Barnet Council proposal to remove all facility time for trade unions

Councillor Robert Rams speaking at Budget Scrutiny 26.11.2013

Video clip is here http://youtu.be/-7dTF6Kmej8

Below is a transcript from the above video clip.

“ I come from a completely different standpoint on this I think that they should be able to do their job without any funding whatsoever ….I think there are lots of examples of councils, authorities across London across the country that provide no funding for activity and I believe we should be moving to a model were we don’t provide any funding for union activity, I think as I stated before if we are looking to make cuts out there, there are some difficult decisions, I think it is clear area  we can make even more savings, the proposals provide a generous amount of funding, over generous in my personal view towards the service I think as we go forward and tougher decisions are made we will get to the point where we will remove all funding.………………………

I don’t think the work they do needs to be funded by us, they do some excellent work and as I said they are some other authorities I organisations across London, but trade unions provide an excellent service to their members by no means do I denigrate their work the unions do, they provide an excellent service to their members……….I think there is enough ability for them to do it whilst carrying on doing their work for the council”

Key Facts

 

  • UNISON have been informed the LBB annual Council staff pay bill 2013/14 (excluding schools) is approximately £55,000,000
  • The current Trade Union Facility Time cost for 2013/14 is £112,000
  • The proposed cut of £80,000 in Trade Union Facility Time for 2014/15 leaves £32,000
  • The Trade Union Facility Time as % of pay bill in 2013/14 equates to 0.20%
  • The Trade Union Facility Time as % of pay bill in 2014/15 equates to 0.06%
  • The reduction of 80K for 2014/15 from 112K represents massive 71.4% cut from the current (2013/14) budget.
  • Trade Union Facility time has already been cut by 66% from the level agreed under the former Barnet Council Conservative Leader Mike Freer.

 

 

UNISON request Capita to withdraw their proposals

UNISON request Capita to withdraw their proposals

Dear Capita

I have a major concern regarding the lawfulness of the proposals to make employees redundant in the forthcoming TUPE transfer. Individuals who are made redundant will clearly be dismissed for a reason connected with the transfer which will be automatically unfair unless there is an economic, technical or organisational reason entailing a change in the workforce for the dismissals.

Whilst redundancy consisting in a reduction in head count may constitute such a reason the EAT in the case of Abellio London Limited v CentreWest London Buses UKEAT/0283/11has held that place of work redundancy does not. The forthcoming dis­missals will therefore be unfair and I therefore invite you to withdraw the proposal to dis­miss.

Best wishes

John Burgess

Branch Secretary

 

Barnet UNISON

Update on Barnet Council Your Choice Safeguarding Committee

UNISON attended a packed Safeguarding Committee on Wednesday 27 November 2013, where residents, services users, parents and carers all spoke in favour of bringing back tour Choice service back in house. For the first time ever UNISON was invited to speak. Initially this request was refused but it went to the vote and UNISON was allowed to speak. Our Branch Chair Helen Davies who has been the UNISON lead on consultation spoke eloquently about the plight of our members.

Later in the meeting a councillor tried to suggest that all the resident activity was all down to the trade unions who are “socialists with a political ideology!” It felt like we had gone back in time to the Victorian era courtesy of the Dr Who Tardis, by the way did anyone see last weeks episode…….

A number or residents and a service user spoke and you can read a full account of the meeting here on Mrs Angry’s Blog here

A sister of one of the services users spoke to the committee had this to say

“in the eight years he has been using Flightways he has had a the safety of a comfortable , intellectually stimulating , creatively stimulating environment and he is incredibly worried that he is going to be thrown back into a situation he was in before he was able to use Flightways of being bussed around from place to place, from a library to a garden centre, from a supermarket to a pub and a fish and chip shop……..the question is …..Can you reassure my brother and his friends that they will have a place that they can go to, a centre they can go to every day where they can feel safe and comfortable?”

The response from the Council was incredible you can listen to it 3 minutes 50 seconds into this video here

You can view the statements made to the Committee here

 

“Outsourcing services for adults with disabilities is not working in Barnet”

Barnet UNISON Press Release: “Outsourcing services for adults with disabilities is not working in Barnet”

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 25 November

On Wednesday 27 November at 7 pm in Hendon Town Hall Barnet Councillors on the Safeguarding Overview and Scrutiny Committee will consider a Task & Finish Report on the future of the failing outsourced One Barnet experiment Your Choice Barnet (YCB) which provides services for adults with disabilities.

In March this year YCB began consultation with trade unions as a result of serious financial difficulties. The service had to bailed out by publicly owned Barnet Homes to the tune of £1million along with proposals for a restructure, serious cuts to pay and terms and conditions of the workforce.

In July a Task & Finish Group was given the brief to review YCB.

Barnet UNISON and Parent/Carers Group CADDSS both made submissions to the Task & Finish Group.

UNISON has seen the report which fails to address the serious financial viability of this service.

UNISON has four key recommendations to all councillors on Safeguarding Overview and Scrutiny Committee

1. Bring back the service in-house.

2. Agree with the unions a time table to achieve a sustainable workforce by substantially increasing staff working with permanent employment contracts and reducing the numbers of casual staff.

3. Develop a robust framework for consulting with carers and service users on changes to the services including staffing issues.

4. Shelve the benchmarking exercise of salaries in order to improve staff morale and sustain high quality service.

John Burgess UNISON Branch Secretary said: Barnet Council “Task and Finish report does not provide convincing evidence on which to have any confidence that the LATC will be able to achieve a safe, sustainable and high quality service. It is critical to the future of these services that common sense is applied as opposed to political dogma. Bring these services back in-house and bring peace of mind to parents/carers and secure a future for service users.”

