Category: Local

“Why are the government attacking the workers and their union?

In the last month there has been a concerted negative campaign to target workers and their trade unions. By that I refer to the stories in the press questioning the role of the trade unions and the link to the Labour Party. The Coalition Government attacks are directed on funding of the Labour Party and now it seems future funding of political parties may now be funded by the tax payer?

What is of interest are the private donations by multinationals who are clearly wanting something in return.

It was interesting to read that over £100 billion of public sector contracts have already been handed to the big private sector contractors such as G4S, IBM. Serco, Balfour Beatty, BT, and Capita

It is not until you read the list of MPs with financial interests and links to the NHS see here that you can see whay the NHS is already under threat of mass privatisation

Where are attacks?

1. Employment Tribunals

Earlier this week news broke that workers would have to pay if they wanted to take their employer to an employment tribunal.

Workers can expect to pay between £160 to £250 simply to make a claim and a further hearing fee starting at £230 to £950.

This is clearly designed to stop access to justice for workers who have been unfairly dismissed or discriminated against.

However if a worker belongs to a Trade Union this fee will be covered case if UNISON takes up the case for the member

The Good News is that UNISON has won the right to have a JR hearing over tribunal fees read here

2. Attack on Trade Unions and their members

I refer of course to the “Transparency of Lobbying, Non-party Campaigning and Trade Union Administration Bill 2013-14”

The above Bill is a direct attack on Trade Unions and our members working across the public and private sectors. It ignores the growing public concern that rich and powerful individuals and corporations hold over policy making and politicians

3. Privatised workers lose rights to National Pay Awards.

When workers have previously been transferred to the private sector, the link to future the national Pay Awards has been quashed in the European courts see here

4. Attacking collection of Trade Union subscriptions

This dispute concerns the collection of trade union subscriptions by the employer on behalf of the trade union. This is a practice all good employers carry out for a fee paid by the trade union. Reading this report it seems that this petty attack has all the trademarks of anti trade union ideology.

 

Austerity launches another vicious attack on low paid female workers in Barnet Council

On Friday 2 August Barnet Council issued a Press Release (here) about the Judicial Review of the One Barnet Programme. Here is an extract

Councillor Richard Cornelius, Leader of the Council, said: “I’m delighted with the judges’ decision.

“We can all now get on with making the huge savings in our back office costs which we need to do if we are to continue protecting our frontline services.

On the same day the above statement was released I sat in a consultation with coach escorts who provide a Frontline service for children with special education needs (SEN).

As I listened to the presentation, I became increasing agitated and angry (as did the staff) at what is the most outrageous attack on low paid undervalued female workers.

In the meeting it was accepted by the Council that most of the staff only earn £8,891.67 a year and work only 20 hours a week, although many of them would like to work more.

It was heart breaking to hear escort after escort describing how seriously this would impact on them and their families if they are forced to take the proposed 33% cut in pay.

That’s right after speaking to escorts after the meeting and using the figures provided by the Council most of them will see their earnings drop from £8,891.67 to £5,845.84 a year.

Many disclosed that they were already on pension credits or other benefits and were worried that these proposals may result in them losing benefits; others were worried about not having enough to pay the rent and losing their homes.

This is an unacceptable cut to a largely low paid female workforce most of whom have loyal long service with the London Borough of Barnet. The scale of the hardship this will cause on this workforce if this proposal is implemented is the worst I have seen in all my time as a trade union official.

After the meeting coach escorts explained the day to day experiences of their job, it was frightening and shocking; anyone listening to their account would have to agree the Council is not paying them enough for what they do.

It is fair to say staff were both upset and incensed about this attack on their livelihoods and have asked for a meeting with the Director of People and made an offer for the Director to accompany some of the escorts on duty.

Further meetings are being arranged with our members who are fired up and feel they have no alternative but to campaign against this unacceptable assault on their terms and conditions.

