This COP has failed people & planet. People power, Climate Justice!

Climate campaigners from around the world have hit out angrily at UN climate talks in Madrid failing to deliver for the people and the planet.

Civil society organisations representing trade unions, environment NGOs, youth, indigenous peoples, women and many other campaigners made a series of highly critical statements as the talks, known as COP 25, ended on Sunday.

Francis Stuart, STUC Policy Officer, spoke on behalf of the global workers movement, represented by the ITUC. He said: "We represent 207 million workers from 165 countries. What we have seen in the last two weeks is nothing short of a disgrace. Unions are bitterly disappointed. 

"We were hoping to see governments agreeing ambitious climate justice policies that responded to the climate emergency that is threatening our lives, jobs, livelihoods, communities and dignity. What we have is the polar opposite. 

"Civil society has been locked out – while Governments backtrack on what has been negotiated over the years. What we have seen is nothing less than parties trying to dismantle the Paris Agreement."

Stop Climate Chaos Scotland warned today that the failings of COP 25 heap pressure on the talks in Glasgow in November next year.

Tom Ballantine, SCCS chair, said: “These climate talks failed to act on the calls of people across the world who have demanded faster and deeper action to keep global temperature rises below 1.5C.

“These UN climate talks remain the best, and only, global platform to build consensus on climate action and climate justice. But if they are to work, those governments blocking progress need to get out of the way and start listening. 

"The people are demanding a strong response to the climate emergency. The climate crisis is unfolding now, and public pressure will only grow in the months leading up to COP26 in Glasgow.

“All actors must now significantly step up their game... Scotland can lead by example by accelerating its response to the climate emergency in its next budget, committing new investments to rapidly reduce our emissions, and by increasing our financial support for people in the world’s poorest countries who are already being devastated by a crisis they did not cause.”

Ben Wilson, of SCIAF, who is chair of the SCCS international group, has written about looking ahead to the November 2020 COP.
He said that the history of Glasgow "simmers beneath its streets, and when the COP comes to the city, it will bubble up over the surface. Questions of colonialism, of its legacy of slavery, of industry, of strikes, and of social movements, will frame our discussions when the world comes to town on equity, loss and damage, human rights, climate justice and the just transition."

UNISON is part of the SCCS coalition and is working with them, the STUC, trade unions including EPSU and PSI internationally, and many other organisations local and international, including the school climate strikers, to help plan for how civil society puts the maximum pressure on Scottish, UK and world governments in the year ahead.

The ITUC address to COP25 included criticism of the Chilean Government, which presided over the Madrid COP, after saying that massive anti-government protests across Chile meant it could not take place there as planned.

Francis said (watch from 9 minutes into this video): "There is no respect for the science, no respect for human rights, no social justice, no ambition and no commitments to action.

"This failure cannot be disentangled from the crises we see around the world.

•           The rich getting richer while the poor suffer. This is exacerbated by climate change.

•           Trade unionists under attack.

•           Governments – including the Chilean Government -  attacking their own people.

"We need bold transformative action from Governments to pave the way for a Just Transition. Next year’s  COP will be in my home city of Glasgow. We need to see climate measures to protect workers rights and create decent jobs.

"None of this is reflected in this COP. This COP has failed the people and the planet. People power, Climate Justice!"

Busting The Myths Around #EqualPayGlasgow Strikes

Here are all the facts you need about the #EqualPayGlasgow strikes, from our blog published on @ScottishTUC site.

March & Rally 23 Oct 11.30 Glasgow Green to George Sq

@Unison_Glasgow @GMBGlasgowCC

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MYTH:  The Unions agreed to the Glasgow pay system but are now suing against their own agreement.

FACT:  UNISON’s local branch and equality team vetoed the Workforce Pay and Benefits  Review (WPBR). The tribunal decision records that the unions walked out on the job evaluation process, took a grievance and formally complained to the council  leader. The council admitted in the litigation that the jobs were graded by managers and consultants alone. In no sense is WPBR a union scheme.

“Nothing agreed, nothing offered, nothing proposed.

We demand real negotiations.”

