Category: Libraries
Breaking News: Barnet UNISON submits Cost of Living Crisis claim to Barnet Council contractors
The following communications has been sent by Barnet UNISON to the following contractors who deliver services on behalf of Barnet Council.
- Capita
- ISS
- BELS
- Blue 9 Security
- The Barnet Group
- Norse cleaning
- Nsl
Dear Contractor
On Monday 6 June 2022, Barnet UNISON, GMB and NEU submitted a Joint Trade Union Cost of Living Crisis claim to Barnet Council on behalf of all our members.
In the space of a week, we now some Petrol pump prices have reached £2 per litre with no sign that this will stop at this price.
I am submitting the same emergency Cost of Living Crisis claim to your organisation on behalf of UNISON and GMB members.
We are submitting the same claim to all contractors commissioned by Barnet Council to deliver services.
For the purposes of transparency, we are copying in the Chief Executive of Barnet Council.
Introduction:
National Pay Bargaining has failed to deliver meaningful improvements in pay for many of our members. Our members have endured a decade of pay freezes and below average pay awards which has seen our members lose on average 27.5% from the value of their pay since 2010.
Whilst we wait for the national pay negotiations to reach an outcome our members are facing the fastest fall in living standards since the 1950s. Inflation is forecast to peak at over 10% this year, the sharp rise in the cost of living is hitting our members hard. The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) has warned economic conditions are now unlikely to return to pre-Covid levels until at least 2024.
The UK’s biggest supermarket chain, Tesco, predicts food price inflation will soon hit 5%. The cost of many supermarket staples has increased far more than this already – the average price of pasta increased 41% last year and tinned tomatoes went up 29%.
Within these figures, some costs are rising at an unprecedented rate, such as gas bills at 28.8%, petrol and oil at 21.4%, and electricity bills at 19.2%.
What is of concern for our members is that the support measures offered by the government are not enough.
The Joint Trade Unions welcome the “Cost-of-Living approach: Debt and Financial Vulnerabilities workstream” report going to Policy & Resources Committee on 8 June 2022. (https://barnet.moderngov.co.uk/documents/s72786/Cost%20of%20Living%20approach%20Debt%20and%20Financial%20Vulnerabilities%20workstream.pdf )
In particular we agree with Recommendation 3 which states “notes the urgency of the cost-of-living challenges facing residents”. Some of our lowest paid members live and work in the London Borough of Barnet.
Poorer households are currently experiencing higher inflation – on average – than better-off households
As Trade Unions we recognise that we need to act in the interests of our membership in these unprecedented times which is why we have tabled three proposals to address some of the concerns raised on a daily basis by our members.
- Travel to Work payment
The cost of fuel is driving up prices both for car users and for those using public transport.
In terms of public transport costs between 2009 – 21 Bus & coach fares have gone up 88% and Rail fares have gone up 55%.
Petrol and diesel costs are at a historic high. Filling up a tank costs £17 more than just one year ago, but HMRC mileage rates have not been updated since 2011/12.
There are staff, keyworkers, who have no choice but to travel to work. They are not able to work from home. Throughout the COVID pandemic they have had to keep travelling to work and incurring their travel costs at a time when many other workers have saved money because they were able to work from home.
Barnet UNISON/GMB is asking for a Travel to Work payment to be paid each month.
- Home Working payment
The COVID Pandemic forced home working on many employers. We now have a hybrid pattern of working where staff are still working from home with occasional days at the office.
Energy prices rose even more sharply from April 2022, when the price cap received an enormous lift and the average bill increased from £1,277 to approximately £2,000 a year.
In terms of some escalating costs which we believe impact on the Home worker, between 2009 – 21 House prices have risen by 53% and Electricity bills by 65%.
The Emergency Cost of Living Crisis has changed things dramatically. The energy bill hikes are putting many of our members under financial insecurity especially in light of further energy bill increases in the Autumn.
It is only fair that the employer should contribute to energy costs for those staff working from home.
Barnet UNISON/GMB is asking for a Home Working payment to be paid each month.