UNISON has requested a copy of the Equality Impact Assessment for the staff and the Service and sought clarification as to whether parents and schools have been consulted.

UNISON is also demanding that this proposal is abandoned in light of the comments from the Leader that the One Barnet outsourcing will be delivering savings in order to protect frontline services. You are not going to get a more frontline service than this service. We wait to hear if the alleged One Barnet savings really will be used for the Coach Escort frontline service.

In the meantime please send messages of support to Barnet Council Coach Escort Campaign to contactus@barnetunison.org.uk

To view the latest postion in relation to the negotiations on the Capita NSCSO project view document here

There has already been a positive change as a result of discussions with the increase in revenues and benefits posts now remaining in the borough.

However this is just the begining, UNISON will be endeavouring to negotiate more jobs to remain within the borough and hope the Council will help support this aim.

For more details on the negotiations see here

Reconvened Cabinet in Heritage Room – NSCSO contracted awarded Barnet Council 6 December 2012 from The Barnet Bugle Ltd on Vimeo.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, STOP PRESS:

Pre-Action Letter – Proposed Claim for Judicial Review was served on Barnet council.

A Barnet resident, Maria Nash, has instructed lawyers to seek Judicial Review of the One Barnet Programme.   A pre-action protocol letter was sent to the Council today, prior to the Cabinet meeting tonight which plans to approve the appointment of Capita plc as preferred bidder for the first of the One Barnet contracts, worth £320 million.

The letter details the grounds on which a Judicial Review will be sought:

1.         Breach of the Council’s duty to consult Barnet residents, businesses and community organisations about its plans, the result of which is that it has spent millions of pounds – the Agilisys contract alone has cost over £4m and is likely to rise to £6m – on professional consultants helping it to run the procurement process, but has not once asked local people for their views.

2.         Breach of councillors’ duty to the residents in their area, to make sure that their decisions represent the best available value for public money. In order to be sure that they are getting best value out of this or any other contract the Council must compare the costs, benefits and risks of outsourcing with the costs, benefits and risks of retaining services in house but reforming the way they are provided to optimise value. Despite having been urged to do this, and despite the fact that it has been done by other local authorities, like Edinburgh, Barnet has refused to do it.

3.         Breach of the public sector equality duty: the Council must take issues of equality into account when making important decisions which affect people’s lives, like making radical changes in the way Council services are run.  The “equalities impact assessment” done in the One Barnet case was a pure paper exercise, which took no account of the views of people who would be affected by the changes.

4.         Breach of public procurement law, which requires that this contract be awarded to the company submitting the “most economically advantageous tender from the point of view of the public body”, i.e. the provider that gives the “best value for money” , taking into account the council’s responsibilities. Lack of consultation with local people, lack of consideration of equalities and lack of an in-house services comparator means the council cannot state that Capita gives the best value for money.  Such a breach of the public procurement rules leads to cases like West Coast Main Line.

5.         Breach of councillors’ duty to make up their own minds: Individual councillors must by law make up their own minds how to vote after informing themselves on the issues.  They are not allowed blindly to follow the party line.  Councillors have been starved of information and have not had the opportunity to understand the highly complex proposals for the contract, so they cannot legally vote to do anything other than defer a decision so that they can inform themselves and come to a proper view.

 

Notes for editors

1.                  Capita has been chosen as the preferred bidder for the New Support and Customer Services Organisation (NSCSO) contract with Barnet Council, worth at least £320 million over 10 years and advertised in the Official Journal of the European Union as worth between £600 and £750 million. A second contract covering Development and Regulatory Services (DRS) worth £275 million over 10 years is also being bid for by Capita Symonds and EC Harris; parking services were recently outsourced to NSL for £15 million (5-year contract).

2.                  Barnet Alliance for Public Services (BAPS) is a coalition of residents, trade unionists and community campaigners in the London Borough of Barnet, formed to defend and improve public services.

3.                  Maria Nash is unfortunately unable to talk to the press due to illness. She has asked BAPS representative to speak on her behalf.

