Conference recognises the threat to thousands of local authority workers’ jobs who currently administer Housing Benefit due to the Westmister Government’s decision to replace in and out of work benefits and Housing Benefits with a ‘Universal Credit’. UNISON will need to respond robustly to defend members jobs and to retain a locally accessible provision for […]
Conference motions
This Conference deplores the recent announcement of the tri-borough merger of Hammersmith and Fulham, Westminster and Kensington and Chelsea we are now seeing the brutal attacks to our terms and conditions, job’s and pensions. Over the next three years the tri-borough proposal are suggesting that there will be a saving of 35 million a year […]
The 2011 Energy Conference notes that Trade Union Accredited H&S or SHE Representatives have a legal right to inspect the workplace 4 times per year. Agreeing dates can be a problem, therefore it is recommended that joint H&S inspections are agreed with management as near as practicable to 13, 26 and 39 weeks after European […]
This Conference is concerned that while many Allied Health Professionals (AHPs) have a positive experience of working for the NHS, some feel that they no longer have good career prospects and that there is a lack of training opportunities for AHPs. This means that therapists have limited chances to develop a wide range of skills […]
Conference notes with concern the twin developments of the commitment of the Tory-Liberal Government to an ‘any willing provider’ approach to NHS services and the erosion of the value of TUPE as a protection for NHS staff transferred to other providers. Previously TUPE, the Cabinet Office Code of Practice on Transfers in the Public Sector […]
Conference believes that the policies of the current government pose the greatest threat to living standards of health workers of any time in the 63 years of the NHS. Conference thinks that the government is using the deficit as an opportunity to cut the public sector paybill rather than increase taxation to those responsible for […]
Conference re-affirms its commitment to the development of apprenticeships within the NHS and notes the success of the last Labour Government in significantly increasing the number of apprenticeships in the NHS in England. Apprenticeships in the NHS can be used as a significant career development tool for new and existing staff providing the means of […]
Conference notes that some NHS Foundation Trusts, such as Norfolk and Norwich, have been attempting to break from the national NHS pay and conditions embodied in Agenda for Change. We believe that this amounts to a fundamental attack on the safeguards on pay and conditions that a national scheme provides, and opens the door to […]
Conference notes that registered nurses have an obligation under the Nursing and Midwifery Council’s (NMC) Code of Conduct to formally raise any concerns they have about patient safety. This is also incorporated into the NHS Constitution (England). We also note the importance of raising concerns about poor standards of patient care, in the wake of […]
In a bid to save money, many health boards are focusing on the nursing wages bill and are using unsustainable tactics, such as freezing posts, not replacing registered nurses when they leave or retire and converting vacant registered nurse posts to a lower grade as they cost less. Despite all of the repeated assurances, from […]
Conference is concerned that, following the government’s decision that all NHS trusts will be expected to become foundation trusts, there is a real danger that we will see a major shift away from our hard fought and negotiated terms and condition of employment under Agenda for Change. We have already seen some foundation trusts take […]
This Conference is concerned that too few health staff have the facility to take negotiated disability leave when their impairment or long term health condition requires them to take time off work. In particular we are concerned that specific non apparent impairments relating to auto immune deficiencies including Rheumatoid Arthritis, HIV, Lupus, Ankylosing Spondylitis etc […]
Historically NHS reorganisation brings with it many challenges and is often coupled with significant job losses. However major NHS reorganisation taking place concurrently with the impact of the comprehensive spending review is a recipe for disaster. The national nursing sector is deeply worried about the impact that this will have on our patients, the profession […]
This Conference is concerned that in the 21st century, nurses and other heath workers continue to be at risk from workplace injuries that can give rise to them acquiring a new status of disability. In many cases employers view the only option for such workers to be transferred from a clinical role into administrative and […]
Following the comprehensive spending review it is clear that the NHS is not protected from cuts by this coalition government. Conference is concerned by an increasingly aggressive misuse of staff sickness by some NHS employers to avoid the costs of redundancy. In addition to the fundamental dishonesty of this approach, staff and patient health is […]