all members, whatever their view, to vote to ensure we have a high ballot turn out".

Further Strike Action at One Housing Group in Support of Sacked Steward Bryan Kennedy

Strike action calling for the reinstatement of sacked steward, Bryan Kennedy, will take place from Friday the 8th of August to Monday 11th August.

There will be a Picket line (Friday 8th and Monday 11th) at the One Housing Headquarters, 100 Chalk Farm Rd, NW1 8EH (next to the Round House in Camden) 8am to 3pm. Nearest tube Chalk Farm. 

Bryan was sacked by One Housing Group for organising Strike action to try and protect care and support workers facing pay cuts. 

Don't keep cutting NHS workers Pay!

Picture of London NHS workers protesting about the announcement of the Tories latest public service pay cut.

Please make sure that everyone understands that any pay "offer" under the rate of inflation is a pay cut. 

Why is it when the rich in this country are getting, richer and richer, the Tories are cutting the pay, again and again, of those we want to look after us when we are sick?

"UNISON today described health secretary Jeremy Hunt's pay plan as "divisive, unfair and disingenuous", as NHS staff across the country took part in protests against it.

The day of protest on pay comes during Fair Pay Fortnight, and the union's head of health, Christina McAnea, writing for Labour List, pointed out that Mr Hunt is "will not even honour the recommendations of the independent pay review body to offer them [NHS staff] all a 1% increase to hourly rates".

Ms McAnea says that the recommended 1% was "woefully inadequate" after "years of below-inflation pay awards", but for staff in England, Mr Hunt "has restricted the 1% offer to those at the top of their pay bands" and it will come as a cash sum.

Over a third of non-medical NHS staff are paid below £21,000 and most health service staff have had their pay cut by 8-12% between 2010 and 2013 in real terms".

hat tip Captain Swing

Future Directions Striker speaks at UNISON London Regional Council

Yesterday was the UNISON London Regional Council meeting chaired by our Regional Convener, Gloria Hanson.

The first speaker was Alan Tate (left of picture) from the Communications union, CWU, who spoke about the privatisation of Royal Mail.

There was no need to do this - Royal Mail had been transformed in recent years and was making money. Why can Railtrack be publicly owned and still able to access the capital markets for investment but Royal Mail could not? The tax payers have been ripped off not only by the below value share offering but the loss of huge Royal Mail property assets across the Country.

CWU will go on strike November 4th if they cannot reach a deal on pay and to protect pay and conditions.

Next speaker was UNISON Senior National officer (not in picture) Donna Rowe-Merriman, who briefed us the Higher Education joint union strike over pay, which will take next Thursday 31 October. The pay claim is affordable and HE institutions can afford to pay more but choose not to while thousands of their directly employed staff are not even paid a living wage but exist on minimum wage rates. Further details of the strike action and regional rally's to follow. 

Final Speaker was Karen Shadwell (2nd from right), UNISON member of Rochdale branch. Karen is a disability support worker with high needs clients. She works for an organisation called "Future Directions" who are cutting her pay by nearly £100 per week.  She and her colleagues have been on strike for 29 days in recent months. Check out my past posts related to this dispute here, here and here. She was supported at this meeting by UNISON Local organiser, Karen Ellis.

Karen was an inspiration and received a standing ovation at the end of her speech. She had been up at 5am this morning in order to get here in time and was very nervous beforehand since  this was her first ever speech to such a meeting. Her speech was excellent. As her UNISON NEC member for Community, I offered her and her colleagues my support.

We have recently agreed in London for a donation  to the strike fund and sent a message of support. You can send messages of support and donations to Helen Harrison, branch secretary, Rochdale UNISON, 46 Richard Street, Rochdale, OL11 1DU. Email: unison@rochdale.gov.uk. Cheques can be made payable to Rochdale UNISON.

UNISON and her Future Directions had been to talk at ACAS on Friday and Monday. Hopefully a satisfactory result will be reached.

(2nd from left in picture is our London Equalities Convener Yvonne Green and behind her a bit obscured, Karen Ellis ). Hat tip photograph Karen Westwood.

Family Mosaic "Slash and Burn" Pay Cuts: UNISON to Ballot on Strike Action

2nd branch press release on Family Mosaic. "UNISON is to immediately conduct an indicative ballot of its members at Family Mosaic over possible strike action. The move is in response to Family Mosaic’s proposal to cut the pay of its support staff and increase the working hours of its entire 1,500 front line staff based in Essex and London. Staff members who do not agree to the changes face being dismissed. There is considerable disquiet amongst Family Mosaic staff who state that senior management will not face similar changes to their pay and conditions. The union will also be providing its members with legal advice in response to the employer’s threats to dismiss staff.