The council approved WPBR on 16th October 2006. The committee report reflects the fact there was no agreement. Instead the report recommends imposing WPBR and contemplates doing so by mass dismissals. Under a Labour majority,  the report was approved. Workers got three chances to accept WPBR over the winter of 2006/07. Then it was imposed.

All this is “on the record”. In 12 years of argument over WPBR, including 14 disputes, 10 strikes and over 12,000 legal claims, no council official has ever said this was a union approved scheme. Anyone saying that now is making mischief.

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MYTH: If the unions had employed their industrial muscle on this long before now we wouldn’t be in this position.

FACT:  No current Scottish pay system has faced more disputes and legal conflict than
WPBR. There have been 14 separate WPBR disputes in 11 years and 10 strikes.

“Start looking at settlement proposals so negotiations can finally start.

All we have had for nine months are talks about talks.”

Nearly 6,000 workers have been balloted in WPBR disputes and 3,500 have taken strike action. In parallel with the strikes there are 12,500 legal claims, many of which date back to 2008. Are the council honestly saying we could or should have been MORE aggressive?

Militancy is not the issue. None of this conflict would have been necessary if the council had not suppressed the findings of the statutory investigation by the Equality & Human Rights Commission in 2010.

In 2010 the EHRC conducted a statutory investigation of WPBR and told the council it was discriminatory. That report was suppressed. In 2018 Councillor Aitken correctly ordered the release of the secret report. Although that instruction has not been met in full we know enough from the material released to say that discrimination should have ended long before now.

What was needed to resolve this dispute in 2010 was not greater union militancy or legal wizardry, but simply the regular transparency of a council meeting. The officials were able to block and suppress the EHRC until 2018 because councillors never met to discuss equal pay issues between 2006 and 2018. Councillor Aitken exposed the fact that all Glasgow councillors failed, and failed badly. That is something we agree on. The big questions are simple – who knew what about the EHRC, when did they know, and what did they do? How did they silence a statutory agency that held expert evidence of discrimination at the council?

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MYTH: The reasons for the strike do not justify strike action.

FACT: The reason for the strike is clear – the claimants have lost faith in the willingness of senior officials to deliver Councillors Aitken’s instructions. In December 2017, the parties agreed to adopt a joint timetable with clear stages or milestones. The workers were already low on confidence in March 2018 when they told Anne Robinson’s BBC documentary that they were going to the union to demand a strike.

“The women know the reason for the dispute because it was the women who called the strike.”

In May, a consultative ballot extracted a council commitment to adequate funding, a new joint timetable with milestones and a deadline of Christmas. In August the council missed their milestones, tore up the timetable and told the unions there would be no money until April 2019. We don’t know if the officials had councillor approval for the actions that triggered the strike vote. We shared that information openly with the members, as a trade union should, and the reaction was as clear as it was predictable. The call for strike action was overwhelming. This is a member led campaign and the members are angry. Very angry.

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MYTH: The women don’t know why they are striking because the union misinformed them.

FACT: The council get irritated when we advise them how to address equality issues but it has to be said that publicly patronising powerful women who have high value legal claims is a high risk strategy. The members meet at least once a month to plan and execute their campaign. The members went to the Court of Session and there were over 30 claimants at the recent tribunal hearing. They know how the scheme was designed, they know about the EHRC cover up, they know the detail of the 42 point settlement plan and they know the council tore it up. They have battled through 14 disputes over 11 years and they know this is the conclusion of a long slow battle. The women know the reason for the dispute because it was the women who called the strike. It’s that simple.

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MYTH: The unions know that council officers are carrying out the instructions of the council leader.

FACT: Cllr Aitken told the officials to end the EHRC cover-up and produce the report in full. In fact she told them three times. But we are still waiting for the truth behind the cover up. Councillor Aitken asked for a time table with milestones and dispute resolution. The officials missed the milestones, tore up the timetable and refused to go to mediation before 2019. Was that what the officials were instructed to do? We genuinely don’t think so.