 

Contact: Barnet Alliance tel: 07534 407703 – Vicki Morris tel: 07446 292994 – http://barnetalliance.org ; Barnetalliance4publicservices@gmail.com

Barnet UNISON has produced over 40 detailed reports throughout the four year life of the Future Shape/EasyCouncil/One Barnet Programme.

You can view all of our reports and much much more here Since the beginning of September 2012 UNISON branch has been producing a series of ‘bite size briefing for all 63 councillors.

Briefing Number 1 Edinburgh an example of an alternative http://ning.it/NMdRS3

Briefing Number 2 Cornwall Council Joint Venture http://ning.it/PPYy19

Briefing Number 3 on Joint Venture to sue Somerset Council http://ning.it/OonDtD

Briefing Number 4 Street Lighting PFI http://ning.it/QVN0Eo

Briefing Number 5 entitled “What are Joint Ventures?” http://ning.it/QVN3QS

Briefing Number 6 entitled ‘G4S Fiasco’ to all 63 councillors http://ning.it/QVN9bd

Briefing Number 7 – “One Barnet contract monitoring or thin client which is it to be?” http://ning.it/QVNdaV

Briefing Number 8 entitled How Joint Ventures Work http://ning.it/PPYChs

Briefing Number 9 – Regulatory Services & Risk http://ning.it/PPYE99

Briefing Number 10 Graph of Doom or Graph of Fantasy? http://ning.it/PPYEGe

Briefing Number 11 entitled Competitive Dialogue – decision making. http://www.barnetunison.me.uk/sites/default/files/Briefing%20Number%2011%20Competitive%20Dialogue%20’Decision%20taking%20′.pdf

Briefing Number 12 Newcastle “A good model of staff engagement.” http://ning.it/PPYO0a

Briefing Number 13 Benefit Administration & Outsourcing – New Support Customer Services Organisation http://ning.it/QVRfA5

Briefing Number 14 Cornwall Council update http://ning.it/R5iNmF

Briefing Number 15 Strategic Partnerships http://ning.it/Qktbfn

Briefing Number 16 Flexible Contracts http://ning.it/RQvRwm

Briefing Number 17 Alternative 10 Point Plan http://ning.it/RQvMsK

Barnet UNISON in partnership with Barnet Alliance for Public Services and supported by the TUC are hosting a conference on the mass privatisation of Barnet council services this Saturday 7 July 12- 3 pm at the Greek Cypriot Centre, Britannia Road, North Finchley, London N12 9RU

 

The Council is attempting to become a Commissioning Council whereby it no longer delivers council services. In the last few months Barnet Council has already transferred the following staff and services out of the council to new employers

·         Social Care services for adults with disabilities

·         Housing Needs & Resources

·         Parking services

·         All of the Legal Department * (talks on the transfer of staff to Harrow Council are still ongoing) 

By the end of May 2013 up to 70% of the council workforce will no longer be working for the Council.

The aim of the conference is to provide information about the scale of risk to the council tax payers of Barnet. The conference will be in two parts.

 

Part One speakers include

Professor Dexter Whitfield European Services Strategy Unit (ESSU) recently published a report on the cost and consequences of the Commissioning Council.

 

Andy Mudd from the well-respected local government research body the Association for Public Service Excellence (APSE) published a report warning that over the past few years those at the north London Council involved in the awarding and managing of contracts to private contractors, have often ignored both council guidelines and UK competition law.

 

John Dix resident, one of the infamous Barnet Bloggers recently reported the Council has agreed another £10million be allocated to consultants to deliver the outsourcing One Barnet Programme 

 

The second part of the meeting will include speakers from Aberdeen UNISON, and Edinburgh UNISON. Both of these councils recently decided not to go ahead with outsourcing after taking part in lengthy procurement discussions with a number of private sector contractors. A speaker from Sefton UNISON will talk about why Sefton Council decided to terminate their contract early with Capita Symonds. Capita Symonds is one of the Bidders for one the One Barnet projects.

