Breaking Good News: All Community Schools to receive £150 Cost of Living payment

Barnet UNISON announced that Barnet Council would be making Cost-of-Living payment of £150 to all non-schools’ staff on grades A-E. Unfortunately, at the time the offer was made we were informed that this would not be made to staff in community schools for whom the council is the employer.

Barnet UNISON believed this was unfair as many of these members are low paid. We asked for Barnet Council to financially support Community Schools to enable them to make this much needed payment to their staff.

We can now confirm that we have just heard that Barnet Council have agreed one-off payment to school support staff on Grades A-E.

Please note this applies to all school staff for whom the council is the employer.

List of Barnet Community Schools are below. 

 

End.

Background 

Cost of Living Crisis one off payment to lowest grades except in community schools.

https://www.barnetunison.me.uk/wp/2022/12/08/cost-of-living-crisis-one-off-payment-to-lowest-grades-except-in-community-schools/

Cost of Living Crisis one off payment to lowest grades except in community schools.

Yesterday Barnet Council has announced in an email to all staff that it will be making a Cost-of-Living payment of £150 to all non-schools’ staff on grades A-E.

Whilst Barnet UNISON welcomes this payment for our lowest paid members, we are concerned that another group of low paid female members working in Barnet Council Community Schools will not be receiving this payment from the Council.

We have been informed that Barnet Council will be writing to all the Community schools to advise them of the payment.

Barnet UNISON has asked for Barnet Council to support Community Schools to enable them to make this much needed payment to their staff.

 

End.

10 Reasons why Barnet UNISON is recommending to VOTE Reject in the National Pay consultation.

1. The Truth about the Tories Magic Money Tree: Reject the Pay cut

https://youtu.be/21DA5qPTDIA

2. Barnet UNISON Depot workers say Enough Is Enough

https://youtu.be/Juoa0gUaOr8

3. Big Thanks to Martin Lewis for speaking truth to power about the escalating #EnergyBillsCrisis

https://youtu.be/6ajcoVyAOa8

4. Big thanks TUC highlighting some of impacts of the Cost Of Living Crisis

https://youtu.be/spHD_aZqhs4

5. Big thanks to TUC for highlighting why Energy companies must be brought back under public ownership

https://youtu.be/65CitfFEok4

6. Barnet UNISON Depot workers rejecting National Pay offer

https://youtu.be/dyG1DDcp_uo

7.  “Why we must fight for a Pay rise and not a Pay cut.”

https://www.barnetunison.me.uk/wp/2022/08/11/why-we-must-fight-for-a-pay-rise-and-not-a-pay-cut/

8. What Grade am I on?

https://www.barnetunison.me.uk/wp/2022/08/26/what-grade-am-i-on/

9. Your Pay: The Tories Austerity Robbery

https://www.barnetunison.me.uk/wp/2022/07/26/your-pay-the-tories-austerity-robbery/

10. Barnet UNISON National Pay Offer Grade table

https://www.barnetunison.me.uk/wp/2022/08/04/barnet-unison-national-pay-offer-grade-table/

End.

What Grade am I on ?

The table below shows the impact of the National Pay offer on each of the Barnet Council Grades

To help our members work out what the National Pay offer means to their grade we have put together a list of Job titles and Grades. Please see below.

If you need any support or assistance on this matter please contact the Barnet UNISON office at contactus@barnetunison.org.uk or ring 0208 359 2088

 

End.

Why we must fight for a Pay rise and not a Pay cut.

Barnet UNISON reps at our Branch Executive meeting agreed that Barnet UNISON would make a recommendation to our members to reject the Employers offer.

Below are some of the reasons why we have taken this position.

  • Local Government Pay has fallen by 27.5% since 2010 because of 12 years of Tory Austerity Pay Cuts.
  • The latest offer is another Pay cut not a Pay rise.
  • The Tories Austerity Policy is to make us all poorer.

Politicians claim there is no magic money tree

  • Shell made record profits of nearly £10bn between April and June
  • BT Group announced profits £400 million in the first quarter of this year.
  • BT made “1.3 billion and gave £750 million to shareholders.
  • British Gas owner Centrica profits increased fivefold by 411% to £1.3 billion as our energy bills continue to soar.
  • BT CEO Philip Jansen earned a total of £3,460,000 up 32% from the £2,628,000 he received in 2021.
  • Railways made £5 billion in profit last year.

What Tory Austerity Policies are doing to us.

  • UK households face annual energy bills of £3,850, this has tripled since the start of 2022.
  • Household energy bills £500 a month.
  • 5.8 million people in England, Scotland and Wales, both in and out of work – 40% of universal credit claimants are workers.
  • 5 million people in the UK lived in food poverty between 2019 – 2020.
  • Workers are turning to food banks because they don’t have enough money.
  • Foodbanks are running out of food because they can’t cope with the demand.
  • School support staff are missing meals in order they can feed their own children at home.

What can we do?

Barnet UNISON members are going to carry out a National Pay survey. It is important that every single member completes the survey and posts it back. First, we need over 50% of members to vote in the survey. Second, we want most of those voting to Vote Reject.  “UK inflation could reach 15% by start of 2023, experts say” Every month inflation rises makes this offer worse for more of our members.

Barnet UNISON will issue the National Pay survey on Thursday 1 September until 5pm, Friday 16 September.

Members will receive an email with a link to the survey. Those with no access to email will receive a hard copy survey.

End.

Barnet UNISON National Pay Offer Grade table

We have provided a National Pay Offer Grade table to show the grade information for all Barnet Council workers.

The Barnet UNISON National Pay Offer Grade table will show:

  1. Your current grade with hourly rates
  2. Your current grade with the employer’s proposal with new hourly rates
  3. Your current grade with Joint Trade Union demand with new hourly rates

What is the Joint Trade Union demand?

The Joint Trade Union demand was £2k or RPI whichever is greater. (this was before the escalating Cost of Living Crisis had taken hold of our economy.

Retail Price Index (RPI) is currently 11.8% which means the employers offer is less than UNISONs demand for all Council grades.

However, in the news they are predicting RPI will reach 18%.

https://www.personneltoday.com/hr/rpi-inflation-forecast-cost-of-living-niesr/

On top of this bad news there is a National Energy Bill crisis. The average household energy costs are predicted to reach as much as £3,400 a year. Energy bills have tripled since the start of the year.

All the other Cost of Living Crisis pressures such as fuel, food, rent, mortgages, travel are all increasing with no sign of this ending.

It is important that UNISON secures the best pay deal for our members.

In the coming weeks we will begin a consultative National Pay ballot of our members.

In the meantime if you want any further information on the National Pay offer, please ring Barnet UNISON on 0208 359 2088 or email contactus@barnetunison.org.uk

End.

 

Cost of Living Crisis Claim Update 6 July 6-7 pm

UNISON NEC members, Unison Central, London UK

Guest Speaker: Andrea Egan UNISON President

Wednesday 6 July 6- 7pm

To join click on link below

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81186125559?pwd=T3JpL1JWNTcvRkdyUEVrSEQ5dHR6QT09

Meeting ID: 811 8612 5559

Passcode: 850826

 

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.

https://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/london-s-most-expensive-petrol-prices-cheapest-pump-prices-reach-ps2-capital-b1005124.html

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.

  1. 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.

 

  1. 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.

  1. 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.

 

 

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