Important: Waste & Recycling and Street Cleansing Zoon meeting
Thursday 14 January 2021 6 pm.
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85726878854?pwd=VWFPZG9EcTUxM2cybUN2NjBkdGZwQT09
Category: Solidarity
URGENT: All Barnet UNISON members meeting Weds 6 Jan at 6.30 pm
Dear Barnet UNISON members
Things are changing so quickly and the rate of infection extremely worrying as are the increasing number of deaths from COVID.
UNISON has already responded to the clear and present danger in the schools workplace which has seen many of our members send in section 44 letters to their employers.
You can read about these letters here on our website https://www.barnetunison.me.uk/wp/2021/01/03/important-update-for-barnet-unison-members-in-schools/
Barnet UNISON sincerely hopes you all had the best and most relaxing time possible over the Christmas break considering the circumstances. It has certainly not been made easy by the Government.
We have continued to be exposed to one last minute decision after another and with dubious positive effect on keeping infection rates low as they are all botched jobs. Anxieties have gone through the roof and we are all running around trying to pick up the pieces. Some pieces remain sadly permanently broken. We are offering this zoom meeting to all our members to get a sense of how each employer is handling the latest crisis and offering our advice.
Our nursery schools have shown that our front line members can bring about the change which is needed to keep communities safe.
It is worth noting how different this all could have been. Two weeks before the Christmas break the German Government could see the direction of travel of the infection rates. They decided to cut their losses and gave a full half week notice of a total lockdown to start one week before the Christmas break and which would continue for one week after the Christmas break. This was disappointing for its citizens but at least they then knew exactly what they were dealing with and could PLAN!
We want to be able to support all of our members regardless of which employer you work for.
We want to know if you are well and if you feel safe at work.
Our all members UNISON meeting is on Wednesday 6 January 2021 6:30 pm.
Joining details for UNISON Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84128587345?pwd=UVZNelIzaGh4bEVKQ2F3Q2E1NFFiUT09
Meeting ID: 841 2858 7345
Passcode: 902996
Breaking News: Emergency Schools Zoom meeting for our members
Dear member
No surprisingly anxieties are running high with respect to the opening of schools etc from Monday morning.
We have a Government insistent on exposing workers to high risk of COVID to save face.
Nonetheless workers are wondering what they should do for the best.
The one thing we can offer is a safe space for colleagues to discuss their options and decide for themselves what they want to do.
I appreciate not everyone will be able to join in this zoom meeting but at least if we offer this early on in the day it gives an opportunity to contact others if we want to or need to.
Happy New Year everyone and see whoever can make our zoom meeting Sunday 3 January 2021 at 11am,
Solidarity
Barnet UNISON is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.
Topic: BEYA TU zoom meeting
Time: Jan 3, 2021 11:00 AM London
Join Zoom Meeting details below.
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87042293661?pwd=cE5Qbng3bHlyb1hlaERaMHlLa211dz09
Meeting ID: 870 4229 3661
Passcode: 481058
Breaking News: Monthly sessions with Payroll starts February 2021.
Dear Members
Barnet UNISON has had too many cases of members contacting us about payroll issues.
It is really important that you get the correct pay for the work you have done.
One of the biggest issues is understanding the pay slips.
I am pleased to announce that Street Scene are introducing monthly sessions with Pay roll.
These sessions will be run by the Capita HR Payroll Team.
The first session will take place on 10 February in the Pacific Room between 12:00pm and 14:00pm by appointment only.
The sessions will be for individuals to speak directly to payroll via a private video call.
Appointments will be available in 15 minute slots.
How to book a session?
You can book a session in advance by:
- Requesting via your supervisor
- Provide them your details, and
- Provide them with any information you can about the question or issue you want to discuss.
Your supervisor will then make your booking on your behalf and let you know the time.
Now is the time to make sure you take up this opportunity to get answers to some of the questions you have about your pay and your pay slip.
If you want a UNISON rep with you please let us know what time your session is booked in order we can sit down with you in the meeting.