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MYTH: Any delay in making payments is due to the strike, not the actions of the council

FACT: The claimants’ representatives have been available to talk, without condition, since December 2017. It was the council who left the talks in response to the strike notice. The strike does not delay settlement. What delays settlement is the council’s attitude to the strike – their decision to walk away shows a lack of respect for low paid women. Every dispute is settled by discussion. The only way forward is to talk.

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MYTH: The union’s escalated the campaign when the SNP defeated labour in 2017

FACT: With 6000 workers in 14 disputes, 10 strikes and 8,000 legal claims the campaign was very assertive against the Labour administration. What escalated the scale and significance of the campaign even further was the Court of Session decision in August 2017. Labour presided over the WPBR years and the SNP administration has set a course towards equality. Accepting the Court of Session ruling and removing WPBR were strong decisions that have received credit from the workforce and their representatives. But the unions are clear – we are in dispute with the employer, not the elected members. Party politics is irrelevant.

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MYTH: The union’s are covering their backs for their discrimination over the last 12 years

FACT: This briefing sets out our actions. We vetoed WPBR before it was adopted. We commissioned the leading UK expert to analyse its impact after it was imposed and went straight to mass litigation. Every member received advice and we encouraged them to join the campaign. Although we lost the tribunal and the first appeal we kept fighting. In parallel with the litigation we organised Cordia workers against the discrimination within the ALEO policy and Cordia’s daily practices. We closed Cordia down and took the workers home to equality within the council. Working with Action4Equality we had to change the law of equal pay to bring equality to Glasgow. UNISON organised the mass participation of low paid women and removed the discrimination of tribunal fees to restore access to justice for all – in Glasgow and across the UK. We succeeded where the EHRC failed. This is not “union back-covering”. This is pay equality & pay justice.

First published on 18 October on the STUC blog https://scottishtuc.blog/2018/10/18/busting-the-myths-around-glasgow-equal-pay-strikes/ 

Havana Glasgow Film Festival

A reminder that the Havana Glasgow Film Festival runs from today until Sunday 12 November.


The festival has a great selection of films and UNISON is associated with the screening of From Ghost Town to Havana at 7.15pm at the CCA, Glasgow, on Friday 10 November. Ghost Town to Havana is a heartbreaking, funny, and inspirational story about mentorship, life, love, murder, kids and baseball in Oakland and Havana today.


The full programme is here and on the HGFF website.


Of course, our thoughts are with Doreen Kean and the family of our friend, comrade and former UNISON Communications Officer Chris Bartter as the festival he helped promote gets under way.

This image dedicated to Chris Bartter will be displayed before the screening of From Ghost Town to Havana.

Chris said recently of the film: "I've seen the film now and it was great. It is both human and very political (without being overtly partisan). The director, unusually, is a key figure within the film - being the son of a baseball coach himself."

STUC congratulates Glasgow CCTV staff on new deal

#STUC16 The STUC Congress sent congratulations today to Glasgow CCTV UNISON members who have won a deal bringing up to a 24% pay rise, after twelve days of strike action over six weeks.

The 19 members of UNISON are employed by Community Safety Glasgow, an ALEO of Glasgow City Council, and were taking strike action over the employer’s failure to pay shift allowances. The dispute was about fairness and pay equality.

STUC emergency motion backs #Justice4Jannies

#STUC16 The STUC gave unanimous backing to an emergency motion supporting the Glasgow UNISON #Justice4Jannies campaign as they began their three-day strike for parity of conditions with other like-workers.

The jannies packed the gallery as delegates stood to applaud them. The full text of the motion is…

Climate, Justice and Jobs – Sat 28 Nov Scotland’s Climate March

UNISON Scotland is showing our colours by supporting the Stop Climate Chaos Scotland Climate March on Saturday 28 November.

On that weekend around the world, millions will be marching to put pressure on world leaders for an ambitious deal at the UN climate negotiations in Paris in December.

Scotland’s Climate March is in Edinburgh, with other marches taking place in Wales on 28 November and in London on Sunday 29 November.

SCCS member organisations are calling for Scotland to show its colours in Paris and beyond, with strong action on climate change.