UNISON Essex regional organizer, Nick Bradley said : “ This employer by trying to bully staff into agreeing individual pay cuts of up to 35% are acting like one of the very worst employers in the UK. Apart from legal action that we will vigorously pursue with our members we have no choice but to go into dispute – and we are now asking our members whether they would support strike action to defend their terms and conditions. There is still time for Family Mosaic to sit down and talk to us and withdraw their bullying letters to staff” 

London UNISON Regional Organiser, Colin Inniss, said: “Family Mosaic chief executive Brendan Sarsfield’s (grayee -see picture above) claim that the average pay cut will be 2 percent is disingenuous. Combined with the unpaid increase in working hours, the average pay cut that staff face is 8.5% with some members facing cuts of over 11%. This is a man who - gallingly - saw his annual remuneration increase by 4% in 2010/11, taking his salary up to a whooping £172,000. How exactly does the Family Mosaic Board justify paying their chief executive such a huge salary whilst making cuts that will push front line staff members into poverty?”

For Further information or comment please contact:
UNISON Regional Organiser, Nick Bradley on 0790 867 2899, N.Bradley@unison.co.uk
UNISON Regional Organiser, Colin Inniss on 07703 194 127 C.Inniss@unison.co.uk
Notes for Editors
1. UNISON’s represents over 60,000 members in the Community and Voluntary sector.
2. Family Mosaic own and manage 23,000 properties across, 27 London Boroughs and in Essex. It has a significant Supported Housing business providing nursing, care and support services to around 4,000 people.
3. Family Mosaic’s operating surplus rose from 19% in 2009/10 to 26% in 2010/11. The Group’s net surplus increase to £34 million in 2010/11, a rise of 4% on the previous year.
4. In July 2011, Family Mosaic finalised the purchase of Hyde Housing’s £14 million-turnover subsidiary, In Touch, which provides services to 4,200 people and includes 120 contracts.

Southampton social care staff strike

Check out the latest in the Southampton City Council UNISON and Unite dispute over proposed 5% pay cuts for staff.  "Over 450 UNISON and Unite members working in social care are set to strike on Wednesday 3 August as part of the continuing industrial action against pay cuts.

The council had previously written to all staff informing them of their intention to sack them and rehire them on worse contracts.

City-wide action so far has seen waste and recycling workers, street cleaners, library workers, Itchen toll bridge collectors, parking enforcement officers, contact supervisors (social care), vehicle mechanics, port health officers and building maintenance workers go on strike.

Those on strike on Wednesday 3 August will be the whole of the safeguarding division and all of health and adult care apart from day services, home care, residential homes, meals on wheels and commissioning.

Action on 3 August will begin with a rally at 11am in Guildhall Square. This will be followed at 12noon by a meeting for all social work staff. There will be picket lines at Marland House, Oakhill House, Herbert Collins House, Thomas Lewis House, Cannon Street offices and College Keep. On 4 August the City Council will be given seven days notice of areas in social work who will be on strike for a longer period. A further strike of all social work staff is planned for later in August.

Strong support continues to be received by the branch from UNISON branches across the country. Regional manager Steve Brazier reported that the branch received a message of support and donation from the Shetland Islands UNISON branch as well as receiving an ongoing commitment from UNISON at a regional and national level to provide the financial resources needed to continue with the dispute. There will be a joint UNISON / Unite membership meeting on Wednesday 10 August at 12.30pm in Above Bar Church to decide the next steps in the campaign".  Hat tip UNISON press release.

Ekaya union members lobby against 30-60% pay cuts

Check out this YouTube clip about the lobby last week by UNISON Housing Association members against the slashing of pay in Ekaya Housing Association.  Pay is being cut by between 30-60%, redundancies and an increase in working hours.  The Ekaya senior management will still of course pay themselves the same money.

There was a recent meeting at the annual UNISON London Labour Link forum at the House of Commons with Ekaya UNISON members and prominent Labour MP's and Assembly members about their plight. 

Plans are being made to lobby the local Council leaders and the next Ekaya Board meeting. Watch this space.

UNISON slams pay cuts of up to 60% at London Housing Association

This press release from National UNISON is featured today on its website. 

"UNISON, the UK’s largest union, today hit out at plans by Ekaya Housing Association in South London to cut pay by up to 60%, as well as declaring compulsory redundancies and increasing hours.

The salary cuts at Ekaya range from 35% to 57.9%, and staff will be asked to work 2.5 hours more per week.

The union is calling on the housing association to put the brakes on the damaging plans and hold a thorough and meaningful consultation.

Dave Prentis, UNISON General Secretary, said:

“Pay cuts on this scale are unthinkable for hardworking families. How would you cope with 60% less in your pocket? Matters are made even worse by high inflation – pilling the pounds onto basic, everyday living.

“Ekaya have not been through a proper consultation on these plans. The association desperately need to carry out an equality impact assessment, as these cuts are set to hit black and ethnic minority women hard.

“Ekaya must get into talks.”

See Tuesday's post here