Telephone 0208 359 2088 or email contactus@barnetunison.org.uk
Solidarity
John Burgess
Branch Secretary
Barnet UNISON
Update on the Barnet UNISON Term Time Pay Campaign
Dear members,
Firstly, I hope you, your family and friends are keeping well and have been coping through this protracted period of anxiety and isolation caused by Covid19.
Owing to the virus, Barnet UNISON’s work regarding the term-time pay dispute was temporarily curtailed. This impacted my job as campaign organiser.
I am pleased to tell you that I am now able to resume my union role.
Barnet UNISON remains committed to trying to gain the best possible outcome for all members who have been discriminated against as a result of the incorrect formula being used to calculate your pay.
Many of you have already completed and submitted a hard copy of the CASE form that we have passed on to the union’s solicitors who are dealing with this collective grievance.
There are, however, lots of members who did not respond to our previous communications or complete a form.
This may be because I was unable to secure a meeting in your school prior to lockdown owing to a lack of response from school management. Our branch Secretary, John Burgess, sent letters to all Head Teachers and members but we did not receive responses from everyone. In addition, growing concerns around the virus began to interrupt my work towards the end of February.
Action Plan:
- The branch will commence a series of regular monthly updates on the campaign so please check your emails.
- I will be making as much contact with members as I can to advise and guide you, and help you submit a CASE form to our solicitors.
- Your particular school may have already rectified the formula and back-dated pay for a specific period of time. If this applies to you please let me know.
- Accepting any changes to your pay does not in itself prohibit you from submitting a claim. However, we advise you against signing anything until you have sought advice from UNISON.
There is no guarantee that the branch will win exactly what we aim for on your behalf but there is strength in numbers. The more members who decide to make a claim as part of the collective grievance, the greater our chances of success.
I am unlikely to be able to visit any schools for the foreseeable future because of the rules regarding gatherings and social distancing. Now is, therefore, the time for you to organise yourselves. Please consider acting as a workplace convenor or co-convenor with one of your colleagues.
We have created a streamlined CASE form for completion online. You simply need to populate it and return as an attachment by email. I will be sharing detailed guidance on this soon. Please note, we are now unable to process paper copies of the form as we are not operating from the branch office.
If you require any further advice prior to the next communication from the branch, you can email me.
Take care & stay safe.
Kind Regards
Nadia Joseph
Term Time Pay Organiser
Barnet UNISON
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.
Farewell comrade: “Call Chris Jobson”
Our fight to end low pay
There is definitely a mood in the air here in Barnet.
I can’t put my finger on it but it is there.
In the last few weeks our reps have been going into workplaces and recruiting both members and reps in services where staff have been working throughout COVID, services such as care homes, waste and recycling, street cleansing, housing repairs and gas services, parking enforcement and passenger transport to name but a few.
One of the major issues is that they are all low paid workers and they quite rightly feel they are not being paid enough, especially when you consider they have worked on throughout all the restraints caused by the virus.
For the past six months these workers have been directed into the COVID workplace by senior managers all working from the comfort of their homes.
Being able to work from is not an option for these workers.
While senior management are saving money on transport costs because they can work from home these workers are paying the rising costs of public transport to get to their workplaces.
Today was no exception. We met a group of workers in the Repairs and Gas Service who had recently TUPED into the Barnet Group from Mears. There were many serious issues raised, all of which can and must be dealt with by our union.
What was great about the meeting was that this previously un-unionised workforce quickly grasped the importance of union membership in the workplace. Not only have they already begun to recruit the whole of the service, they have understood the need to have local reps and we recruited two union reps and one Health and Safety rep.
I never get tired of working with members and today reminded me of what we can do if we have the confidence and support of the workforce.
Today is but the beginning I sense things are going to get interesting here in Barnet over the next six to nine months.
Solidarity
John Burgess
Branch Secretary, Barnet UNISON.
Government attacking on our Pension and Redundancy Payments
The Westminster Government has pushed through parliament final regulations that will enact the absolute cap of £95,000 on all exit payments in the public sector.
This means that any exit payment made after the implementation date (anticipated to be on, or soon after 26th October) will be affected.
UNISON are campaigning to demonstrate the severe impact the changes would have on various different types of local government workers.
