Future pay Consultation and pay proposals Going Forward

This is the third motion from the Branch for the Special Local Government conference in March

This Special Service Group Conference notes:

 

•       The current timetable for pay claims means that members wait several months for new pay deals to come into effect, hitting lowest-paid members hardest, and means lower-paid workers are more likely to accept whatever pay deal is offered at an earlier stage.

•         Unison represents some of the lowest paid workers in Britain, for whom industrial action can cause significant loss in pay. 

•         Unison’s rules state that strike pay will not be awarded until the fourth day of strike action.

 

Resolves that:

•         All future negotiations with the employer should involve lay elected representatives of the NJC

•         Unison should begin its pay claim process earlier, and demand that employers respond to the union’s claim at least four months before any pay award is due to come into effect.

•         Claims should be made annually and no settlement should be accepted for a period longer than one year.

•         If employers fail to do this, Unison commits to launching a dispute to win the pay claim through industrial action.

•         The question on the ballot paper should normally include strike action and action short of strike / work to rule unless a very clear mandate from branches and regions to do otherwise.

•         Any offer made by the employer that is below the level in the NJC claim should be put to a workplace ballot before any action is suspended.

•.       To win any pay dispute including winning the commitment of our members to take action, we need a clear and transparent programme of action underpinned by a national commitment and preparation to resource and where necessary re-direct resources including an identified pot of money to fund industrial action

•         Such a strategy should include:

o   sustained and escalating programme of industrial action which moves beyond one-day strikes.

o   Selective action involving groups of workers to maximise impact (e.g., parking inspectors, caretakers, revenue staff, etc.)

o   Programmes of action-short-of-strikes in between national strike days, including a work-to-rule and overtime ban

o   Attempts to coordinate where possible with other unions

o   A commitment to coordinate and distribute hardship payments, levied from both branch and national funds

o   Encouraging branches to convene local, cross-union strike committees to inform regional and national SGE strategy