National Disability History Month 16th November to 16th December

15th November 2023 admin Barnet Group, Disability, Local, National, UNISON Campaign

Dear Barnet Group Unison member,

Do you have a disability?

If so, have you ‘declared’ it to the employer?

If you haven’t, please consider doing so – the employer can’t make reasonable adjustments in line with the Equality Act 2010 if they don’t know that you have a disability or condition.

It is really easy to ‘declare’ a disability – go to ITrent – click ‘view profile’ – under ‘confidential information’ click on ‘sensitive information’ – scroll to the bottom of the page and populate ‘self-certified disabled’ and ‘Disability description’ – and that is it – should your disability become an issue that you need a bit of help with, you would have ‘declared’ the disability/condition and the employer has to recognize that you may need to have reasonable adjustments put in place to help you.

Please consider declaring your illness/disability/condition – there is no stigma – I speak as someone with a long-term mental health issue [depression] who has declared their disability to the employer – the declaration is in complete confidence – and the help that I received and still receive to ‘manage’ my depression was only possible because my disability had been declared.

I have a disability – I am not disabled.

In solidarity

Patrick

Patrick Hunter

Barnet UNISON Assistant Branch Secretary for The Barnet Group

UNISON National Disability History Month event

27 November 20236:00pm–8:30pm

We’re holding a national event to celebrate Disability History Month and we’d love it if you could make it to London for it – or join us online!

The event will see the launch of our campaign for a new two-week deadline for reasonable adjustment requests. It takes place from 6pm on Monday 27 November at the UNISON Centre in London.

We’ll have some great speakers including Dr Marie Tidball, Labour parliamentary candidate for Penistone & Stockbridge and Bruce Robin, UNISON Legal Officer. There’ll also be a reception afterwards and a chance to speak to other disabled members about the campaign.

If you need support if you would like to travel to the event. Please contact the Barnet UNISON office at Contactus@barnetunison.org.uk

You can also join online –

Links to register:

Breaking News: Urgent: Mental Health Social Work Crisis increases to 66%

15th November 2023 admin Anti - Racism, Austerity, Local, News, Recruitment, Solidarity, Trades Dispute, UNISON Campaign

pictures of 4 social workers

“66% of Mental Health social workers in post since 1 January 2023 will have left Barnet Council within the space of last 12 months”.

Day 76 day since UNISON issued Barnet Council with official notice of strike action for Mental Health social workers working across three acute Mental Health social work teams.

To date there has been no approach from Barnet Council to try and reach a resolution despite UNISON proposing several possible solutions.

Today, Barnet UNISON was informed that another one of our strikers had handed in their notice. This means that in the space of 11 months of 2023 16 social workers will have left the Mental Health Teams involved in this dispute.

What has alarmed our members has been the ‘macho approach’ to this dispute. Instead of seeking to find a way to resolve the escalating social work crisis management have taken a strategic approach which amounts to ‘burying their heads in the sand’ with the hope that it will all go away. The following statement was reported in Community Care Magazine 31 October 2023:

“In a statement to Community Care, Barnet’s cabinet member for adult social care, Paul Edwards, said that 30 of the 31 posts were already filled, by 26 permanent staff and four locums.”

The above statement implies that there are 31 social work posts across the 3 Mental Health Social Work Teams. This is incorrect there are in fact only 21 social work posts across the three social work teams which means that with the 14 staff already gone that represented 66% of the social workers in employment on 1 January 2023 had left the above teams before UNISON issued the strike notice on 1 September.

Another two more social workers have handed in their notice, meaning that 66% of the social workers in post since 1 January 2023.

The question UNISON has for Barnet Council is this:

“How many more social workers need to hand in their notice before you come to the negotiating table?”

The only people who lose are Mental Health service users living in the London Borough of Barnet where there is a 15-month waiting list.

The clock is ticking.

End.

BreakingNEWS: National Pay 2023 update

13th November 2023 admin Austerity, National, UNISON Campaign

Dear Barnet UNISON member

We can confirm that the National Pay Award has now been formally agreed. This means that Barnet Council workers should receive their new rate of pay and back dating to 1 April 2023 in their November payslip.

If you have worked any overtime since the 1 April 2023, the backdating for this will be paid in December payroll.

If you have any questions, please email contactus@barnetunison.org.uk

Old and NEW rates of are in YELLOW Pay.

*****Please NOTE: For those Barnet UNISON members whose employer does not use Barnet Council Grading system please read guidance below which provides the new spinal column points for outer London pay rates.

https://www.barnetunison.me.uk/wp/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/2023.11.02-National-Pay-Agreement-with-the-London-pay-spine.pdf

End.

Barnet UNISON – eNews 09 November 2023

9th November 2023 admin Uncategorised

Click the above image to read Barnet UNISON-eNews 09 November 2023

London Living Wage Week: Barnet UNISON message to employers is “Pay Up Now!”

8th November 2023 admin Barnet Group, Care & Support, Local, London Living Wage, Your Choice Barnet

London Living Wage Week: Barnet UNISON message to employers is:

“Pay Up Now!”

This week is London Living Wage for more details of the campaign please go to https://www.livingwage.org.uk/living-wage-week

As soon as Barnet UNISON heard the new rate had changed from £11.95 to £13.15 an hour we contacted the Leader of Barnet Council, Chief Executive of Barnet Council and Chief Executive of The Barnet Group to ask what they are doing to ensure that all contractors adopt the new pay rate.

Last week we heard that the Chief Executive of The Barnet Group has sent a message to staff stating:
“We have made a commitment to pay the London living wage if we can afford to, to comply with the Living Wage Foundation accreditation it needs to be implemented by 1^st May 2024.”

We already know from a survey of our members that pay is the one biggest issues. We are in the worst Cost Of Living Crisis in 76 years, things are not getting better, they are getting worse.

Barnet UNISON will shortly be conducting a mass consultation pay ballot with our members which will ask two questions.

1. Do you think you should wait until 1 May 2024, or should you be given the new pay rate now?

2. If you want the pay now and management refuse to pay, are you prepared to take strike action? Yes or No?

The choice of what we do next will be from our members. We are a branch that does support its members as we saw last year with the Barnet Ten strikes and now, we have social workers on strike about pay.

Whatever happens, you the members will decide what we do next.

We will be organising meetings in workplaces and a big online meeting to discuss this issue.

If you want to book a meeting on pay or would like more information about the mass consultation pay ballot email us at contactus@barnetunison.org.uk