The Edinburgh march theme is “show your colours for climate, justice and jobs.”  SCCS will announce further details soon. Watch this space.

There will be a mass demonstration in Paris at the end of the talks on Saturday 12 December.

UNISON Scotland is also a strong supporter of the STUC annual St Andrew’s Day Anti-Racism March and Rally, which takes place this year in Glasgow on Sat 28 November. Branches are encouraged to be represented at both events.

UNISON was one of a large group of organisations supporting a WWF Scotland initiative this week that saw Scotland’s party leaders sign up to a cross-party climate change agreement.

Glasgow strike settled as grade parity won

UNISON Glasgow Branch Statement - Homeless Caseworkers Dispute: After 17 weeks of all-out strike action the Glasgow Homeless Caseworkers have voted by a clear majority to accept an offer from the employer. The offer was recommended to a mass meeting today (21 July) by the union branch and the striking shop stewards and secures the central demand of the dispute - parity on Grade 6 with other frontline social care staff.

The offer creates 68 new Grade 6 posts with the council describing that number as a floor. The three temporary caseworkers whose substantive posts are Grade 4 will be given permanent Grade 5 posts elsewhere in the homeless service. There will be a reduction in management posts through voluntary early retirement.

The council has insisted on an assessment process for the new Grade 6 posts and will not make any backdated payment. These were the reasons why those who voted to stay out did so. However the union will be consulted on the nature of the assessment process and workers will receive a one-off payment of £350 whilst the assessment process is completed.

The strike has been successful in winning a £1,000 increase following the assessment process, rising to £5,000 by 2018. In addition, the council has been forced to concede an acceptable number of Grade 6 posts. The assessment process and the lack of any backdated money are a disappointment. In a climate of huge cuts to local government and against a hard-nosed management who tried to undermine the action by using other agencies then the overall outcome of the strike should be celebrated. The seventy strikers conducted themselves magnificently. The UNISON Glasgow Branch is so proud of them – we know that many others across the trade union movement feel the same. Well done to the Glasgow Homeless Strikers!

Thank you to all those who donated so generously to the strike fund, invited the strikers to speak at your meetings and sent messages of support.
http://www.glasgowcityunison.co.uk/index.php/news/118-homeless-caseworkers-dispute-unison-glasgow-branch-statement

Leafletting SECC Glasgow tonight 7 July in support of UNISON member Robert O'Donnell #standwithrab

Tuesday 7 July 2015

Support UNISON Glasgow branch members campaigning for reinstatement of Robert O'Donnell.

Details for SECC leafleting at Neil Diamond concert are:
Meet 6.00pm, Tuesday 7th July at SECC end of covered walkway. 

Facebook event:
https://www.facebook.com/events/1596989393908281/

Twitter

#standwithrab

About Robert

Trade Union representative sacked by Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre

UNISON representative, Robert O’Donnell, has been sacked by the Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre. UNISON is supporting Robert in his appeal against dismissal. UNISON believe that Robert, a gardener and UNISON representative, was unfairly sacked by the SECC Management on 25 May. He was dismissed following an alleged unwitnessed incident with his supervisor.

UNISON is totally convinced that this was a trumped up charge and that the dismissal relates to Robert’s role as a trade union activist. Over recent years the SECC, which is 91% owned by Glasgow City Council, has refused to recognise trade unions for collective bargaining purposes and has been hostile to trade union recruitment activities.

UNISON demands Nicola Sturgeon uphold promise of no compulsory redundancies at Glasgow Kelvin College

Wednesday 3 June 2015

UNISON is calling on First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, to uphold the Scottish Government promise that there would be no compulsory redundancies in Further Education sector because of the College Regionalisation programme.

Thirteen catering staff at Glasgow Kelvin College are under threat of compulsory redundancy.

Mandy McDowall, UNISON regional organiser for further education said:
"The First Minister must intervene as a matter of urgency. 

"We were informed by the Scottish Government at the beginning of the college regionalisation process there would be no requirement for compulsory redundancies within the Further Education sector, and this commitment must be honoured."