- COVID Recognition Payment
Last year the trade unions requested a COVID Recognition payment as a sign of goodwill and recognition that many of the frontline workers had continued to deliver services right through the Pandemic and when the vaccine was not available. Our request was turned down. As previously stated in our Cost-of-Living Crisis proposal many of our lowest paid are under serious financial pressure and they want a payment in recognition of what they did during the height of the COVID pandemic.
Barnet UNISON/GMB is asking that Barnet Council makes a one-off COVID-19 recognition payment.
End.
Update on Cost of Living Crisis negotiations, meeting with New Leader of Barnet Council
National Pay, Unified Reward, We Are Barnet “levelling up” negotiations 2 November update
Tuesday 2 November 6- 7 pm
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81712515827?pwd=dituZHZRSWE5VW9ETDdkb0QwWTVFdz09
Meeting ID: 817 1251 5827
Passcode: 641084
This is an important meeting for all our members working for Barnet Council and The Barnet Group.
We will be discussing the following:
- Update on the negotiations on Pay & Terms & Conditions and Pension with The Barnet Group.
- What do Barnet UNISON Council workers want to put onto the negotiating table with Barnet Council?
- An update on the National Strike ballot on Pay
If you have any questions please email contactus@barnetunison.org.uk or ring 0208 359 2088
End.
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
The Good
The Good News is that with the support of our Bin workers, Barnet Council has agreed to restore National Green Book Weekend and Bank Holiday rates of pay which will mean large numbers of our lowest paid members will be earning more money.
The Bad
In February 2021 Barnet UNISON submitted a proposal for a COVID thank you payment for all frontline workers, care workers, school staff, depot workers.
The Bad news is that this proposal was rejected.
Details of our proposal is here.
https://www.barnetunison.me.uk/wp/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/2021.02.11.-COVID-thank-you-payment.pdf
and the Ugly.
On Friday 11 June 2021 Barnet UNISON enters into negotiations with The Barnet Group and Barnet Council about the serious inequalities in the workplace that are bad for the health and well being of our members and their families.
End.
You can’t be disciplined for taking strike action. Thanks UNISON
“Employers can no longer mistreat staff who take part in industrial action, says UNISON”
“UK law had previously prevented employers from sacking staff involved in strike action or other workplace disputes, but not from disciplining or making life difficult for them, says UNISON.
But now, disciplinary action against workers who go on strike will be unlawful. This follows today’s judgment at the employment appeal tribunal (EAT) over a case taken by care worker Fiona Mercer against the Alternative Futures Group (AFG).
She had been involved in organising, and subsequently took part in, a long-running dispute over AFG’s plans to cut payment for sleep-in shifts undertaken by its care staff.”
Read more here.
Invite to Barnet UNISON AGM with Ken and Hilda, Debbie and Anju
Dear Barnet UNISON member
I am pleased to invite you to the Barnet UNISON Annual General Meeting (AGM) on Thursday 4 March 4-6pm
The last 12 months have been the most traumatic for many of our members both in the workplace and in their homes.
Our branch has tried its best to support as many of our members as possible and will continue to do so.
I am proud to introduce our first speaker Hilda Palmer who last year was recognised as “Most Influential person in health & safety for 2020” https://www.shponline.co.uk/shp-most-influential/hilda-palmer-named-shps-most-influential-person-in-health-safety-for-2020/
Hilda work on health & safety is inspirational and she has helped out branch immensely during the COVID pandemic.
I am sure you will want to hear what Hilda has to say about safety in the Covid workplace.
Our second speaker is the legendary Ken Loach. Our branch has been working with Ken for nearly two decades we have screened several of his films and Ken has been a big supporter of our members facing mass outsourcing.
Ken is joining us to talk about the brutal inequality in the workplace that has caused untold damage to the life chances of so many.
He will introduce a clip from his most recent film “Sorry We Missed You” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ysjwg-MnZao and discuss what lessons we can learn and what actions we as a branch must take to tackle inequalities in the workplace.
Our last two speakers are our very own Barnet UNISON reps Debbie & Anju both of whom work for The Barnet Group and organisation owned by Barnet Council. I’m really excited about what they have to say.
Our AGM is a really important meeting it decides what we as a branch are going to do for the next 12 months which is why we want all of our members to join us.