**** Ends *****

Notes to Editors.

Contact details: John Burgess Barnet UNISON on 07738389569 or 0208 359 2088 or email: john.burgess@barnetunison.org.uk

Links

Background

In February 2012 Barnet Council transferred learning disability and physical and sensory impairment services for adults to a Local Authority Trading Company (LATC) together with Barnet Homes, the Arms Length Management Organisation managing the council housing stock. About 160 staff (145.6 Full Time Equivalents) in Adults services transferred to the LATC.

1. UNISON response to Your Choice Task & Finish report

http://www.barnetunison.me.uk/sites/default/files/UNISON%20response%20to%20Task%20and%20Finish%20Report.pdf

2. ‘The way out of financial crisis’ by Professor Dexter Whitfield

http://www.barnetunison.me.uk/sites/default/files/CADDSS%20analysis%20.pdf

3. UNISON response to Your Choice Consultation paper

http://www.barnetunison.me.uk/sites/default/files/Full%20UNISON%20response%20to%20YOUR%20CHOICE%20May%202013.pdf

4. The Secret Cuts: Part One, Social Care http://www.newstatesman.com/politics/2013/05/secret-cuts-part-one-social-care

5. Your Choice board walks out after being lobbied by campaigners http://www.times-series.co.uk/news/10452438.Your_Choice_board_walks_out/

UNISON response to Your Choice Task & Finish report

Executive summary

The Task and Finish Group recognises that the long-term viability of this LATC as a provider of adult social care is a largely financial question (rather than a service quality question) that will be answered through realising cost-saving measures, income sustainability and growth. However, the Task and Finish report does not provide convincing evidence on which to have any confidence that the LATC will be able to achieve a safe, sustainable and high quality service.

We welcome the notion of a staff register; however, the report does not go far enough to address the staffing issues.

To view full report click here

To view letter to Chair of Task & Finish Group click here

Your Choice Care Workers campaign

 

You can read UNISON response to the proposal here

Barnet Council agreed to carry out an inquiry into Your Choice and are due to hear a re­port on Wednesday 27 November at the Safeguarding Overview Committee.

CADDSS commissioned a report by Professor Dexter Whitfield on Your Choice entitled ‘The way out of financial crisis’ which you can read here

UNISON is asking our members to help by

1. Attending the Safeguarding Overview and Scrutiny Committee, Wednesday 27th November, 2013 7.00 pm, Hendon Town Hall NW4 4BG.

 

2. Signing our petition here

*****Update Day 35 of a 90 day consultation with Capita

*****Update Day 35 of a 90 day consultation with Capita

 

Some good news, the current IT service consultation is a little different to the other service consultations in that there is a possibility that some new posts could be created. It all depends on internal discussions with Barnet Council about IT projects which are badly needed in Adult Social Services and Children’s Services to name a few. Everyone working in these services has been waiting to hear when a new system will be implemented. Interestingly the recent controversy about £16.1 million IT investment does not cover this badly needed work hence the negotiations on the cost of this project work. We are hoping to hear next week if agreement on price is agreed in order to deliver this badly needed IT transformation; in which case there could be job opportunities for staff currently at risk of redundancy.

Day 35 of a 90 day consultation with Capita

Day 35 of a 90 day consultation with Capita

UNISON has to report we have serious concerns that a third of the way into consultation it appears that the ‘goalposts have been moved’. Earlier this week a discussion took place over which jobs are being ‘migrated’ out of Barnet. We were discussing the selection criteria for those posts which are remaining in Barnet. Up until this point it has always been UNISON’s understanding and that of our members that if staff were unsuccessful in securing their own post in Barnet they would still have their post albeit it in another location outside of Barnet. In the course of the TUPE consultation this has been a key issue and we have seen a revised decision to increase the numbers of some posts to remain in Barnet. Until a final decision is made on this process nothing is certain, therefore it was disturbing to hear that staff are being told if they are unsuccessful in the interview their job is redundant. UNISON has formally written to Capita seeking confirmation of this point.

UNISON has also been seeking to understand how many staff are currently delivering services to Barnet in order to be able to construct a meaningful response. We have also sought financial information which is critical if UNISON is able to provide a sound financial and coherent alternative to job losses and redundancies. We have been promised this information but the clock is ticking….What we can report is that of the 563 posts which were running this service before transfer to Capita only 338 posts will remain working on the Barnet contract; and of the 338 posts only 238 posts will be delivered from Barnet with 126.1 posts being delivered outside of Barnet.

This means 325 jobs will be lost from Barnet if the current proposal is implemented.

If you want to support former Council staff please sign this petition and send a message of support to the branch at contactus@barnetunison.org.uk

£20.5 million lost to frontline services and jobs!

£20.5 million lost to frontline services and jobs!

Earlier this week I sat in on the General Functions Committee and heard in a response to a residents question that the Council had deliberately made a decision not to collect £20.5 million (source here question 12). Instead the Council have been making political decisions to freeze council tax and this week announced a 1% cut in Council Tax.

But what does a 1% cut in Council Tax mean for Barnet residents

A resident paying the highest rate council tax will see their bill reduced by £32 a year, or 61 pence a week,

A resident paying the lowest rate council tax will see their bill reduced by £9.44 a year or 18 pence a week.

Delivering a 1% cut in Council Tax means cuts to services; the biggest saving is the loss of 350 local jobs in the Capita contract. Think of all the services and jobs that have been lost over the past four years.

 

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