Contacting the Branch

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If you have any questions or need any support please contact the Branch Office

 contactus@barnetunison.org.uk

Or you can call 020 8359 2088, if we are unable to answer the telephone please leave a message speaking slowly and clearly please include your name, telephone number, membership number and a brief message about the assistance you require. We will respond as soon as we can.

Alternatively you can contact UNISON Direct Call Centre by telephone 

08000 857 857 Monday – Friday 6am – 11pm, Saturday 9am – 4pm

or make an online enquiry by clicking the following link

https://www.unison.org.uk/get-help/online-enquiries/

To Join UNISON click the following link 

https://join.unison.org.uk/

Barnet workers to ballot on strike unless council settles holiday pay

Austerity, Cost of Living Crisis, Local, News, Solidarity, UNISON Campaign

Barnet, 5 November 2026

Barnet’s bin, recycling and street cleansing workers will be balloted for strike action from 11 November, but their union says the council can still avoid it by making a fair offer.

For twelve years, while Capita ran the council’s payroll, staff who regularly worked overtime received holiday pay that did not include it. This is back pay for work already done, not a pay claim. The error was put right when payroll moved to a new provider in 2025.

UNISON has tried to settle this by negotiation. Workers proposed a six-year settlement, paid in instalments, and accepted they would not recover the full twelve years. The council rejected it and has restated an offer of 18 months. UNISON believes the talks have been too adversarial. At a time when the Prime Minister is calling for a more cooperative approach between employers and unions, we would like Barnet to show the same willingness to find a solution.

Capita is no longer in Barnet, but its legacy still affects staff, and potentially residents. The company’s problems with the Civil Service Pension Scheme, where retired workers waited months for payments, show how costly its failures can be for the people on the receiving end.

Many of these workers are on low pay and struggling with the cost of living. They cannot afford to write off what they are owed.

Dennis Moses, UNISON Street Scene Convenor, said: “We would much rather settle this round a table than on a picket line. My members have already compromised. We’re asking the council to meet us in the middle, put a fair offer on the table and fix the problem before Christmas.”

The ballot closes on 9 December. No strike dates have been set.

Ends

 

Barnet UNISON: Branch Secretary Weekly Message 2 November 2026

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Monday 2 November 2026

 

Weekly Blog — speaking truth to power – Support for Disabled Members. 

We’ve seen a real rise in casework supporting disabled members over the past while, across schools, care settings, depots and council offices. Some of that is members coming to us once things have already gone wrong. I’d rather hear from you earlier than that. So this week’s blog is a straightforward message: if you’re a disabled member, or living with a long-term health condition, we’re ready to help, and you don’t need a crisis to pick up the phone.

 

What we can actually help with

A lot of the casework we see starts with sickness absence. The Council’s own policy says that where someone has an underlying health condition or disability, the usual absence review points don’t have to apply in the same rigid way. In practice that only happens if someone pushes for it. We do that pushing.

 

We also deal regularly with reasonable adjustments, whether that’s changes to your hours, your equipment, your workstation, or how a task is structured. The duty to make those adjustments sits with the employer, not with you to just cope. If a request has gone quiet, or you’ve been told something isn’t possible without much explanation why, that’s exactly the kind of thing we can chase.

 

Where health affects someone’s ability to do their current role, there are routes for temporary or permanent redeployment, with pay protection built in for a temporary move. And where absence management, performance management or a disciplinary process is running alongside a health condition, we make sure that connection isn’t ignored or brushed past.

 

You know your situation. We know the process.

Nobody expects you to be an expert in the Equality Act or the Council’s Managing Absence Policy on top of managing your own health. That’s our job. What we need from you is to hear about it, ideally before a formal meeting gets scheduled rather than the night before it.

If you’re waiting on an adjustment that’s gone quiet, worried about a return to work meeting, or feel like your health isn’t being properly factored into a process you’re going through, get in touch. You’re entitled to bring a rep into any of these meetings, and it costs you nothing to ask one of us to come along, even if you’re not sure yet whether anything’s actually gone wrong.

 

This isn’t only for members with a visible or long-standing condition either. Long-term conditions, mental health, and anything covered under the Equality Act all count. If you’re not sure whether your situation qualifies for support, ask us rather than deciding on your own that it probably doesn’t.

 

Contact your steward or the branch office whenever suits you. We’d rather have the conversation early and it turn out you didn’t need us, than have it too late.