STUC welcomes Glasgow strikers

#stuc15 The STUC Congress in Ayr gave a standing ovation to strikers from Glasgow Council’s Homeless Service who have been on all-out strike since 31 March over pay grading. Helen Craig, Sally Currie and Stewart Graham were introduced to delegates by President June Minnery.

The 70 strikers took their own “negotiating table” to the front doors of the city chambers last week because senior officials and the council’s political leaders have refused to meet the strikers trade union representatives in an effort to resolve the dispute.

Strikers take negotiating table to Glasgow City Council

Seventy striking council workers took their own “negotiating table” to the front doors of the city chambers on Thursday. The council’s homeless caseworkers have been on indefinite strike action for over a week in pursuit of a regarding of their posts. However senior officials and the council’s political leaders have refused to meet the strikers trade union representatives in an effort to resolve the dispute.

UNISON Glasgow homeless service workers to take all out strike action

Monday 30 March 2015
Seventy workers in Glasgow Council’s Homeless Service will walk out on Tuesday 31 March in a dispute over their pay grade.

The workers are all members of the trade union UNISON and will take all out, indefinite strike action in a dispute over the application of the council’s job evaluation scheme to the role of Homelessness Caseworkers. Three out of every four strikers will be women.

Ian Leech, UNISON Glasgow Social Work Convenor, said:
“These workers have been unfairly treated for years in that their jobs should have been graded the same as other frontline staff in addiction services or older people’s teams. They have been very patient and hoped that the matter would be addressed by the council, indeed over the years some managers have informally said that they agree with the trade union position.

"Our members care about the people who rely on the service which they provide however, they have been left with no other option. All they are looking for is to be treated the same as the other 400 social care staff who do a similar job.”

The workers assess the needs of homeless people and families across Glasgow, organise crucial support and help people to access and maintain emergency, temporary and permanent accommodation. The seventy workers have nearly 3,000 people on their caseloads.

ends 

Notes for editors

• The strikers will protest outside the Social Work HQ, 40 John Street on Tuesday 31 March at 12noon. Come for photo opportunity and interviews with the strikers.
• The UNISON density level in the dispute area is over 90%.
• 84% of members voted for strike action on a 64% turnout.
• The members have been taking action short of strike action since late January 2015.
• The workers are on Pay Grade 5 (£21,000 to £24,500). Others doing a similar job are on Pay Grade 6 (£25,500 to £30,000).

Leaflet and lobby SNP conference 28 March

#decentwork @ScottishTUC is asking all political parties to support its Manifesto for Decent Work and this weekend it is the turn of the SNP to be lobbied at its conference in Glasgow. The event follows previous lobbies of the Tories, Labour and Lib Dems. Leafleting and the lobby will start at 12.00 at the SECC. More details at http://ajustscotland.org/events/8/snp-campaign-conference

Union offers safety advice to staff following hospital sexual assaults

Thursday 15 January 2015

NHS union UNISON Scotland is advising staff to be more vigilant than normal after two separate incidents of sexual assault at the Glasgow Royal Infirmary (GRI) in recent weeks.

The union has also contacted employers demanding that specific advice about personal safety and relevant details are shared with local staff to ensure that they are aware of the issue and can take reasonable steps to ensure their safety.

Branch Secretary Cathy Miller said, “we have been in touch with the employers demanded extra security be put in place; that staff are given some basic information to help them stay safe at work and that local managers are pro active around staff safety when taking decisions.”

 “In the absence of any formal advice to staff UNISON felt it was important that we let our members know that we are aware of the issue and are pressing for action. We would urge staff to be extra vigilant; where possible to travel to and from work with colleagues (and not alone); to report any suspicious behaviour to your line manager and local security and if appropriate to record any specific concerns about safety in the datex system.”

The message being given by UNISON to staff in the GRI is;

 The chance of you becoming a victim of this kind of crime are relatively low – even in the current circumstance. Police Scotland advise that there are a number of simple steps you can take to further reduce the risk to yourself.

What general steps can I take?

