News – Page 41 – Stirling UNISON

Global Day of Action called by Egyptian groups at COP27

Information about the mobilisations on Saturday 12 November in solidarity with the Global Day of Action called by Egyptian groups at COP27.

Details of the Edinburgh march on 12 November are in the picture and here, with registration here. It starts at 12noon in St Andrew Square and goes around several themed ‘stations’ finishing at the Scottish Parliament, where the theme is End the Cost of Living Scandal, Just Transition now.

Further details of all marches across the UK are being added to this Climate Justice Coalition (the successor to last year’s COP26 Coalition) list on the UNISON UK website.

As General Secretary Christina McAnea said in the discussion at her recent Jimmy Reid lecture, action on climate is up there in the union’s overarching top three priorities, along of course with key work to improve pay, particularly tackling low pay and our equalities work. She said climate change is intrinsically linked to poverty, with those who have least here and worldwide most affected. And she emphasised that young people, when asked why they want to join a union, refer to climate change and housing as important to them.

We know everyone has been overloaded more with work on pay and ballots but would encourage branches to support the Edinburgh demo, or one nearer you if more are organised. A lot of trade unions have made efforts during pay disputes to link the cost of living and fuel bill crises with the climate crisis and climate campaigners have been supporting pay strikes. The Just Transition Partnership has a statement-making the links between the climate crisis and cost of living and industrial disputes – Living Wages on a Living Planet.

Understandably there was more attention on the UN talks themselves when they were in Glasgow, but the fuel bills crisis and soaring profits of Shell and other oil companies, show that we are right to call for windfall taxes on those companies and a system focused on people, not profit. Report after report highlights the climate harm and dangers, including to health. And to infrastructure and life without sufficient adaptation planning. (Remember we have the excellent climate hazards workbook and handbook and other resources branches can use with employers.) Yet the new Prime Minister isn’t going to Egypt, even though the UK still has the presidency.

Yesterday’s UN environment agency report put the urgency in the strongest possible terms: Inger Anderson, executive director of the UN Environment Programme, said: “We had our chance to make incremental changes, but that time is over. Only a root-and-branch transformation of our economies and societies can save us from accelerating climate disaster.”

Our Depute Convener Stephen Smellie will be at COP27 as part of the ITUC delegation. He will send updates from there and you can find regular updates on events and info on this page on the UNISON Scotland website https://unison-scotland.org/tus-at-cop27-climate-conf-sat-12-nov-demos-green-unison/ Do please sign the petition in solidarity with Egypt’s prisoners of conscience https://copcivicspace.net/petition/

Anyone who would like to be kept in touch through our Green Network mailings can let me know at f.montgomery@unison.co.uk

The proposed national care service will not be a system like the NHS

We are writing to ask you to circulate as widely as you can – this plea for members to raise with their MSPs the grave concerns UNISON has about the National Care Service Bill currently going through the Scottish Parliament.

The proposed national care service will not be a system like the NHS. Instead what will be set up will fundamentally challenge the idea that public services should be publicly delivered. We are asking all UNISON members to raise concerns with their MSPs – which can be done by clicking here.

The Scottish Government’s aim is that the National Care Service (NCS) will bring together social work, social care, and community health. These services won’t be delivered directly by public sector bodies – but purchased by new quangos (Care Boards) from the public, private and third sectors.

All legal responsibility for these services will be transferred from local government and, if Scottish Government ministers decide, from the NHS. The impact will be enormous.

This could mean 75 000 staff being transferred out of local government to new employers (as well as upheaval for an unknown number of staff in the NHS and other agencies). If the scheme goes ahead the way the Scottish Government intends Care Boards will receive 1/3 of the budget that currently goes to councils – this will have an impact on staff across the board as councils will require fewer staff in Finance, HR, facilities management, etc.

While this is happening, the profit-making that has done such damage to the care system won’t be stopped – and a whole range of other services; from children and families services to criminal justice social work and a lot in between will be opened to tendering and contracting.

More detail on the proposal can be found in this UNISON Brief Guide to the National Care Service (Scotland) Bill.

Keep up to date with UNISON Scotland’s campaign to kick profit out of care and defend public services on the UNISON Scotland website and by following @unisonncswatch on Twitter

On behalf of the Learning and Organising Committee Chairs

Colleagues. Please see attached Newsletter from the Learning & Organising Committee for circulation within your branch. This will be a regular item to promote activities around our activist education programme.

Learning and Organising Newsletter

Please feel free to send in any contribution that you might want to share in future publications.

UNISON Scotland LG Pay Update

Today we received notice that the LG pay settlement will be implemented. UNISON is working to get this into member’s pockets before Christmas. Once we have further information and local discussions have been held to determine when and how parts of the agreement will be applied we will keep you updated at the soonest opportunity.