 

Best wishes John Burgess Branch Secretary, Barnet UNISON

 

URGENT Message from Barnet UNISON to members

Anti - Racism, Austerity, Barnet Group, Barnet Homes, Local, London Living Wage, News, Solidarity, TBG Flex, Trades Dispute, UNISON Campaign

URGENT Message from Barnet UNISON to members

We are working with The Barnet Group on exemptions to strike action to ensure life and limb cover in YCB residential settings.

This means care and support provided to ensure no serious harm comes to those being cared for.

The settings which are covered:

  1. Residential care homes
  2. Supported Living
  3. Respite setting
  4. Extra Care

We have agreed with TBG to have a list of members on standby willing to cover these essential services in an emergency.

For example, It is possible someone who was due to work a shift rings in sick leaving residents exposed to not having food or being able to use the toilet.

If you are taking strike action and are willing to go on the standby list then please let us know. Please also indicate which times of the day you would be willing to cover in an emergency.

Below is the message sent out by The Barnet Group to all staff:

“Dear colleagues,

You may be aware that UNISON has called for 24-hour strike action by its members on Tuesday 27 October 2026.

Management does not hold information about trade union membership. Managers may respectfully ask colleagues whether they intend to participate in strike action for the purposes of service planning and ensuring appropriate resourcing.

For any employee considering participation in strike action, please be aware of the following:

  • Your manager may ask you if you intend to take strike action. You may confirm or respectfully decline to do so.
  • If you take part in strike action, you will not be paid for that day.
  • If you participate in strike action, you will need to ensure that this is recorded with your manager. We ask that this is done as soon as reasonably practicable after 27 October 2026.

The Barnet Group’s Leadership Team recognises and respects employees’ legal right to participate in lawful industrial action. Employees who choose to take part in lawful strike action will not be subjected to any detriment for doing so.

TBG Executive Management Team”

The Barnet Group UNISON Members Take Strike Action

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Tuesday 27th October is the day The Barnet Group UNISON members take strike action. The action will cover a 24hr period from 7:30am Tuesday 27th October until 7:30am Wednesday 28th October.

We are asking ALL of our UNISON members to respect the day of action and to take part in the strike action. If you have special dispensation, this will be communicated to you by UNISON. There are some colleagues who will have to work due to the nature of the work they do, but this must be cleared by the branch. Do not assume you have this special dispensation.

Please see here for our FAQ the do’s and don’ts of strike action and what you can expect. 27 OCT TBG STRIKE FAQS a5 flyer.pptx online

Activities on the day will be:

Picket lines at:

  1.  Rosa Morisson Day Centre from Tuesday 27th October 7:30 – 10am. Address: 85 Gloucester Rd, New Barnet, Barnet EN5 1NA
  2. Community Space Day Centre from Tuesday 27th October 7:30 – 10am. Address: 36 Knightswood Close, Edgware, Middlesex, HA8 8FR
  3. Barnet Council Office from 2 Tuesday 27th October 7:30 – 12noon. Address: Bristol Avenue, NW9 4EW

The Council Office picket will also be a rally as we can expect guest speakers to visit to show solidarity. The other picket lines should make their way to the Council offices once their picket lines have concluded.

March Against Austerity on the Eve of Budget

6pm Tuesday 27th October Victoria Embankment

Barnet UNISON Members meet at Embankment Tube Station.

27th October was picked as a date for the strike action as the Government will be setting it’s budget. We hope that the decision will not be to reward the already very wealthy but to finally relieve working class communities of their shouldering of the economy.

If you need to contact an officer of the branch at this event please call Helen Davies on 07930 390 169  or Patrick Hunter on 07904 511 979

Make it Count

We need to maximise the effect of the strike action and so your commitment to one or all of these activities is essential. We accept there will be good reason some members will be unable to attend an activity though.

Weekly Blog — speaking truth to power – Mileage Rate Increase

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Monday 19th October 2026

Weekly Blog — speaking truth to power – Mileage Rate Increase

Some good news for a change, and it doesn’t need caveats. HMRC has put its mileage rate up for the first time in fifteen years, and it’s backdated. If you drive between sites or do home visits as part of your job, this one’s worth two minutes of your time.

