Minutes of Stage 2 Consortium Meeting - GMB Yorkshire and North ...

More documents

Recommendations

Info

2.17 JC said that the meeting was turning in to an investigation and theCompany was not there for that reason. PD said that the Company couldnot expect the Unions to sit down in another consultation when theCompany couldn’t answer the questions from the last consultation. JCstated that the purpose of the meeting was to start collective consultationon stage 2, and proposed another meeting to discuss these other issues.PD said that before the Consortium got into the consultation they wantedto clear out some items. AH has answered some questions, and theConsortium had every right to ask the questions and get answers. JCpointed out that AH did not have all the information. KH said that hewanted to be clear that the Consortium had been seeking a meeting withthe company for several weeks to clear up some of the issues about phase1 and the questions they had, and the Company had been putting them offand putting them off. The Consortium was at this meeting and now theCompany was saying that it didn’t want to discuss the questions theConsortium had from before or the Consortium going forward.2.18 PD said that he hadn’t finished yet. AH would say if he could answer ornot. AH had said he didn’t know anything about Haven Social Enterprisebut he did know about the contracts they do currently in Springburn. AHsaid that he could talk a little about the commercial process but not a lotabout Healthcare. He was doing his best to answer the Consortium’squestions. He had to take some issue with what KH had said, because KHhad cancelled a meeting that had been in AH’s diary for a couple of weeks.KH said that the meeting was never confirmed. AH said that he would notlet things just ride when they are not right. KH replied that he had lots ofemails from staff saying that they couldn’t get that date because AH won’tdo it.2.19 PD asked what had happened to Springburn’s contracts for wheel chairsfor the NHS. AH replied that the contracts Remploy had for the NHS wereframework contracts and it worked by allowing member companies tosupply products on a framework to a guide price and specification. Therewere no specific numbers. It was that Remploy could supply those types ofgoods along with other companies. JN said it was that Remploy was apreferred supplier. AH replied that it was a bit like that, it wasn’t a call off.PB said that there was a slight twist because R Healthcare was Remploy’sonly customer because he had a contract to supply all the products. PDsaid Simon Webster had all the contracts, so he was in control. what hedid was look at the viability of Springburn and look at another company upthe road where he didn’t have to buy it, and it was a partnershipagreement with them and then all the contracts went there. Askedwhether R Healthcare would dissolve if he didn’t have the partnershipwith Remploy. PB said that the arrangement would go on to 2015. AHpointed out that R Healthcare could buy products from any company itliked and had contracts with various customers around and outside the UKand it employed its own people and acted as a distributor of mobilityproducts. It buys its products from Remploy predominantly. PD said thatSimon Webster had no reason to buy Springburn anyway if he had acheaper supplier. PD asked what Simon Webster’s involvement was withMinutes of stage 2 Consortium meeting 1 191212 amended final issued 250113 Page 10 of 26
Haven Social Enterprise and asked Roger Station to run it throughCompanies House. KH said that what Simon Webster did was to blockanybody else from getting it. PD said if Simon Webster had all the work,where was the TUPE transfer. PB said that he had asked the company andthey said the work was not similar enough for a TUPE transfer. AHcommented that the Unions had mentioned a company earlier, Greencare,and he believed they had the same contracts and the same opportunitiesto supply products to the NHS. PB said that was until they were bannedfrom the commercial process. AH said that he disputed that. PB said thathe didn’t know Greencare. He wanted the best for his members inSpringburn. He would love to say AH was right but the Unions couldn’t getany information. PD said that the contracts were eventually going to theNHS. AH said most of them were. PD said he wondered if the NHSDirectors knew that disabled people were being put out of work. HavenSocial Enterprise may well employ people. PB said that if you looked at RHealthcare paperwork it was almost an exact copy of Remploy paperwork.Haven Social Enterprise had said to him yesterday that their customerswere unsure about wheel chairs and future quality. The NHS were alreadyasking about the available jobs. PD stated that was why Haven SocialEnterprise were offering jobs to Remploy employees so they could say thatthe same employees were doing the work so the quality would be all right.AH said that was PB’s understanding and he needed to go to R Healthcarewho could give other reasons.2.20 GW asked the Company if they had seen the Scottish Daily Record whichsaid that the fate of Springburn had been sealed one year ago as part of asecret deal. AH said that he didn’t know where that article came frombecause there had been a proper commercial process run and there hadbeen various bodies that had seen what came through and they haddecided what provided best value. He did not know where the paper gotone year. GW replied that it was in the paper that day. It was also going tobe tabled in the Scottish Parliament.2.21 JN stated that it had been a shambles in phase 1. 27 factories were goingto close because the Company had already decided they were not viable.There were 9 put to one side. Wigan was not in the 9. Why not if it wasseen as commercially viable. AH replied that it was because they were notseen as commercially viable. 9 had bids come in. 9 had bids but most ofthose bids had failed and collapsed. All of the 27 had been deemed in thefirst KPMG report to be not viable.2.22 JN said what about Chesterfield, Springburn and Barrow. AH replied that inthose circumstances, the people who came in had said they needed tomake changes to make them viable. In Barrow AH understood that theywanted to put more products through it, manufacture more to make itmore viable. JN asked what was going on now with Chesterfield. AH statedthat the Company were in negotiations to agree a deal with R Healthcare.JN said that it had taken three months so far. PD said that if the Companywas in negotiations still with Simon Webster, why was Simon Websterallowed to talk and discuss the terms and conditions with union membersand with the trade unions. Simon Webster had met with them only theMinutes of stage 2 Consortium meeting 1 191212 amended final issued 250113 Page 11 of 26
Page 3 and 4: 2.3 In the case of Bolton it was mo
Page 7: company had bought the assets. Phil
Page 12 and 13: previous week. AH replied that it w
Page 14 and 15: situation, Phil Hubbard had all the
Page 16 and 17: estated that the Consortium would n
Page 18 and 19: as a formal request that TG was kep
Page 20 and 21: consultation. AH replied that the c
Page 22 and 23: JS said that was what he did before
Page 24 and 25: January. JC replied she was not, be
Page 26: like to wish the company well but t

Minutes of Stage 2 Consortium Meeting - GMB Yorkshire and North ...

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?