Unity Magazine - May 2004

Published by Devon County UNISON, Matford Lane Offices, County Hall, Exeter "If there is anything that undermines trust, it is the feeling that the people at the top lack integrity." Warren Bennis, Professor of Business, University of Southern California

Local Government Pay Talks Stall - Summer Action 'Not Ruled Out'

Pay talks covering 1.5 million local government workers today stalled when the employers signalled a reluctance to improve on the earlier 'with strings' offer of 7% over 3 years.

UNISON National Secretary Heather Wakefield, said:

'After three joint secretaries' meetings, it's absolutely clear that the employers are adopting a tough stance. This morning they indicated that the earlier offer which included more strings than the philharmonic, is unlikely to be improved.

'The strings include withholding the third year of any pay deal if councils have not carried out equal pay reviews before then. Why should our members be penalised for employers' failures? The employers have a duty under the Equal Pay Act to carry out those reviews - we are not stopping them, indeed we are trying our best to get them to carry out their obligations. We even included it in the claim. But it needs funding - it cannot be found from existing budgets.

'Their offer also demands removal of premium payments for overtime and shift working from the national agreement. A move that would affect already low paid care workers. And will only increase annual leave to 25 days if the unions negotiate a reduction in sick pay. This is an appalling proposal.

'In the wake of the 2002 dispute and the positive report from the Local Government Pay Commission, we would have expected the employers to recognise the link between fair treatment of the workforce and service improvement.

'I cannot see a way forward unless the employers rethink their penny-pinching approach. At this rate we cannot rule out industrial action over the summer.'

The trade union side will meet on 7 May to consider further steps.

For regular updates see Pay Claim 2004

Pathetic Pay Offer Will Plunge Residential Care into Further Staffing Crisis

Residential care in Britain is heading for a crisis as staff morale plummets and vacancy rates soar, unless the local government employers increase their pathetic 7% over three years with strings offer, warns UNISON.

Low pay, serious staffing shortages coupled with increased standards and regulation leading to increased work demands is the root cause, according to a new survey of residential workers carried out by UNISON.

It found that nearly half (41%) earn less than £6 an hour, and three-quarters earn less than £7 an hour. Their pay would increase by only 16p an hour under the current offer. And a third of them are looking for other work.

The Council Tax and Staff Cuts

At the last meeting of the Personnel Partnership, the unions enquired whether the Director of Resources was yet in a position to identify where cuts in services and staffing would be made and wished to help to minimise the effect on staff. They referred to the current workloads of staff and there was little scope to increase individual workloads.

The Director of Resources reported that the final figures were still being evaluated but a small percentage reduction in staffing numbers was expected. She was looking into implications for services and was hopeful that staff reductions could be met through natural wastage. Devon had a good record of minimal compulsory redundancies. The Director of Resources would be keeping the Staff Side informed of progress and would be working with them.

The Employers expressed their appreciation at the quality of Devon's staff and the value the public received and considered the current adverse publicity unfortunate. It was hoped that in due course this balance could be redressed with the help of Staff Side.

Property Practice

UNISON has raised staff concerns at progress of the Council in establishing a Property Partnership with the private sector. A primary concern was safeguarding pensions, amongst other terms and conditions of staff.

The Director of Resources noted and would investigate the wish of the staff for the Council to consider, if possible, expressing a preference for its staff within such a partnership to be granted admitted body status to Devon's pension scheme. The Director of Resources also stated the intention to protect the terms and conditions of staff as far as possible and that there had always been full consultation with staff in other transfers of this kind.

Another main concern of staff was a commitment to use the partnership as a first preference for work.

The Director of Resources commented that the service directorates would not have a choice e.g. design would operate under the same system as present. There was a clear commitment from officers to the strategic partnership and a working group was being established of both members and officers including the Executive member for Education (Schools), representing a 'major purchaser of services'. Although in some cases, schools might take work elsewhere, it was the intention that the County Council would put all work through the partnership provided it could be delivered cost effectively and was on time. There was a common aim to be able to effectively deliver the Council's capital programmes of the future.

