Trade unionist Gonul Erden released from prison in Turkey
On 13 March, the trade unionist and longstanding friend of UNISON Gonul Erden, was released from prison in Turkey.
Ms Erden (pictured above, centre) is one of eight leading members of SES, the health and social services union in Turkey, who are charged with terrorism for their trade union work.
UNISON representatives attended the fourth trial date at the heavy penal court in Ankara on 13 March. The hearing focused on two things: Gonul and fellow trade unionist Selma Atabey’s requests for bail, and addressing false accusations that they had attended a terrorist training camp in Iraq.
The state prosecutor claims Ms Erd...
Source: UNISON Health care news - April 6, 2023 Category: UK Health Authors: Janey Starling Tags: Article working internationally Source Type: news
South Gloucestershire social workers strike over pay
Social workers and occupational therapists working for South Gloucestershire Council are to strike from today (Tuesday), says UNISON.
Staff will walk out for three days from today until Thursday (4 to 6 April) after voting overwhelmingly* for industrial action in a dispute over pay.
UNISON has been in dispute with the local authority since last summer. This is over its decision to award staff in children’s services an additional temporary £3,000 payment on top of their basic annual salary, but not those doing the same job in adult services.
The extra money to retain staff reflects the challenges councils ar...
Source: UNISON Health care news - April 4, 2023 Category: UK Health Authors: Anthony Barnes Tags: News Press release social workers Source Type: news
Funding failure shows government ’s disregard for the social care sector
Responding to a halving in the government’s promised £500m investment in the social care workforce, UNISON head of social care Gavin Edwards said today (Tuesday):
“The investment announced in 2021 was nowhere near enough to address the deep crisis in social care.
“It didn’t deal with the poverty wages and absence of sick pay rife in social care. By slashing those already inadequate plans, ministers have proved they have nothing but disregard for the sector.
“With no national standards for pay and conditions, care workers will continue to quit en masse leaving thousands of vulnerable people without vital support....
Source: UNISON Health care news - April 3, 2023 Category: UK Health Authors: Anthony Barnes Tags: News Birmingham care workers social care funding Source Type: news
UNISON opposes school demolition in West Bank
UNISON has signed a joint letter opposing the planned demolition of a Palestinian school in the West Bank.
Alongside other education unions including UCU, NEU, EIS and NASUWT, UNISON has urged the Israeli government to call a halt to the demolition of Jubbet ad Dib school, a small primary school southeast of Bethlehem. The school is built on private land, donated by the local community.
This is the second time the school will be demolished. In August 2017, Israeli soldiers demolished the school on the day before the school year was due to start. Since then, the school has repeatedly sought permission from the Israeli autho...
Source: UNISON Health care news - April 3, 2023 Category: UK Health Authors: Janey Starling Tags: Article News working internationally Source Type: news
UNISON Northern Ireland pauses health strike after government offer of talks
UNISON Northern Ireland has paused today’s planned strike action by healthcare workers following the decision by the government to come to the negotiating table.
Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris and Department of Health representatives have agreed to meet health unions on Wednesday.
UNISON demanded confirmation that such a meeting will be a “genuine engagement” and will result in negotiation to produce a meaningful offer it can take to members.
The move comes after four months of industrial action, including four full-day strikes across the health and social services system. Hundreds of healthcare staff...
Source: UNISON Health care news - April 3, 2023 Category: UK Health Authors: Demetrios Matheou Tags: News health nhs strikes Northern Ireland Put NHS pay right Source Type: news
Government inaction means NI health strikes continue
Health strikes in Northern Ireland continue today and next week, after a meeting on Monday between trade unions and local health leadership provided no progress in the dispute.
UNISON announced that planned 24-hour strikes in Northern Ireland, involving thousands of health workers, will go ahead today, 31 March, and also on 3 April. This came after unions were informed that local health leadership did not have any money with which to make an increased pay offer.
It comes as a direct result of the Department of Health failing to extend the new NHS pay offer made in England and Wales, earlier in March, to Northern Ireland. T...
Source: UNISON Health care news - March 31, 2023 Category: UK Health Authors: Simon Jackson Tags: Article News health nhs strikes Northern Ireland Put NHS pay right Source Type: news
Health workers to decide whether to take NHS wage offer or risk lengthy pay review body wait
A pay consultation involving 280,000 health workers across England, who belong to UNISON, opens today (Tuesday).
During the consultation exercise, UNISON is encouraging NHS staff to accept the offer, which resulted from pay talks held with unions, employers and ministers earlier this month. The vote closes on Friday 14 April.
The offer covers two pay years – a one-off amount for 2022/23 and a 5% wage rise (10.4% for the lowest paid) for 2023/24.
The non-consolidated payment for this year is worth between £1,655 and £3,789 to health workers in England. This is equal to 8.2% for the lowest paid and around 6% for nurses...
Source: UNISON Health care news - March 28, 2023 Category: UK Health Authors: Anthony Barnes Tags: News nhs pay NHS pay rise Source Type: news
Blog: Why it ’ s time to say YES to NHS pay
After months of tireless campaigning, lobbying of politicians, and thousands of UNISON health members losing pay through strike action, the close-fisted Westminster government has finally opened its purse strings.
Our officials went into the pay talks and spoke on behalf of thousands of health workers, who had either already taken part in strikes, or who were prepared to join the picket line to escalate the action.
