Youth March - 19th December

Members of Nailsea, Portishead, Clevedon and Weston Youth Clubs will assemble at the Grand Pier in Weston super Mare on 19th December at 12 noon, and then march to the Town Hall, where they will hand in a petition to stop the closure of their youth clubs.

North Somerset UNISON members are strongly encouraged to give your support by marching with them - it is the lunch hour!

Coach Pickups:
Portishead, Youth Club, Harbour Road (opp Waitrose)10.30am
Nailsea, Youth House, 65 High Street, Nailsea, BS48 1AW 10.45am
Clevedon, The Barn, Great Western Road, Clevedon, BS21 6HB 11.00am

Return
Grand Pier Weston super Mare 3.00pm (drop off at Clevedon, Nailsea and
Portishead)

You need to book your place on the coach by contacting Charlie Lane at Portishead Youth Club and Sophie Miles at Nailsea Youth Club.

Let's End In-Work Poverty

The Fair Pay Network is dedicated to leading the fight against endemic levels of low-paid work in the UK and the increasing prevalence of in-work poverty that blight our social and economic landscape. They believe that fair pay levels are a right, not a privilege and that no one who works should live in poverty. To this end they work to shape a country in which both the incidence and social and economic costs to the public of low-paid work and working poverty are sharply reduced.

Watch their new video

More information at http://www.fairpaynetwork.org/

The People's Charter - Meeting 10th December

Meeting 10th December

Since the People’s Charter was adopted by the TUC in 2009 it has gone from strength to strength in the Trade Union movement, with 16 national trade unions now signed up to the Charter. Now the Trade Union Councils, who are playing a leading role in the anti cuts movement in many areas have put their weight behind the Charter, taking up building the People’s Charter in its current work programme.

All Trades Councils are being invited to send a member to a meeting to discuss work to build the Peoples Charter, convened by Bob Crow, RMT and President of the TUC Joint Consultative Committee and Bill Greenshields, Trade Union Officer for the People’s Charter. Bombardier Works Committee are also invited.
The meeting will take place 1 – 3pm, at the Waterfall Bar, Midland Railway Institute Building, Railway Terrace, Derby DE1 2RU.

If you are a member of your local trades council please consider attending so that you can be part of this important meeting.

Find out more at: http://www.thepeoplescharter.org/

The People’s Charter is an alternative to austerity, cuts and unemployment

The People’s Charter is for all people who don’t agree that soaring unemployment and cuts to public spending, pay, pensions and benefits are unavoidable. Who think a fairer system, for the majority, would be more stable.

1. A fairer economy for a fairer Britain

• Claim back the £120b unpaid tax owed by the super rich, and end tax avoidance and evasion which costs us £70b each year
• Nationalise banking & finance industry and use the £90b a year this brings to the public purse to facilitate lending with low interest rates and invest in jobs and communities
• Progressive income tax, a new higher rate for £50,000+ and a wealth tax on the richest 10% to raise £83b a year
• Raise Corporation Tax and levy a windfall Tax on company superprofits to raise £26b a year, reduce VAT
• A tax on financial transactions, ban hedge funds to raise a further £20b

2. More and better jobs

• Legislate to prevent redundancies in profitable industries.
• Compel re-investment of a percentage of profits in industry
• Government support and private investment to create new jobs.
• Prevent the super-exploitation of migrant workers, which entrench poverty and undermines established rates for the job
• An education/work/training guarantee for young people.
• End casual work, and abuse of short contracts.
• Reduce working hours, not pay and enforce and increase the minimum wage.

