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Barnet UNISON National Pay Meeting : Wednesday 24 April 6.30- 7.30

Anti - Racism, Austerity, National, News, Solidarity, UNISON Campaign

Wednesday 24 April 6.30- 7.30

Join Barnet UNISON  Zoom Meeting using the link below.

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89074206415?pwd=OEo0L1NkQmFPSSsxU3dGemlvR0xyUT09

Meeting ID: 890 7420 6415

Passcode: 779562

Barnet UNISON is organising a series of Pay meetings over the next three months to update members on the National Pay Negotiations.

UNISON proposal is as follows:

  • £3,000 or 10%.
  • Two-hour reduction of the working week without financial loss.
  • One additional annual leave.

UNISON, Unite and GMB are in negotiations and will report back once they have had a formal response from the National Employers.

It is likely that UNISON will conduct a strike ballot of their members. It is important that all Barnet UNISON members are ready to VOTE. Last year Barnet UNISON was 6 votes short of a successful strike ballot.

This time we intend on delivering a massive VOTE on National Pay.

 

End.

Barnet UNISON: How to access your Barnet Council Pension details online.

Austerity, Pensions

Below is a message from Barnet Council Pension Provider West Yorkshire Pension Fund (WYPF). The aim of the advice below is to help members register to view their Pension details online. Once you are registered you can see all your Pension details. UNISON recommends that UNISON members in the scheme to register using the advice below.

If you have any issues registering, please contact Barnet UNISON at contactus@barnetunison.org.uk

Portal Available for Barnet Pension Fund Members.

Are you aware of the MyPension member portal for members of the Barnet Fund?

This portal (offered by the West Yorkshire Pension Fund) will enable you to view important pension documents such as your annual benefit statement and you will also be able to update your pension records directly and complete an expression of wish form online. You can also run online estimates of how much your Barnet Pension may be at future retirement dates.

If you have not done so already, you are able to register for the portal at https://www.wypf.org.uk/mypension .

If you would like help in registering (which should only take 5-10 minutes), Jim Nokku from the Barnet Pensions Team will be in Room 3.5 in Colindale on 28 March to assist you with registration. To book a 10 minute slot with Jim, please send an email to pensions@barnet.gov.uk and we will book you in.

 

 

 

Breaking News: UNISON issues strike notice to Barnet Council on World Social Work day.

Anti - Racism, Austerity, Local, News, Recruitment, Solidarity, Trades Dispute, UNISON Campaign

Today, Tuesday 19 March 2024 (also World Social Work Day) UNISON wrote to Barnet Council Chief Executive to inform him that UNISON intends to call its Mental Health social worker members to take part in industrial action. The intended dates for members to take part in discontinuous strike action are:

  • 15 April 2024 to 26 April 2024.
  • 13 May 2024 to 1 June 2024
  • 17 June 2024 to 12 July 2024.

This is unprecedented strike action which will see Barnet UNISON Mental Health social workers and assessment and enablement officers taking nine weeks of strike action over a 13-week period.

John Burgess, Branch Secretary, Barnet UNISON: “This is a pivotal moment in this long running industrial dispute where our members have already taken 27 days of strike action which equates to 405 lost working days for service users in Barnet. Our members are deeply upset at the lack of understanding about the chronic turnover of staff across the three mental health social work teams. As each month goes by another worker leaves (3 have left this year) which is de-stabilising the teams. The Council is failing to follow its own policy and is in complete denial about the implications of further strike action. Talks in ACAS broke down because the Council came with the wrong attitude. Tomorrow UNISON is back in ACAS with Barnet Council. I hope that this time senior management are coming to ACAS with a genuine proposal to resolve this dispute.”

 

Helen Davies, Branch Chair, Barnet UNISON: “The fact the notification has been sent on World Social Work Day reminds us that we believe the striking social workers are right to say ‘This is what social work looks like!’ as they are reclaiming the tradition of calling out poor and unsafe practice by those with power. No registration body has ever stopped social workers practicing in unsafe conditions. We are backing our members all the way to make the service safe for workers and safe for service users.”

 

End.

Breaking News: Barnet UNISON Mental Health social worker re-ballot results

Anti - Racism, Austerity, Health and Safety, Local, News, Trades Dispute, UNISON Campaign

Friday 23 February 2024.

Our Barnet UNISON Mental Health social workers re-ballot results are now in.

We had a 91% turn out with a 100% VOTE for strike action.

Barnet UNISON Mental Health social workers have already taken 27 days of strike action which equates to approximately 4,050 lost contact days for Mental health service users in Barnet.

Today UNISON submitted the results to the Barnet Council Chief Executive.

UNISON has agreed to go into talks with Barnet Council and ACAS. UNISON have agreed a couple of dates in early March.

UNISON has from the outset been prepared to negotiate to reach a resolution to what has become the longest running Mental Health social worker strike in UNISON’s history.

Barnet UNISON has agreed a new strike timetable with our members which will begin in April in the unfortunate event that we are unable to reach a resolution.

The strike timetable would be a significant increase in the number of strike days taken by the social workers so far.

  • From 15 April to 26 April 2024 (two weeks).
  • From 13 May to 1 June 2024 (three weeks).
  • From 17 June to 12 July 2024. (four weeks).

Our members are 100% behind UNISONs negotiating team and remain hopeful that a positive resolution can be secured to avoid any further strike action.

More news later.

End.

Barnet UNISON consultative ballot for care workers

Anti - Racism, Austerity, Barnet Group, Barnet Homes, Care & Support, COVID 19, Local, London Living Wage, News, Recruitment, Repairs, Solidarity, TBG Flex, UNISON Campaign

 

13 February 2024

Dear colleague,

We want you to participate in this consultative ballot to make it clear to senior managers just how strongly you feel about your pay.