 

What’s actually changed

The HMRC rate for the first 10,000 business miles a year has gone from 45p to 55p a mile. It’s backdated to 6 April this year, so any qualifying mileage you’ve claimed since April should be topped up to the new rate, not just mileage going forward. Anything above 10,000 miles stays at 25p, that part hasn’t moved.

Forty-five pence hadn’t shifted since 2011, so this is the first real increase most of us have ever seen on this rate. For anyone doing regular mileage as part of their job, home visits, moving between sites, covering multiple locations in a week, that difference adds up fast over a year.

 

We’ve written to HR asking the Council to adopt the new rate and apply the backdating properly, so nobody has to chase up an underpaid claim from earlier in the year themselves.

 

What to do

Check your last few mileage claims against the old and new rate. If you’ve been paid at 45p for miles driven since 6 April, that’s a shortfall you’re entitled to have corrected. If your payslips don’t show mileage clearly enough to tell, ask your line manager or payroll for a breakdown, you’re entitled to see it.

If you raise this with your service and get nowhere, or you’re told the Council hasn’t adopted the new rate yet, let us know. We’re already on it, but the more members who flag it, the faster this gets sorted properly.

 

Best wishes John Burgess Branch Secretary, Barnet UNISON

They Were Heroes During Covid. Now They Are Fighting for Fair Pay. We Must Stand With Them.

Anti - Racism, Austerity, Barnet Group, Barnet Homes, Cost of Living Crisis, COVID 19, Housing, Insourcing, Local, News, Pensions, Solidarity, TBG Flex, Trades Dispute, UNISON Campaign, Your Choice Barnet

They Were Heroes During Covid. Now They Are Fighting for Fair Pay. We Must Stand With Them.

 Branch Secretary Blog — John Burgess, Barnet UNISON

On Tuesday 13 October, Barnet UNISON announced that our members working for The Barnet Group had voted overwhelmingly for strike action.

 88% voted YES on a 55% turnout.

That is a powerful result, and I want to explain why this dispute matters to every Barnet UNISON member, not just those working for The Barnet Group.

 Who are The Barnet Group workers?

The Barnet Group (TBG) is a company wholly owned by Barnet Council. It includes Barnet Homes, which provides housing services, and Your Choice Barnet, which provides social care and support services.

These are not optional services. Housing and social care are essential public services which councils have statutory responsibilities to provide or arrange.

Our members include care and support workers looking after vulnerable adults, and housing workers helping residents with their homes, repairs and housing needs.

They are public service workers. They work for organisations owned by Barnet Council. But they are not treated the same as Barnet Council employees.

Many members reading this may be surprised to learn that TBG workers do not automatically receive the same pay, annual leave, sick pay, overtime rates or other terms and conditions as Council staff.

They also do not have the same access to the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS).

How can that be right?

Remember when care workers were called heroes?

I want members to think back to Covid.

When much of the country was told to stay at home, our care workers continued going to work.

They supported vulnerable residents who depended on them. They worried about catching Covid, about passing it on to the people they cared for, and about bringing it home to their own families.

They went to work because people needed them.

Remember the weekly applause? Remember people standing outside their homes banging saucepans to show their appreciation for NHS and care workers?

They were called heroes then. So why are they still fighting for fair pay, decent conditions and pension rights now?

You cannot pay the rent with applause. You cannot pay your energy bills with praise.

And you certainly cannot build a decent retirement on warm words.

One Council. Two Workforces. That Must End.

Barnet UNISON has been campaigning for years against outsourcing and the creation of a two-tier workforce.

Barnet Homes and Your Choice Barnet were once Council services. Moving them outside direct Council employment has left workers doing essential public service jobs without the same contractual protections and benefits as their Council colleagues.

Our members are demanding better pay and conditions, including improved annual leave, sick pay, working hours, overtime rates, a fair pay structure and access to the LGPS.

The Barnet Group has rejected the claim.

Our members have responded by voting for strike action.

Nobody takes a decision to strike lightly, especially workers who care for vulnerable people and support residents.

But when employers refuse to negotiate seriously, what choice are workers left with?

This is why Barnet UNISON is calling on The Barnet Group and Barnet Council to sit down with us and negotiate a fair settlement.

My Message to Every Barnet UNISON Member

I have spent 31 years representing workers in Barnet, including 23 years as Branch Secretary.

I have seen what outsourcing does to workers. I have seen the divisions it creates, the inequalities it produces and the damage it can do to morale.

I have also seen what happens when workers stand together.