• Plan your journey.
• Tell someone when and where you’re going and when to expect you to get there.
• Carry a mobile phone and make sure it’s charged.
• Be aware of your surroundings and look confident about where you are going.
• Avoid listening to personal stereos which can make you less aware of what’s happening around you.
• Personal attack alarms are good to have – makes sure you carry it in your hand so you can use it immediately. Choose a type which continues to sound if you activate and then drop it.
• DON’T carry weapons or items such as pepper spray – this is illegal.

How do I stay safe on foot?

• When out walking, always attempt to walk facing the traffic so that a car cannot pull up behind you.
• If you think someone is following you, check by safely crossing to the other side of the street - cross more than once if necessary. If the person behind you crosses also and you believe that your suspicions are confirmed, stay to main, busy routes until you get to the first safe place and contact the police. Avoid using a phone box in the street as this gives the person following you an opportunity to trap you.
• If you regularly go jogging or cycling, try to vary your route and the time you go. Stick to well-lit, preferably busy, roads with pavements and avoid wooded areas.
• Don't take short-cuts through dark alleyways, parks or waste ground

Please pass this advice on to your colleagues across GRI.

UNISON lambasts council ‘bully-boy’ tactics as councillors threaten closure of mental health charity

UNISON has issued an urgent call to councillors to cease plans to cut a charity’s funding by 40 per cent without any prior consultation.

Councillors are expected to make their decision at a council meeting today (Thursday) based on a report that remains unseen by Glasgow Association for Mental Health.

The charity was notified late Tuesday evening that commissioners want to hold an urgent meeting with the charity today – less than 24 hours before a decision is to be made – based on a fundamentally-flawed report that takes mental health provision in the city back to the 1970s. The city’s most vulnerable now face paying the price with a maximum of 12 weeks of support, regardless of need.

‘Cuts cost lives’ says UNISON – campaigners lobby Glasgow City Council over savage cuts to mental health charity

Tue 11 Nov 2014

Staff, service users, community groups and members of the public will gather in George Square tomorrow (Wednesday 12 November) to lobby Glasgow City Council over its plans to cut a charity’s funding by 40%.

The scale of these savage cuts are likely to force Glasgow Association for Mental Health (GAMH) – which receives nearly all of its funding from the council – to close, risking the lives of hundreds of vulnerable adults across the city.

Chrissy McKeag, a project worker at GAMH, said: 
“We provide essential support - emotional, social and practical - to those who experience mental health difficulties across Glasgow. The support we offer transforms people’s lives and helps to prevent them from developing problems that are likely to require costly help and support from statutory services such as health, housing and criminal justice. Savage cuts of this level will leave Glasgow’s most vulnerable with nowhere to turn and end up costing the city much more in the long run.”

Glasgow City Council under fire over further cuts to care services

Tue 9 September 2014

Trade unionists, community groups and members of the public will gather in George Square later this week to lobby Glasgow City Council over proposed changes to its home care service.

The council announced plans to outsource all responsibility for assessing people who need home care services, including organising services, from their social work department to council-owned Cordia. Currently, Cordia employs most home carers in the city but the assessment of need, spending of budgets and oversight of the service is carried out by local social work staff.

The council has cited “budget pressures” – meaning future cuts – as a central reason.

The Defend Glasgow Services (DGS) campaign – a group set up by trade unions, community organisations and community campaigners – is holding a lobby on Thursday, September 11, to call on the council to reverse its decision.

Brian Smith, branch secretary of UNISON’s Glasgow City branch, said:
“This is the first time in Glasgow under a ‘purchaser/provider split’ that the provider will take on all responsibility for the assessment of a person’s need. This includes the level of service provided, people’s care reviews, responding to complaints and all spending.

“Home care services are already being reduced through shortened visits and this is just a further attack on services for the most vulnerable people in the city. It also threatens Cordia workers’ jobs, wages and conditions.

“We want Glasgow City Council to put people first by calling a halt to these changes and focus instead on investing in home care services and those who provide them.”

Under Glasgow City Council’s plans, Cordia will be given the existing home care annual budget of £50 million and be expected to deliver 10 per cent efficiencies by 2016, and further “appropriate targets” thereafter.

ENDS