General Council Meetings - The STUC

18
● show an expansion in the range and quality of
services provided;
● be achieved following the full participation and
involvement of public service unions;
● guarantee that any savings are reinvested back into
that part of the public services from which they
derive;
● advance the application of fair employment practice
within public services;
● respect the important role of all public servants,
avoiding the irrelevant distinction between
“frontline” and “backroom” staff; and
● be achieved without resorting to outsourcing.
PUBLIC SERVICES FORUM
Following the election of the new Scottish Government
and the reorganisation of Cabinet responsibilities, the
STUC secretariat and STUC Treasurer met with the Cabinet
Secretary for Finance for discussions across his portfolio.
The Cabinet Secretary was pressed on the future of the
Public Services Forum as a means of engagement between
the Government and public service affiliates. The initial
view of the Government was that meetings should be held
across Cabinet portfolios and, therefore, not confined to
public service issues. At a subsequent meeting of public
sector affiliates, the view was expressed that an effective
forum be identified, which could concentrate on public
service issues. The General Secretary subsequently
agreed, in principle, with the Cabinet Secretary that such
a forum would be identified. Agreement on the detail will
be reached at a future meeting, the date of which is yet to
be agreed.
PPP/PFI AND SCOTTISH FUTURES TRUST
The General Council continued to use all opportunities to
advocate its ongoing opposition to PPP/PFI. A response
was submitted to the Scottish Parliament Finance
Committee Inquiry into the Funding of Public Sector
Capital Projects, in which the STUC’s opposition to
PPP/PFI was restated and concern raised at the
implications of other non-traditional funding methods,
such as the use of Not for Profit Trusts being considered
and employed by government at various levels.
UNISON Scotland has led a drive to obtain, through
Freedom of Information requests, details of PPP bids
currently denied to the public through commercial
confidentiality clauses. The General Council has
welcomed the partial exposure to public scrutiny
achieved through this initiative. The work of UNISON and
a number of academic experts has further exposed the
enormous transfer of resources from the public finances
to private profit exposed through analysis of PPP
schemes.
The General Council was disappointed at the detail of the
Scottish Government’s proposals on the Scottish Futures
Trust and responded to the consultation, to express its
concern at the severe limitations of the proposal,
including lack of democratic accountability, continued
support for the transferring out of services and staff, and
the contradictions in relation to “on and off balance
sheet” accounting of public services.
The General Council’s concerns were also related to the
SNP Trade Union Group and the Association of Nationalist
Councillors at an event in February 2008.
FAIR EMPLOYMENT
The General Council has continued to draw attention to
the levers available to the Scottish Government to
promote Fair Employment, identifying its employability
strategies through Workforce Plus, social issues guidance
on public sector procurement, and regeneration projects
as areas where positive action can be taken.
At a meeting between the General Secretary and Deputy
General Secretary with the Commonwealth Games 2014
Bid Director, assurances were received that expenditure
associated with the Commonwealth Games would be
subject to similar considerations as mainstream public
sector expenditure, increasing the opportunity to drive
forward fair employment. The General Council has agreed
to work with the Commonwealth Games organisers, to
ensure that agreements are reached over employment
opportunity, quality training equality and rates for the job.
It was also agreed that there should be a focus on the
role of sub contractors, particularly within construction,
and full union involvement on issues, such as transport,
volunteering and workplace safety issues.
PPP WORKFORCE PROTOCOL
The PPP Workforce Protocol has been in operation since
2002. The Protocol covers all Public Service
Organisations (PSO) in Scotland. It aims to eliminate the
scope for a “two-tier” workforce through ensuring
effective communication and consultation between PSOs
and the relevant trade unions, when considering
prospective PPP schemes and safeguarding the
employment terms and conditions of individual public
sector employees, who transfer to private sector “service
providers” as a consequence of PPPs.
Concerns have been raised by affiliates in respect of the
universal application of the Protocol and in relation to the
ongoing monitoring of the policy, which is a requirement
of the Protocol. The General Council has written to the
Cabinet Secretary for Finance, seeking the early inclusion
of the Protocol in a meeting between the Scottish
Government and public sector affiliates, in order that an
effective monitoring process can be agreed, and the
facility exists for the affiliates to raise specific concerns
on the operation of the Protocol as it applies to contracts
affecting their membership.
PUBLIC SECTOR CONTRACTING
The General Council raised concerns with both the First
Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Finance on the
SCOTTISH TRADES UNION CONGRESS