3. Improved public services

• Publicly funded and accountable public services based on the needs of Britain and its people
• End all fragmentation, competitive market models, privatisation and profit making in public services
• Re-nationalise energy, transport, water, post and telecommunications.
• Get rid of the market from our Further and Higher Education systems, ensure access regardless of wealth

4. Fairness and Justice

• Redistribute wealth from the richest 10% who current own 80% of the nation’s wealth
• Pay, pensions and benefits policies for better standards of living
• Women’s equality in work and community
• Stop racism and scapegoating of migrant workers
• End the demonisation of young people
• Stop discrimination against disabled people; equal access to jobs and social provision
• Respect and equality for people of all sexualities
• Stop the erosion of civil liberties, and the use of oppressive policing
• Restore Legal Aid funding
• Repeal anti-union laws, restore union rights

5. Decent homes for all

• End repossessions through no-interest loans from nationalised banks
• Bring back rent control and security for private tenants, stopping the exclusion of the poor from our city centres
• End council house sales and transfers to the private sector
• 3 million new council homes and security for council tenants.

6. A secure and sustainable future for all

• Action and investment to defend the environment, for a million new green jobs.
• End the waste of billions of pounds on war for oil, and on nuclear weapons.
• End the debt economy in Britain and cancel the debts of the poor of the planet.
• Sovereignty and independence for all nations, and solidarity between ordinary people of all nations
• End economic competition between workers in different countries. Stop the race to the bottom.
• Stop the forced movement of millions of people in search of work and security.
• End austerity, economic collapse, war, famine and misery.

A Charter for the people!

March for Mothers - 18th March 2012?

At a meeting of the Weston and North Somerset Trades Union Council last night a suggestion was made about further action over pensions and cuts - that we organise a march for Mothers Day on 18th March 2012.

Women make up two thirds of the public sector workforce and are being hardest hit by cuts to jobs, cuts to terms and conditions and cuts to pay and pensions. In the area of North Somerset the gender pay gap is higher than both the average for the South West and the country. At North Somerset Council female workers are seeing their unsocial hours payments reduced, having their jobs downgraded, as well as being made redundant. Female unemployment, along with youth unemployment is at record levels.

In addition, as the excellent report by the Bristol Fawcett Society has shown, women are being hit by public spending cuts in the areas of: employment, housing, incomes and poverty, education and training, violence against women, health, social care and other support services, legal advice services, women's voluntary organisations, and transport - download the report here:  http://www.bristolfawcett.org.uk/

Anyone who is a mother, or has a mother, could take part in the march, and this would pretty much cover everyone.

Weston Mercury article on 30th November strike in North Somerset

The following article appeared in this week's Weston Mercury. The comment made about the Mercury's own poll showing that two thirds of Mercury readers did not agree with teachers striking was not reflected by the experience of pickets, who got support from passing motorists and members of the public; neither was it reflected in the experience of marchers who were applauded by members of the public as they walked through Bristol.

More strikes - warn workers

Article by Tom Wright, 1st December 2011

THOUSANDS of North Somerset workers went on strike on Wednesday over proposed pension reforms, in the largest national public sector walkout since the 1970s.

Teachers, council workers and health professionals led the protests outside North Somerset Council buildings in Weston, with a variety of slogans criticising the Coalition Government’s attempts to raise the retirement age and change contribution rates.

The mass walkoutforced 34 schools across the region to be closed or partially shut, giving pupils a day off school and causing problems for working parents who had to find a way of looking after their children. No secondary schools were open anywhere in North Somerset.

Health services, libraries and Bristol Airport were also similarly affected by the industrial action. Protesters outside Somerset House said what the Government had proposed was unfair.

Sam Taylor, who works in adult social services, said she hoped the strike action would force Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne to change his mind and said she was prepared to strike again if his position did not change.

Her views were echoed by colleague Nikki Askins who said the pension reforms had been the final straw. She said: “We haven’t had a pay rise in many years. The Government has already announced that we won’t get one for another few years which is essentially a pay cut when you consider how quickly prices are rising.”

She accepted that changes to pensions would in all likelihood have to be made in the future given the difficult economic climate, but questioned the severity of the current proposals.

Social worker Susannah Weeks from Weston said at the moment public sector workers were being made a scapegoat and being forced to work longer and pay more for their retirement package.

Unite, Unison, GMB and teaching unions NUT and NASUWT were among the unions that voted for strike action earlier this month after negotiations broke down.

