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Stirling Branch AGM 22 Feb 2023

The UNISON Stirling ANNUAL GENERAL of which 2 MEETINGS are to be held one in person and one online (please note you need only attend one of these meetings depending on your preference)

Wednesday 22^rd February 2023, 12 – 2pm, Council Chambers, Viewforth, Stirling
and
Wednesday 22^nd February 2023, 6p.m-7.30p.m, via Teams Video Link

We have included separate guidance in this mailing to advise you how to register for the video link AGM to be held from 6p.m-7.30p.m on the 22^nd of February 2023.

Nomination of Office Bearers

Branch officer nomination forms 2023

Nominations for branch officers are invited from members and should be submitted no later than 5pm on Wednesday 11th January 2023. This is to allow for any election to take place prior to the Annual General Meeting. Under the Stirling Council Branch constitution, each post requires five nominations to be valid. A Nomination form is enclosed for your use.

Bearing in mind the continuing cuts across Local Government, Voluntary Redundancies and possible Compulsory Redundancies within Stirling Council over the coming years it is in all members’ interests to come along to the AGM.

If you have any motions/items for the Annual General Meeting please submit to me by Wednesday15^th February 2023 for inclusion within the Agenda. A pre-agenda is attached.

A free prize draw will be carried out for those attending at both of the meetings.

We look forward to seeing you there

Lorraine Thomson

Branch Secretary, UNISON Stirling Branch

Latest news in Early years

See below for the latest news in Early years including:

• Streptococcus A and scarlet fever – guidance for schools & early years
• Stars in Our Schools – thank you for making it such a great success
• UNISON’s housing survey

Streptococcus A (strep A) and scarlet fever – guidance for schools & early years

We are aware of increased concern regarding scarlet fever and group A strep infections, due to an increase in cases and the very sad news about the children who have died of invasive group A streptococcal infections (iGAS). Whilst cases of iGAS remain rare, we have been pressing the Department for Education (DfE) to send guidance to schools and early years settings. This has now been sent – please see the DfE Education Hub which includes links to UKHSA guidance on Managing outbreaks & incidents and Preventing & controlling infection.

UNISON has produced a short summary for branches, reps and members setting out what you need to know and what infection prevention measures your settings should be taking. These include additional cleaning, handwashing regimes, enhanced ventilation, updating risk assessments and calling on all those with symptoms to stay at home. These basic mitigations will also assist in relation to the risk of other infectious diseases such as flu, Covid-19 and norovirus.

The key message for branches is to share the Department for Education/devolved administration, UKHSA and UNISON guidance with schools and early years settings, and to follow up on any member concerns with schools.

Public health bodies in the devolved nations have also issued letters to all education and early years settings which can be requested from schools. In addition:

• Advice from Public Health Scotland can be found here.
• General advice from Public Health Wales can be found here.
• UNISON Northern Ireland has requested guidance from the Department of Education and the employing authority. Please keep an eye on the UNISON Northern Ireland website and social media.

Deduction error taken this month.

Due to a Stirling Council system error, many individuals who pay their monthly Unison membership directly via payroll have had a slightly higher deduction taken this month.

They have corrected the error and any monies deducted (approximately £5) will be automatically refunded in January’s salary.

You can check your payslip on Erin to see if you have been affected, and if you have any queries at all, then please contact payroll@stirling.gov.uk

Payroll is working hard to resolve this and is very sorry for any inconvenience this may cause.

H&S and Disabled Members webinar 09 Dec.

UNISON’s H&S Committee and its Disabled Members Committee planned to host a face-to-face webinar in December on several covid-related topics.

Unfortunately, due to planned rail action on Fridays/Saturdays throughout December, we have had to change this to an online MS Teams event.

We’ve also decided to split the content and run it over three separate webinars, with the remaining two taking place in the first half of 2023.

The webinar is being held on 9^th December 2023, between 10:30am to 12:30pm, and is an employment law session by Thompson’s solicitors giving you a chance to get some top advice in relation to covid-related cases you’re involved in, and will also include an update on emerging case law.

There will also be a very brief update on Year of Disabled Workers to advise you of some ‘asks’ that UNISON’s General Secretary Christina McAnea is asking of all branches.

Use this link to register: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/465070507407

We hope you register for the event and hope to see you on the 9th.

Hybrid Working/Return to the office from Home working

As you will be aware Stirling Council put in place Home and Hybrid Working Guidance some time ago to facilitate new ways of working and to enable the return to the workplace post covid. On the back of this, there has been work at a service level to consult with staff regarding what a return to work would look like for staff within services.

To date, TU’s other than having been reassured all staff were being engaged in this consultation has had little regard for feedback from services on what this would look like from service to service and how this will be managed given issues regarding office space, different ways of working from service to service, etc….. We raised this at the Council Tripartite yesterday on the back of rumours that had been circulating that all staff will be expected back in the office on some permanent/fixed basis within 2 weeks. This was confirmed in the meeting yesterday despite TU’s having had no sight of this communication and indeed service to service plans on what this will look like.

We have been advised that we will be sent this information and indeed the comm that has to go to all staff over the next week. Unfortunately at this stage, we cannot confirm what this will look like for individuals or services at this stage which we have to say is regretful.

We recognise that all workers are contracted to work from their place of work, however, we are concerned that expectations will have to be managed and some may not have their preferences met should they prefer hybrid or home working

We ask that if you have individual concerns regarding this that members contact us directly. In the meantime as soon as we have any further information we will update members at the soonest opportunity.

COP27

Online Reps Conference: Thursday 17 November 2022, via Zoom

COP27 – trade unions and the climate and economic crises

A TUC conference on bold solutions to the energy, climate, and economic crises

This is the TUC’s online event during COP27, to discuss what trade unions can and should be doing to win a rapid and just transition to a safe climate future.

With speakers Shavanah Taj (General Secretary, Wales TUC), Camille Barbagallo (Climate Justice Coalition), Caitlin Lee (Unite Hospitality workers’ branch, TBC), and more TBC.

Both our economy and our planet are in crisis.

Bills, temperatures, and sea levels are rising at an unprecedented rate. Nationally, the cost-of-living scandal is driving absolute poverty and forcing millions into increasingly desperate conditions. Globally, climate change is threatening the lives and livelihoods of billions of workers. These crises are parallel and interlinked.

We urgently need politics that builds a safe climate for future generations, a rapid and just transition with quality jobs, and an economy that rewards work, not wealth. The TUC is convening a conference: two events, one in person and one online, that will coincide with COP 27 and bring trade unions and climate activists together to gather solutions.

How do we combine our struggles for an equitable cost of living, workers’ rights, and a just transition to climate safety?

Online Reps Conference: Thursday 17 November 2022, via Zoom

Register here: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/cop27-trade-unions-and-the-climate-and-economic-crises-tickets-440371291387