in UNISON

Our final guest speaker was the president of
UNISON, Wendy Nichols. Nichols addressed
delegates Sunday morning and focused on the
way forward for members. Nichols outlined
the aims and objectives for UNISON and her
vision for the future. Key points made were to
engage the workforce, increase our numbers
and encourage member recruitment. Also it’s
vital that our members are engaging and
getting active within their local branch.
Wendy made it very clear; the current
government is making it incredibly difficult for
trade unions at the present time. We need to
stand together and stand up for human rights
and promote union values. Wendy went on to
mention her charity work in Africa and
supporting education for all. She emphasised
the importance of reaching out to those in
need and developing new relationships with
others across the board.
There were two motions that Debbie and
Penny were due to speak on which were 34:
Transphobic feminism and 38: LGBT and sex
workers organising and the fight against HIV.
Both motions were to be opposed. Motion 34
was timetabled as the last motion and right
from the start the Scottish region pushed for
business to be got through expediently so
that this motion could be heard. However as
time was so tight on Sunday afternoon the
‘question was put’ just before Penny was due
to speak. Debbie was able to deliver her
speech which was very eloquent and very well
researched and gave confidence to other
delegates to speak in opposition but the
motion was passed. Debbie reiterated
UNISON’s position that the decriminalisation
of those that purchase services will not make
it safer for those offering the services. Debbie
also spoke in support of motion 27: The high
risk of homelessness. Again Debbie spoke
brilliantly and not only was there plenty of
researched fact and figures but her own
experiences of finding suitable
accommodation in her home town brought an
extra dimension and warmth.
Service group conferences
Community
Bradford : 27 February -1 March 2015
Delegates : Lesley Discombe, June Poole (dec)
The national women’s committee submitted
motions on terms and conditions, and
pensions.
UNISON General Secretary, Dave Prentis,
addressed conference and said we were the
only service group whose membership grew
last year. He said our members will be hit
hardest by a future Tory government as they
have promised five more years of austerity if
they are re elected in May.
Labour Party MP for Barnsley and Shadow
Justice Minister, Dan Jarvis addressed
conference and thanked UNISON for its work
for "ordinary people", saying when UNISON
speaks, it's the voice of 1.3 million people.
Andrew Johnson from West Midlands gave a
presentation on organising around
commissioning and procurement. He said the
reality of commissioning has become the code
for cuts but serious campaigning can tackle
the problem.
In the pensions debate the speaker from the
SGE said the situation facing our members is
far worse than it was because many members
don't have access to employer pension
schemes.
Our speaker from national women's
committee, Lesley Discombe, said the
voluntary workforce had been hit by the
employers attacking terms and conditions.
The speaker from the national disabled
members committee blasted the situation
where working members in the sector were
reliant on in-work benefits to get by, and
urged the SGE to work with other
organisations to put pressure on councils to
adopt the living wage.
43