Car Allowance

At the March JCC, Staff Side reported that its members had asked that their request for these allowances to be made in accordance with the current National Agreement be raised with employers. Staff Side noted that management wished to await the response of its green travel questionnaire, but Staff Side did not feel the response would be representative of all staff since only Exeter based staff had been consulted.

The Director of Resources reported that this issue had been recently discussed at the corporate JCC. It was also considered that more information would be available through the detailed parking survey from the sample of staff approached. The responses were taking some time to evaluate given the high response rate. When she was in a better position to discuss this further with the Staff Side she would do so.

Women stuck in councils' dead end jobs

Almost a third of council staff are seriously considering quitting their jobs, according to a UNISON survey. Low morale and high levels of stress, compounded by poor pay and conditions, were also prompting a further third to think about leaving local government. UNISON's Perceptions at work: Women and Men in local government survey found women are the least likely to climb up the career ladder, despite representing threequarters of the local government workforce. Four in five feel their job has become more pressurised in the past year, and almost all find the work stressful, with a third saying it is 'highly stressful'. Heather Wakefield, UNISON head of local government, said: 'We know there are around 300,000 women who earn less than £5.53 an hour and many more are stuck in dead end jobs, with little or no chance of training or promotion. This is a terrible waste of peoples' skills and talents and goes against the reality that you need a well trained, well motivated workforce to deliver quality services.'

Domestic Violence Awareness Day

Wednesday 19th May 10.30-4.00
Cleeve Country House Hotel, Wellington.
Keynote Speaker: Inspector Kay Balsdon, Devon & Cornwall Police.
Open to all UNISON activists and Reps. Closing date Friday 7th May.

One in four of your workmates, mostly women, at some time in their life will experience abuse at home. One woman is killed every week in the United Kingdom by her violent partner.

Are you a workplace Rep, Branch official, Steward, or Life long Learning Rep? If you were speaking to a member would you know how to recognise any signs and if you did, would you be able to offer support? This training day has been specially designed by the Domestic Violence Campaign Group to give our UNISON Reps, men and women, the skills to be aware of the issue and to deal sensitively with members experiencing abuse. Domestic Abuse impacts on the workplace. Our best employers are now recognising this and introducing policies.

Planning Role for Counties Confirmed, thanks to UNISON

UNISON has been lobbying strongly from 2002 about proposed Government changes in the Planning system that would have removed planning powers from Local Authorities to as yet unelected Regions. This Branch in particular has lead the national campaign in UNISON South West and nationally with strong arguments to support a local role at County and Unitary Level and the jobs of our members in Planning Departments. We submitted papers over the consultation process (you can see our submission on the Stationery Office web site) to the House of Commons Select Committee. The Branch also lobbied throughout UNISON, the Labour Link and other organizations, and were delighted to hear that the Government has accepted the need to retain County Level Planning on a statutory footing. The Planning and Compulsory Purchase Bill is now law.

DCC papers issued in connection with the Devon County Council meeting on 1 April, however, referred only to the employers part in securing this positive result and omitted to acknowledge UNISON's role. The Branch Secretary has communicated with the DCC Chief Executive and asked him to make our efforts known; now we expect that our employers will also recognise our role in this success. The Planning and Compulsory Purchase Bill now includes the appropriate County functions. Had the Counties lost this key element of Strategic Planning, we anticipate that a real weakening in the environmental and transport role would have occurred. It would then have been inevitable that Government would question other County functions.

Roberto Franceschini
UNISON Staff Side.

Whistle Blowing

Staff Side reported their serious concerns over the current agreement at the recent JCC with employers and that they were advising staff not to use this. Staff Side suggested that some interim measures be put in place whilst a comprehensive new policy was determined. There were examples of problems experienced by staff using the current agreement and in determining effective ways of ensuring fair treatment for all parties.

The Director of Resources reported that given the complexity of this issue, it was not thought appropriate to put in interim measures, but it was anticipated that a draft agreement would be forwarded to the Staff Side by the end of March 2004 for comment.