We will be letting senior managers know the results of the ballot, so this is your chance to make a difference. If enough people vote yes, then it will not be your last chance and we may progress to balloting our members officially about your willingness to take strike action.

During the COVID pandemic you put your lives and the lives of your families/ loved ones on the line to keep members of the public safe. It took a long time for you to then receive an uplift in your pay, terms and conditions….and it was not enough.

In any case the small gains you made in pay were smashed away by the cost-of-living crisis.

What can The Barnet Group afford? Perhaps we should ask the question differently – You have been identified as essential workers; can any employer afford the cost of you not doing your job?

What you must do now?

If your workplace setting has a UNISON rep, you should ask them for your ballot paper. Your rep should be checking with you that the address on the envelope matches your current home address. If we did go on to carry out an official ballot, the letter would go to your home address. We need to know we have your correct details. Complete the ballot paper and hand it back to your UNISON rep.

If your workplace has no UNISON rep, the ballot paper will be posted to you directly. Please complete the ballot paper and put it back in the pre-paid envelope and post it back to us.

Your ballot paper needs to reach us by 5pm 23rd February 2024

 

Yours Sincerely

 

John Burgess                                  Patrick Hunter                           Helen Davies

Barnet UNISON                               Barnet UNISON                         Barnet UNISON

Branch Secretary              TBG Assistant Branch Secretary                Branch Chair

 

 

 

 

Bringing Services Home – Barnet UNISON campaign

Austerity, Barnet Group, Barnet Homes, Care & Support, Community, COVID 19, Health and Safety, Local, London Living Wage, News, Pensions, Recruitment, Repairs, Report, Solidarity, TBG Flex, Trades Dispute, Your Choice Barnet

 

Barnet UNISON is proud to announce that we are promoting UNISON Bringing Services Home campaign.

As a branch we have had more than our share of outsourcing. The easy Council experiment was a spectacular failure. It cost more money (yes, we told them it would!) and it did not lead to better services.

In May 2022, Barnet Labour Party won the election with a massive majority and one of their priorities was “Review of contracted out services, in the context of the new administration’s aspiration to bring privatised services back in-house.”

Last year Barnet Labour Party brought back one of the big contracts with Capita and other services on the other Capita contract have been coming back in-house.

The Council is going through a period of healing from the badly advised outsourcing ideology which dominated our Council for over a decade.

Today Barnet UNISON has written to all senior council officers responsible for outsourced contracts seeking a meeting to discuss how and when they are going to review the outsourced service.

Barnet UNISON also want to deal with the Ethnicity Pay Gap which the outsourcing easy Council ideology promoted by always securing the outsourcing option for services which are largely provided by Black workers e.g.

  1. NSL: Parking Services
  2. ISS: Catering Services
  3. Your Choice Barnet: Social Care services
  4. Norse: Cleaning services
  5. Blue 9: Security Services.

All the above services were outsourced under the Tories.

Barnet UNISON positively supports the statement of UNISON general secretary Christina McAnea said:

“Black workers make a vital contribution to the health and care sector but are all too often at the bottom of the pay scale as care workers, porters, healthcare assistants and catering staff. They frequently face shocking discrimination, threatening their health, job security and life chances.”

This why Barnet UNISON is determined to work with the Labour Administration to bring back these services into the Council thus enabling real life meaningful changes for a workforce that is often invisible and often low paid and without occupational sick pay.

End.

 

Breaking News: Covid Heroes face the sack by Barnet Council

Anti - Racism, Austerity, Barnet Group, Barnet Homes, COVID 19, Disability, Health and Safety, News, Solidarity, TBG Flex, Trades Dispute

The Barnet Group is an arm’s length company 100% owned by Barnet Council.

On Friday 9 February 2024, Enablement Home Care workers were told that they were no longer needed.

“We are the best at what we do, that is why we look after people discharged from hospital for 8 weeks till other carers takeover.”

Care worker

“They should be expanding our service, not shutting it, what we do is vital and we do it well”

Care worker

Staff and Barnet UNISON left the meeting with the following questions:

  1. Enablement is a well-run and valued service – why isn’t TBG expanding rather than closing the service?
  2. What engagement has taken place with stakeholders – our tenants and clients?
  3. When will we know if this is a TUPE or a Closure?
  4. What are they consulting staff and UNISON on? UNISON is clear that TBG need to provide more details before commencing with 121’s?
  5. When will ‘consultation’ begin and how long will it last?

 Background:

This service was handed to TBG after senior officers working for Barnet Council spectacularly failed over the procurement of Aquaflo a private contractor who had been given the contract by Barnet Council to deliver home care for Barnet residents.

“‘Disaster’ – Aquaflo Care company’s takeover from Housing 21 goes badly wrong.” 15th September 2016.

https://www.borehamwoodtimes.co.uk/news/14745911.disaster-aquaflo-care-companys-takeover-from-housing-21-goes-badly-wrong/

Covid: How quickly senior officers and councillors forget

It is only a few years ago that these workers were called heroes as they went into Barnet residents’ homes to provide care and support whilst many of the senior managers and councillors issued instructions from the safety of their homes.Barnet UNISON will be providing support to all of our members.

Barnet UNISON will be providing support to all of our members and in the meantime, we are calling on Barnet Council to reverse this decision and bring it back in-house to the Adult Social Care directorate where it belongs. The decision by senior officers is at odds with the Labour Party position on creating a National Care Service which is something UNISON supports. “Unison’s general secretary, Christina McAnea, told the Observer: “Care is in crisis and the need for a national service has never been greater.”

More news later.

End.

 

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