 

John Burgess, Branch Secretary UNISON said “We are continuing to seek a meeting with councillors in particular the members of the Cabinet Committee regarding our concerns about the One Barnet Programme.  We know from experience that once residents are made aware of One Barnet they are very concerned about the implications. This conference is just one part of a widespread community campaign to bring public scrutiny to the One Barnet experiment.”

 

End

 

Note to Editors

 ·         John Burgess Barnet UNISON on 07738389569 or email: john.burgess@barnetunison.org.uk

1. Barnet Alliance website

http://barnetalliance.org/2012/06/24/barnet-council-not-for-sale-public-conference-saturday-7-july/

 

2. APSE report

http://www.unison.org.uk/acrobat/Procurement_contract_management.pdf

 

3. ESSU report: Cost of Consequences of commissioning

http://www.european-services-strategy.org.uk/news/2012/commissioning-council-plan-exposed/costs-and-consequences-of-a-one-barnet-commissioning-council.pdf

 

4. UNISON branch write to 63 councillors warning of serious gamble with council services

http://www.barnetunison.me.uk/?q=node/911

5. Edinburgh Council dumps privatisation

http://www.unison-edinburgh.org.uk/news/2012/1901.html

6. Aberdeen UNISON wins battle against privatisationhttp://www.unison.org.uk/eastmidlands/news_view.asp?did=7708

 

7. Sefton Council to end £65m technical services contract with Capita Symonds

http://www.liverpooldailypost.co.uk/liverpool-news/regional-news/2011/11/25/sefton-council-to-end-65m-technical-services-contract-with-capita-symonds-92534-29838970/

Earlier this week an article appeared in the Guardian about Barnet Councils ‘Graph of Doom’ part of the article goes on to say

“Barnet, once dubbed “easyCouncil”, is known for its enthusiastic embrace of service outsourcing. But the Graph of Doom is quite separate. Irrespective of savings planned under the One Barnet transformation strategy, the slide demonstrates that demographic change – more children, more older people – is going to soak up every penny the authority has.”

Later it adds

“The graph should not be taken too literally: by making no provision for Barnet's anticipated rise in income through regeneration schemes, for instance, it overstates the bleakness of the outlook.”

Council workers may remember this Barnet Council youtube video published just before consultation on the Council Budget began. The video did paint a stark picture that the Council will ‘run out of money’ the video portrayed this scenario as inevitable and it is being used to justify the need to outsource council services. So there we have it, councillors and residents and staff are being bombarded with “we are all doomed message”

However a local Blogger Mr Reasonable (and he really is very reasonable), quickly spotted the flaws in this presentation, take a look at what he had to say back 1 October 2011 here

 

UNISON responded the restrucure to Revenues and Benefits by producing a detailed 13 page report including detailed evidence.

You can find our Executive Summary here

You can find our detailed report here  

You can find our supporting evidence here

You can read the Council response here

To say it is disappointing woudl be an understatement. It is never easy to encourage staff, residents and the public to engage in consultation because many beleive the decisions have already been agreed. This is a very dangerous position to take and undermines local democracy.

In terms of the Council response I am shocked at the lack of detail to our report and the misrepresentation of our offer which was 

If the Council abandon the restructure, they can make a saving of three consultants immediately, which we estimate would produce a total saving of £500k in 12 months. UNISON is prepared to offer the use of an expert consultant free of charge to work with the existing senior management team to produce a sustainable alternative structure for this service before outsourcing.”

We were in fact offering two savings for the Barnet council tax payer not one. The first saving was to terminate the contracts of the consultants. It is difficult to understand the business case for the continued use of consultants in Revenues & Benefits as they have given the task of making the restructure (they proposed) work to the council employed management team.

The second saving to the Barnet council tax payer was to provide the FREE use of a consultant to produce a sustainable alternative structure for this service before outsourcing.