Nationwide an estimated two million public sector workers went on strike despite the Chancellor’s claims it would not force the Government’s hand.

Councillor Jeremy Blatchford, executive member for education, said people had to realise the Government’s decision was one made out of necessity.

He said: “I think the union has made its point but it has to accept the simple explanation that there is no money, whether it’s for schools or unions - unless they want to be another Italy or Greece.”

The biggest disruption was seen in schools across the region and in the Mercury’s online poll, two-thirds of those who voted did not agree with teachers striking.

The council closed libraries in Banwell, Congresbury, Weston, Winscombe and Worle due to staff shortages. The mobile library was not in operation either.

But a spokesman for North Somerset Council said the majority of its services were carrying on as normal and there had been no reported disruption to waste or recycling collection.

NHS services were also disrupted by the strikes but GP surgeries remained open as usual.

A spokesman for Weston General Hospital said the emergency department was unaffected and no appointments or operations had to be cancelled. She said doctors and nurses were not part of the strikes which was confined to radiographers and physiotherapists.

UK Border Agency staff also walked out leaving passport control from Bristol Airport leading to some minor delays to incoming passengers.

No further industrial action has been planned but with protestors outside Somerset House prepared to strike again, more strikes could yet take place.

30th November Day of Action - pictures from North Somerset

North Somerset UNISON pickets at Somerset House in Weston super Mare.

Some star pickets here - sorry if I forget anyone but thanks to Eve, Becky, Nicky, Julie, Susannah, Angela, John, Jon, Kevin, Pete, Mark, Deborah, Josh (21 tomorrow) at Somerset House; Fran, Pat, Jean, Nick, Roxie, Toni, Becky, Jakob and everyone at Weston Court; Helen, Louise, Lucinda and everyone at Castlewood:; Christina, Ian, Sandy and everyone at Weston General Hospital. Not forgetting North Somerset Council Home Care members who were on our picket lines everywhere - without whom we wouldn't have had such a presence.

North Somerset UNISON members on the march and at the rally in Bristol

Cresten from the Green Party joined us.

Jean and Pat - our fabulous retired members - what would we do without them!

This is a great placard - sums it all up really.

Vicki and her daughter Tilly. Vicki was the sole picket at her workplace in Knowle West this morning and also a first time striker - Congratulations to her.

These last photos are from the Guardian (Photographs: Matt Cardy/Getty Images Europe)

How many more reasons do we need to strike?

George Osborne has today announced that public sector pay increases will be capped at 1 % for the 2 financial years beginning April 2012, once our current pay freeze has ended. He also announced even more public sector job losses.

Public sector workers have had their pay frozen for 2 years - because of the increasing rate of inflation this amounts to an estimated 6% pay cut. On top of that the proposals for public sector pensions amount to another 3% pay cut, so the news that our pay will increase by no more than 1% over the next 2 years is another massive kick in the teeth for our members. Many of our members are low paid women who do important work, such as caring for the elderly and disabled, children and young people. They are finding it increasingly difficult to make ends meet and today's news will make that even worse. If we didn't already have enough reasons to take action on 30th November we've now got another one. Tomorrow's industrial action will be the biggest in a generation and will send a powerful message to the government that ordinary working people will no longer pay for the financial crisis with cuts to our pay, pensions, jobs and services, and we hope that members of the public will join our campaign.

As George Osborne has revealed in his Autumn statement there is no growth in the economy - quite simply his plan isn't working. Those in work are seeing their wages failing to keep up with inflation and are also worried about job security and so aren't spending. Thousands of both public and private sector workers are being made redundant, unemployment is increasing and as a result tax revenue is falling, while the cost of benefits is rising. The private sector are not creating new jobs and in fact George Osborne's announcement of a youth contract demonstrates that the only way the private sector will create jobs is if the government pays them to do so. Quite simply the government's massive public spending cuts are going too far and too fast, and they are damaging the economic recovery. They are also hitting some groups like young people and women particularly badly. He needs to come up with a plan B fast - either that or we need a new government.