Once again Barnet UNISON members have agreed to take strike action. On Thursday 9 February our members will be taking their fourth day of action in response to the One Barnet Project which seeks to transfer the majority of the staff out of the Council.

The total cost of these projects will look to exceed £2Billion which is why the Big Private Sector Fat Cats are all lined up to try and win the contracts!

It would be easy for our members who are feeling exhausted & helpless to give up and just accept that they are to be handed over to the private sector. It would be dishonest if I was to say that our members morale at times has been low.

But who could blame them?

Whilst having to come to terms with being outsourced and worrying if their job will even remain in the borough (a large number of the services could easily be shipped off out of London) they are now facing more restructuring and possible compulsory redundancies before any outsourcing has taken place!

So, by agreeing to take action on Thursday 9 February, our members are making a big statement.

They want to remain Council employees; they want in-house services to be allowed to compete with the Private Sector Fat Cats, and most of all they want to serve the community they are passionate about.

That is why a group of strikers will; after taking part in the picket line, depart to help out a local Charity.

Our members want to make it clear that “whilst they will be withdrawing their labour from the Council, they are not withdrawing their commitment to the community they are so proud to serve!”

I am proud of their of their courage and determination to stand up for themselves and services in the face of the relentless political dogma. A political dogma which fails to understand and appreciate the hard work of staff currently delivering services to Barnet residents.

“Doing nothing is not an option for our members!”

This is why I am so proud of them.

John Burgess

Branch Secretary

Messages of support please to contactus@barnetunison.org.uk

Council response to our questions on transfer of housing workers

 

Council response to transfer of staff into a  local authrotiy trading company

To view our flyer click here

To view our full report click here

Questions to the Cabinet Resources Committee on the Local Authority Trading Company: Privatising Adults and Housing Services.
1) If the LATC fails to make the profits outlined but makes losses instead will the Council bring the services back in-house?
2) The council wholly owns the LATC. What is the logic of extracting a “profit” from payments it makes and which now incur tax liabilities?
3) How does the drive for the LATC deriving profits from Direct Payments influence the level at which Direct Payments are set?
4) P.25 6.32 “The LATC should charge full market value for the goods or services it provides to the Council given that its tax liability will be based on the market value for such goods/ services.” What effect could this have on the level of Direct Payments issued to service users?
5) In the table 3 p.23 6.15 many of the amounts remain constant over the period of 4 years – is this realistic?
6) If surpluses are liable to Corporation Tax, why is this not reflected in the table?
7) At p.43 2.4 shouldn’t the cumulative figure in the table for year 3 and year 4 be a loss and not a profit? If no, why not?
8) P.64 7.1 Why does this not reflect the profit after tax?
9) Where does the figure of £49 million come from for the BarnetGroup Ltd p.32
9.18 and why is this not reflected in the table p.64 at 7.1 for the Barnet Group?
10) P.16 4.3 “The BarnetGroup Ltd could offset any corporation tax liability with additional trading activities” – what are the additional trading activities?
11) Which services are at risk of coming under a decision to close by April 2013 if they are not viable (p.51 table under 3.17.4)?
12) In the table listing risks p.50-51 there are no strategic risks lists, such as market penetration – what is being done to come up with a list of such risks and
the planned mitigation?
13) Where is the cost reduction programme referred to in the box against “Your Choice” (p.51 table)?
14) P.67 table at 1.1.5 identifies clients with no SWIFT ID – what are the business risks resulting from this?
15) From where will the group and its subsidiaries obtain working capital and where is the cost of this working capital?
Governance and TUPE
16) p.52 3.19.5 makes mention of a Barnet Group Procurement Officer. Who employs this person if BarnetGroup Ltd has no employees?
17) Who is the employer the Chief Executive Tracey Lees?
18) Remuneration has become a national issue therefore, what is the Governance arrangement for determining the remuneration of the Chief Executive and Directors?
Consultation
19) There is mention of unit costs in day services equating to one half day rather than one day. What are the plans for consultation with service users and their
carers with respect to this?
20) There is mention of moving to opening 7 days/ week and extending the opening times. What are the plans for consultation with staff, service users and carers with respect to this?

 

Barnet UNISON Questions to Cabinet Resources Committee on the Proposed Transfer of the Housing Service to Barnet Homes and the Barnet Group

1. Given that Barnet Homes already manage the void process closely with HNR, please provide evidence to support the assumption that performance will markedly improve following the merge?

2. There has recently been a significant increase in demand for homelessness services and there is an expectation that this will be sustained following the welfare reforms. How does the Council expect to manage this whilst at the same time making reductions in frontline staffing?

3. The 2012/13 400k savings required means that if Housing staff are transferred into Barnet Homes, the 60/40 split between General fund and HRA means that 10 posts will need to be cut to meet a required savings of 6 posts. In other words, if housing staff are transferred into Barnet Homes, a greater number of job cuts will be required to achieve the same degree of savings. How will this loss of posts lead to an improved customer experience?

4. What measures are in place to manage a fair and equitable process of implementing the staff cuts across LBB and Barnet Homes?

5. In considering the potential savings via posts [Table 2 in the report to Cabinet Resources Committee and 6.12 in the document going to General Functions], the cost of funding the posts of the Head of Service and the Accommodation and Resources staff appears to have been lumped together. If so, please explain why and provide a breakdown of the costs and expected savings.

6. Both Barnet Homes and Housing Needs and Resources should know how many vacancies they have. Please provide details of just how much of the savings can be realistically made via these vacancies.

 

 

 

 

To view full details of our report to Cabinet Resources Committee click here

urgent update

Yesterday all the contractors were formally told who had won the contraxct.

The Council is now in what is known as the Alacatel period

When does the Standstill Period commence?

The period kicks in from the date the authority decides to award the contract. Usually this will come towards the end of an often lengthy procurement process where bidders will have been shortlisted and finally whittled down to one, for example through a process called “competitive dialogue”. At that point, when the authority makes its selection, the Alcatel Letter is issued and the standstill period should then commence. At the end of that period the contract is signed.

How long is the Standstill Period?

10 to 15 days from the decision to award, depending on the method by which the Alcatel letter is communicated. This is designed to give unsuccessful bidders an opportunity to challenge the award if they believe there has been a breach of the procurement rules.

Who should be sent an Alcatel letter?

Both the successful and unsuccessful “tenderers” and “candidates” in a procurement.. In other words, not only unsuccessful bidders but also any applicant who submitted a “PQQ” (a completed prequalification questionnaire) should receive one.

Full details here

To view our report click here

WINTER FUEL GRANTS PROGRAMME – UPDATE

Please find attached a copy of the Winter Fuel Grants application form that will be used when the scheme is launched on 3 January 2012.

‘THERE FOR YOU’ LAUNCHES ITS 2012 WINTER FUEL GRANTS PROGRAMME

With rising fuel costs affecting many UNISON members, ‘There for you’ starts the New Year with launch of its Winter Fuel Grants programme.  Grants of up to £50 per household are available and application must be made by 29 February 2012.  For further information and to download an application form, visit www.unison.org.uk/thereforyou or call 020 7121 5620.   There for you is the working name of UNISON Welfare, the charity exclusively for UNISON members.  

Please note that this is a limited fund (conditions apply) with grants of up to £50 available to members on low income.

Applications must be received by 29 February 2012.  

On Wednesday 14 December Barnet Cabinet Resources rushed through two major outsourcing contracts in less than 10 minutes

It appears Speed Dating concept has been adopted by One Barnet Programme