Read National UNISON update 6 October 2020
The consultation closes 9 November 2020
https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/reforming-local-government-exit-pay
What next?
In order to alert UNISON members to the seriousness of these attacks UNISON have provided 6 hypothetical worked examples below. (N.B. where the examples below talk about being a ‘member’ this means pension membership not UNISON membership).
Examples:
Individual 1: is 59 years old. Member for 19 years and is currently paid a salary of £29,000 per annum. She broadly fits the profile of the average member. Her new redundancy package does not contain a cash payment on top, as her pension strain is larger than the combined SRP and DSP. Member benefits are not affected by the £95,000 cap but are reduced under proposed reforms as SRP and DSP are no longer paid in excess to pension strain. Under the proposed reforms, benefits on redundancy are reduced by around 37%.
- Individual 2: is 55 years old and has been a member for 25 years. He is paid a salary of £80,000 per annum. His relatively young age means that he receives a high pension strain. Benefits are reduced under proposed reforms as SRP and DSP are no longer paid in excess to pension strain and pension stain is capped at £95,000. His new redundancy benefits are £95,000, as his pension strain is already over £95,000. Under the proposed reforms, benefits on redundancy are reduced by around 61%.
- Individual 3: is 61 years old. He has been a member for 31 years and is currently paid a salary of £41,000 per annum. Member is entitled to a cash payment as the DSP the member would have been entitled to is higher than pension strain (net of SRP). Member benefits are not affected by the £95,000 cap but are reduced under proposed reforms as full SRP and DSP are no longer paid in excess to pension strain. His redundancy benefits are reduced by 38%.
- Individual 4: is 65 years old. She has been a member 7 years and is currently paid a salary of £20,000 per annum. Member is entitled to a cash top up as pension strain is less than SRP, and DSP the member would have been entitled to is greater than strain (net of SRP). Member benefits are not affected by the £95,000 cap but are reduced under proposed reforms as full SRP and DSP are no longer paid in excess to pension strain. Under the proposed reforms, benefits on redundancy are reduced by around 25%.
- Individual 5: is 60 years old. She has been a member for 4 years and is currently paid a salary of £35,000 per annum. Her new redundancy package does not contain a cash payment element as her pension strain is larger than the combined SRP and DSP. Member benefits are not affected by the £95,000 cap but are reduced under proposed reforms as full SRP and DSP are no longer paid in excess to pension strain. Under the proposed reforms, benefits on redundancy are reduced by around 29%.
- Individual 6: is 67 years old and has been a member 23 years. She is currently paid a salary of £34,000 per annum. Her age and service history mean that there is no pension strain. The member is not affected by the £95,000 cap. Her redundancy package will be unchanged and will consist entirely of the cash payment which is equal to her original SRP plus DSP.
What can you do?
If you have any questions and concerns please email contactus@barnetunison.org.uk
Bin worker Update 4: Victory for our members
“I am pleased to report that Barnet Council have dropped the proposed change to our members’ contracts.
The Council responded that they had listened to the views from Barnet UNISON and the views of our members in a face to face meeting which took place in the depot several weeks ago.
This is a massive result for our Bin workers.
It is the second time that we have balloted in a 12 month period and it is the second time they have delivered a solid vote for strike action.
The message is very clear for all workers facing attacks from employers – join a union and get involved in the union.
The union provides the opportunity to fight back.
I am really proud that our Barnet UNISON members can hold their heads up high along with Tower Hamlets UNISON members, SOAS UNISON members, and UNISON members who work for Wigan-Council commissioned drug and alcohol rehabilitation service ‘We Are With You’ who are currently taking 10 days strike action.
All of these UNISON members have stood together and voted to fight back.”
John Burgess, Branch Secretary, Barnet UNISON.
End.
Breaking News: Bin workers Trade Dispute meeting with Barnet Council update 1
Barnet Bin workers dispute update 2
https://www.barnetunison.me.uk/wp/2020/09/19/barnet-bin-workers-dispute-update/
Barnet Bin workers Update 3
https://www.barnetunison.me.uk/wp/2020/09/21/barnet-bin-workers-update-3/