Due to COVID our AGM has to be online.
We need you to register to attend the meeting.
All you need to do is click on the Barnet UNISON link below to confirm you are coming to the meeting.
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZcocOGvrjMsGtAYwZn7i5kEeqIy-PS8euKU
On the day before the AGM you will receive an email with the link to join the meeting.
I look forward to seeing you at our AGM.
Best wishes
John Burgess
Branch Secretary
Barnet UNISON
Independent Sage meeting Friday 15 January 2021
Breaking News: Covid Plus Joint Trade Union proposals
Dear Barnet UNISON members
The following Joint Trade Union proposals were sent to Barnet Council on Wednesday 4 November 2020.
We will update members as soon as we have a response.
UNISON National issue this statement on schools which you can view here
Joint Trade Union statement
COVID Plus. Front line workers
For the purposes of this proposal frontline means workers who cannot work from home.
- All staff who are deemed clinically vulnerable or extremely clinically vulnerable to stay at home for lockdown on full pay.
- All frontline staff to receive a monthly COVID payment for the duration of the Pandemic in recognition of the important role they playing in the provision of frontline services and the simple fact frontline workers can’t work from home and have to bear the costs of travel and navigate the risks of travel on public transport.
- All frontline workers to have weekly COVID tests.
- All frontline workers to receive full pay if they have to isolate or are unable to work due to COVID.
- All frontline workers to have unlimited access to counselling services during this pandemic in recognition of the mental stress working with COVID brings to this workforce.
- If staff have to work from home due to fact their children are sent home from their school due to COVID then they should remain on full pay.
- All COVID related absences whilst recorded should not be used for sickness absence recording.
- Any staff having to make emergency visits abroad to visit a dying relative or attend a funeral should receive full pay during the quarantine period.
COVID Plus for home workers.
- All staff who are deemed clinically vulnerable or extremely clinically vulnerable to stay at home for lockdown on full pay.
- All workers to have unlimited access to counselling services during this pandemic in recognition of the mental stress working with COVID brings to this workforce.
- If staff have to work from home due to fact their children are sent home from their school due to COVID then they should remain on full pay and it should be recognised that the worker has a reduced capacity to carry out their work duties.
- All COVID related absences whilst recorded should not be used for sickness absence recording.
- Any staff having to make emergency visits abroad to visit a dying relative or attend a funeral should receive full pay during the quarantine period.
- To recognise the damaging effect working from home has on both physical activity levels and mental health. Also to recognise that the normal practice of leaving home to travel to and from work also of travelling between venues for meetings are now lost to the home worker leading to a more compressed working routine with little opportunity to leave the home. Therefore give a one hour paid daily break to home working staff in addition to their lunch break to enable them to have down time from their computer screens and so that they can physically leave their home for a walk or partake in some form of exercise.
- Protocol for structuring virtual meetings to enable time away from the screen e.g. starting meetings at quarter past the hour implying that there should be a 15min break before the meeting starts.
- Supervision to incorporate questions relating to mental health wellbeing and physical health as well as checking on the home set up (it should not be assumed home set up is constantly the same).
- For a designated person to randomly contact 10 workers per week to find out from them their experience with respect to supervision, welfare checks etc.
- Staff with children at home should be given a designated amount of time to dedicate to their child’s learning and leisure.
- Key workers working from home who have a clinically or extremely clinically vulnerable child should be allowed to continue working from home if schools are closed but only open to key worker’s children.
Stay safe
Best wishes
John Burgess
Branch Secretary
Barnet UNISON.
“IMPORTANT Update: Guidance and template letter for vulnerable employees (England)”
28 May 2020.
Please read the latest guidance provided by UNISON
This guidance covers:
1 Clinically extremely vulnerable employees (people at high risk)
2 Clinically vulnerable employees (people at moderate risk)
3 Employees living with / caring for the vulnerable or extremely vulnerable
4 Black employees
5 Older employees (over 60)
6 Employees who have childcare responsibilities
7 Employees who are feeling anxious about returning to work
8 Template letter to head teacher
Click on the link to read the guidance
If you need any help with this advice please contact the branch office at contactus@barnetunison.org.uk