Tackling stress to reduce sickness absence

Local government employers have accepted that tackling stress at work by creating better jobs is the key to reducing sickness absence. The Employers' Organisation for local government (EO) says its guidance aims to reduce the 34.6 per cent of sickness absence caused by work-related stress. Tracey Connage, assistant director of best practice at the EO, said:

'Effective stress management techniques will always tackle the real sources of stress in the workplace. Inflexible work patterns and arrangements, bad job design, poor communications, interpersonal conflicts, inappropriate recruitment and selection decisions and hostile work cultures should be addressed. Reactive measures will only be short-term solutions where structural issues are at the root of problems.'

See Employers' Organisation.

Apologies and Correction:

In the article Your Pension under attack in the March 2004 issue, reference was made to the starting salary for teachers. This should have read £18,000 not £30,000 as stated. The figure of £30,000 reflects the average salary not the basic pay scale. Apologies to those members' partners who are teachers who may have been offended by this.

Useful Info

CAB Exeter

A new ACAS based project at the CAB involves complaints against the NHS. 11/2 workers have been recruited for this. The bureau needs more volunteers.

Westcountry Training and Consultancy (WTCS)

New Deal for the Disabled is run from new premises in Exeter High Street.

Exeter Library

The library is now open on a Sunday 10.30am - 2.00pm. This is a pilot until March 2004. The lending library is currently busier than the reference library.

Learndirect Centre

Courses offered in IT, Business and Management, etc. Skills for life courses are also available with support available for outreach, rural areas etc. The centre also offers the national skills test.

Esther Mann - Lone Parent Advisor - Exeter Jobcentre Plus

All the advisors are now based at Clarendon House. The service is available to lone parents working under 16 hours.

Go4

A new contract is providing funding for Enhanced Services until July 2004. The service offers 1 hours guidance appointments to those educated below NVQ level 2 who do not have 5GCSE grade C and above or 5 CSE grade 1. The appointments are available in Exeter Reference library, Exmouth Library and Tiverton Jobcentreplus. To book an appointment call the Go4 enquiry line on 0845 8 50 50 70. Psychometric testing is also available in Exeter.

Tolpuddle Youth Camp

If you are aged between 18 and 30 and you fancy a weekend away try the Tolpuddle Youth Camp 11 - 18 July 04:

Social Scene

Come Ballroom Dancing, Coaver Club, County Hall - Monday nights 8 - 9 pm, excellent teacher - all levels catered for - includes Latin American dance. Cost £1.50.

Modern Jive Class at the Coaver Social Club, County Hall, Exeter - Tuesday nights 5-30 - 7.00

Having a child ain't no holiday - official

Workers can take maternity leave on top of normal holiday entitlements according to a European Court of Justice ruling.

In a landmark judgment with implications for UK workers, the EU's highest court ruled that the two types of leave were distinct. According to the ruling, four weeks annual leave is a statutory right 'to ensure workers take a proper break.' Maternity leave, however, 'is intended to protect a woman's physical condition' and 'to protect the special relationship between a woman and her child after childbirth.' The case brought by María Paz Merino Gómez originated in the Spanish national court, which referred questions on Europe-wide directives covering the organisation of working time, the protection of pregnant workers and equal treatment for men and women to the Court of Justice. Sarah Veale, head of TUC's equality and employment rights department, said the judgment

'is good news for pregnant women in the UK, particularly those taking additional unpaid maternity leave. Not only are they entitled to their four weeks paid annual leave under the Working Time Regulations, as well as their maternity leave but they are also entitled to any negotiated or contractual additional annual leave. UK legislation will have to be amended to reflect this.'

Wanted - Stewards and a Woman's Officer

Apply UNISON Office

End piece

If any member with special needs would like a copy of Unity in an alternative format e.g. large print, audio cassette or on floppy disc please feel free to contact the Branch office. It is also available on the Website at www.devoncountyUNISON.org.uk

Contributions are welcome in electronic form if possible (my typing is very slow and the spelling a little erratic). They should be sent to the Union Office at County Hall.

Andy Bowman