Our TBG members have shown courage. They have voted to challenge their employer because they believe they deserve better.

Now I am asking every Barnet UNISON member reading this blog to do something simple.

Take a few minutes to send a message of solidarity to our housing and care workers.

It doesn’t have to be long. Just a few words to let them know they are not alone.

You might work in a school, a library, a depot, an office or another Council service. You might never have met a TBG worker.

That doesn’t matter.

We are all UNISON members, and when one group of workers is fighting for fair treatment, they deserve the support of the rest of us.

Please email your message of support to contactus@barnetunison.org.uk.

I will make sure our TBG members get to read your messages.

I want them to know that thousands of fellow UNISON members across Barnet recognise their fight and stand alongside them.

 They were there for our community during Covid.

 Now it’s our turn to be there for them.

Solidarity.

John Burgess
Branch Secretary
Barnet UNISON

ONE COUNCIL. ONE WORKFORCE. EQUAL TERMS.

Anti - Racism, Austerity, Barnet Homes, Cost of Living Crisis, Insourcing, Local, London Living Wage, News, Repairs, Solidarity, TBG Flex, Trades Dispute, UNISON Campaign, Your Choice Barnet

ONE COUNCIL. ONE WORKFORCE. EQUAL TERMS.

First day of strike action: Tuesday 27 October

15 October 2026

The first day of strike action for all UNISON members at The Barnet Group will be Tuesday 27 October. It will be a 24 hour strike.

Thank you to everyone who voted. A 55% turnout and 88% voting yes gives us a clear mandate.

Message from UNISON General Secretary Andrea Egan to The Barnet Group workers

Dear colleagues,

Congratulations on a strong clear result. A 55% turnout and 88% voting yes is a strong, clear message, and everyone in UNISON is proud of you.

You care for vulnerable residents and look after people’s homes in one of the most expensive cities in the world. You do the same jobs as council staff, yet you are on worse pay and conditions, with many having no access to the council pension scheme. That is unfair, and you are right to say so.

UNISON is with you. You have the whole union behind you, from your branch and region to our national team. You voted because you want a fair deal, and I hope the employer will now sit down and negotiate one.

In solidarity,
Andrea Egan
General Secretary, UNISON

Talks have opened

Since the ballot, communication has opened up with the Group Chief Executive of TBG. He has agreed to review London Living Wage timing, annual leave and overtime. That is a step forward, but it does not go far enough.

We would much rather settle this dispute. On 15 October I wrote back to him with the points we want TBG to address:

  • Working week. Parity with LBB colleagues on 36 hours, instead of the 37.5 hours TBG Flex staff work now.
  • Annual leave. Movement towards 31 days.
  • Sick pay. Sick pay on LBB terms, with an indicative cost.
  • Overtime and night rates. A review that covers night, weekend and bank holiday rates, with a date for proposals.
  • Pay structure. Talks to start now on one clear pay structure.
  • Pensions. LGPS remains our aim. If TBG will not agree it, we have asked for a higher employer contribution to the Legal & General scheme, costed in stages, and for the joint meeting with the pension fund and LBB.
  • NJC pay awards. Written into contracts.
  • Policy review. A joint review of LBB and TBG policies.
  • London Living Wage. A firm date to pay the new rate, rather than waiting until April.

I have asked him to instruct TBG’s negotiating team to meet UNISON with proposals. We will also be approaching the Labour Party about funding contributions from LBB.

Message from Andrea Egan to Barnet’s Labour administration

To Barnet’s Labour councillors,

Barnet UNISON members at The Barnet Group, a company owned by your council, have voted for strike action. They want what their council colleagues already have: fair pay, decent terms and access to the council pension scheme.

They deliver housing and care services for your residents, in London, where the cost of living has never been higher. Labour came into government promising to end the two tier workforce and to put an end to poverty pay in care. Your own Prime Minister told conference that care workers deserve better.

I am asking you to work with UNISON to settle this dispute. That means backing proper negotiations now and supporting the funding to make a fair offer possible. Barnet UNISON is ready to talk. Please make sure The Barnet Group is too.

Andrea Egan
General Secretary, UNISON

What happens next

We will publish details of the picket lines, and where members should report on the day, as soon as they are confirmed.

If you have questions about the strike, please ask your local rep or email the branch at contactus@barnetunison.org.uk.

Barnet UNISON.

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