Ambulance workers across several trusts in England, hospital workers in Liverpool and members at NICE went on strike and accepted the tough role of fronting the first waves of our high-profile industrial action....
Source: UNISON Health care news - March 27, 2023 Category: UK Health Authors: Christina McAnea Tags: General Secretary's blog News vote yes for the NHS Source Type: news
Covid death families have yet to claim millions in compensation
Millions of pounds of compensation promised by ministers to relatives of frontline health and social care workers who died during the pandemic may still remain unclaimed, says UNISON today (Friday).
Fewer than 800 families across England have received a £60,000 pay out each from the government’s life assurance scheme*.
Official figures show more than 2,000 deaths involving Covid occurred among health and care staff, including porters, nurses and care home employees**. Although the payments are available solely for people whose deaths were “wholly or mainly” caused by Covid, UNISON says there could still be many ...
Source: UNISON Health care news - March 24, 2023 Category: UK Health Authors: Anthony Barnes Tags: News Press release compensation covid Source Type: news
Orchard Day Nursery must be saved, says UNISON
The owners of a Merseyside day nursery that closed without warning last weekend – leaving more than 50 staff jobless and the parents of more than 200 youngsters without childcare – must think again, says UNISON today (Wednesday).
Orchard Day Nursery in Huyton shut its doors at such short notice that many workers, children and parents only found out about the permanent closure via a notice fixed to the gates, the union says.
The nursery has since gone into insolvency. Its owners also operate a number of other nurseries across the north of England.
The first some staff and parents knew was when the company sent an ema...
Source: UNISON Health care news - March 22, 2023 Category: UK Health Authors: Anthony Barnes Tags: News Press release childcare early years nursery Source Type: news
Ramadan 2023: Your rights at work
The holy Muslim month of Ramadan is due to begin on Wednesday 22 March, with the first fast from sunrise to sunset on Thursday 23 March.
Eid-al-Fitr, the celebration that marks the end of Ramadan, is expected to fall on Saturday 22 April.
During this important holy period for Muslims, UNISON reminds both workers and employers that it is within the Equality Act 2010 for all employers to ensure flexible working and provide reasonable adjustments for workers wishing to observe Ramadan, which includes fasting, prayers, charity and reflecting on the Quran.
During Ramadan, Muslims spend a period of 30 days abstaining from foo...
Source: UNISON Health care news - March 21, 2023 Category: UK Health Authors: Janey Starling Tags: Article equalities Ramadan rights at work Source Type: news
Blog: This is how collective action works
Thanks to the efforts of UNISON members in our NHS, the government has finally improved its offer on NHS pay.
It was only after UNISON announced our biggest day of strike action yet, with 32,000 members poised to strike, that the government agreed to hold talks.
UNISON members have shown immense courage in taking four days of strike action in England, building momentum in every corner of the country and maintaining incredible public support throughout.
Together with unions from across the NHS, we have spent the last two weeks in talks to secure our NHS members a pay offer that properly protects, recognises and rewards...
Source: UNISON Health care news - March 16, 2023 Category: UK Health Authors: Martin Cullen Tags: Article Blogs NHS nhs pay consultation Put NHS pay right Sara Gorton Source Type: news
Blog: Why this pay offer should be accepted
Thanks to the efforts of UNISON members in our NHS, the government has finally improved its offer on NHS pay.
It was only after UNISON announced our biggest day of strike action yet, with 32,000 members poised to strike, that the government agreed to hold talks.
UNISON members have shown immense courage in taking four days of strike action in England, building momentum in every corner of the country and maintaining incredible public support throughout.
Together with unions from across the NHS, we have spent the last two weeks in talks to secure our NHS members a pay offer that properly protects, recognises and rewards...
Source: UNISON Health care news - March 16, 2023 Category: UK Health Authors: Martin Cullen Tags: Article Blogs NHS Put NHS pay right Sara Gorton Source Type: news
Blog: Money for everything, everywhere, just not your pay rise
Today’s budget was supposedly a ‘back-to-work’ budget, with policies trailed over the past few days promising to help parents, disabled people, and the over-50s return to the workplace.
In reality, though, this budget was back-to-normal for the Conservative Party – big tax cuts for some of the highest earners, and billions of taxpayer money spent subsidising big businesses.
Over thirteen years of Tory austerity, chancellor after chancellor has claimed that there is no money for public services and that the country cannot afford to pay key workers more.
However, somehow, today’s budget found the cash to of...
Source: UNISON Health care news - March 15, 2023 Category: UK Health Authors: Christina McAnea Tags: General Secretary's blog budget Christina McAnea cost of living Source Type: news
Growth won ’t happen without strong public services
Commenting on the budget delivered by Jeremy Hunt today (Wednesday), UNISON general secretary Christina McAnea said:
“There are more holes in this budget than on most public highways.
“It’s funny how the chancellor can lay his hands on billions when he wants. Ministers have sounded like a broken record, insisting the country can’t afford to pay key workers more.
“Yet, in a flourish, there’s cash for another fuel duty freeze, tax cuts for those who need them least, and no action to curb the mega-profits of the oil and gas giants. But not a dickie bird on public sector pay.
“It’s meant to be a budget for...
Source: UNISON Health care news - March 15, 2023 Category: UK Health Authors: Anthony Barnes Tags: News Press release budget public services Source Type: news
