Speaker : Tracey Henman, from Birmingham Home Care Workers.
These people are UNISON members and deserve our support. They have been inspirational throughout their 19 months dispute with the Labour Council. Come along and hear the latest update on the dispute.
Venue: Dudley Council House, 1 Priory Rd, Dudley DY1 1HJ
Time: Tuesday, 8th January at 7 p.m.
All trades unionists welcome!
Please see our latest Christmas Newsletter attached.
The Annual General Meeting of the Branch will be held on Thursday 14th March 2019 12.30pm until 1.30pm at Dudley Town Hall, St James’s Road, Dudley, DY1 1HP. All members are invited to attend. This is your formal notice of the meeting under Branch Rule 6. Unison is keen to encourage members to attend and if you require any assistance in attending please contact the branch office by 12 noon on Friday 25th January 2019. The types of assistance which can be provided include, but are not limited to, transport, signing and childcare. No reasonable request will be refused.
What are UNISON There for You Winter Fuel Grants?
In addition to our normal range of services and in response to the growing difficulty many members on
low income are experiencing paying their fuel bills, a programme has been put in place that will assist
our most vulnerable members.
How much are the Grants?
They are one-off grants of up to £60 per household.
Am I eligible?
- You must be a UNISON member and have paid 4 weeks subscriptions before the launch date of this programme (3/12/18)
- Have a total net annual household income of £18,000 or less. (Note: By ‘net income’ we mean all salary including your partner's after tax, national insurance, superannuation and trade union subscriptions only. Your calculation should include any Tax Credits, Universal Credit or child maintenance received. Do not include Child Benefit, the childcare element of Working Tax Credit, Disability Living Allowance or Personal Independence Payment.
- You are responsible for meeting the household fuel bills and are struggling financially
Is there anything else that may affect my entitlement to apply?
- You and your partner (if applicable) must not have combined savings, or rolling bank balance, of more than £800.
- You must not have received financial assistance from UNISON There for You during the previous six months (excluding School Uniform Grant)
- Applications are limited to one per household and priority is given to those who have not previously applied for the Winter fuel grant
How do I apply?
To apply for a Winter Fuel Grant simply:- Print out and complete the short 1-page application form here. Please ensure you complete the form fully, as incomplete forms cannot be processed! Full Q & A on filling in the form can be found here.
- Contact UNISON Direct on 0800 0857 857 between 6am-midnight Monday-Friday and 9am-4pm Saturday for a form to be posted to you.
Deadline
We must receive your application by 15 February 2019. Applications will then be processed and decisions communicated over the following weeks
Following on from the disappointing Court of Appeal ruling on sleep-in shifts the Government has issued new guidance on the issue.
UNISON branches are encouraged to monitor how councils are delivering and/or commissioning sleep-in contracts to ensure that care workers are paid for all the hours they are working.
As you will be aware, back in July 2018, the Court of Appeal recently overturned previous legal decisions and found that those workers engaged on ‘sleep in’ shifts are to be treated as being ‘available for work’ as opposed to working time. This letter is to update you regarding new guidance the government has issued.
At the time of the Court of Appeal judgment, we wrote to you to highlight the risk that commissioners will use this ruling as an opportunity to return to previous practice of paying care workers a nominal lump sum for sleep-in shifts. UNISON believes that doing this carries serious reputational risks for commissioners. We view this as an irresponsible attack on the incomes of already low paid care workers
This risk has now significantly increased, due to the new National Minimum Wage guidance issued by the government which states “If the employer provides suitable facilities for sleeping, minimum wage must be paid for time when the worker is required to be awake for the purpose of working, but not for time the worker is permitted to sleep."
An application to the Supreme Court for permission to appeal the decision in the sleep-in case has been made. Whilst we await a definitive legal decision we are asking UNISON branches to be vigilant of any changes in commissioning and employer practice in this area. In particular, any moves to return to lump sum payments which do not take account of National Minimum Wage payment for sleep-in shifts should be resisted.
Maintaining pay levels is important, not least because of increasingly high levels of turnover in the care sector fuelled by a failure to pay and treat staff fairly. These turnover rates are having a significant impact on the quality of care that is being delivered.
UNISON is aware that many commissioners are experiencing significant financial difficulties which is why we are lobbying the Government for more money to be allocated to social care.
If you have any questions regarding this issue, please contact m.egan@unison.co.uk
With best wishes
Jon Richards
National Secretary
Local Government, Police and Justice Section
The Department of Health and Social Care recently announced that it had created a new website that gives care workers the opportunity to share their views about what needs to happen to improve the care system.
The views submitted on the website are shared with government ministers on a regular basis. Please encourage your care worker members to contribute to make them aware of the scale of the problems in the care sector.
This autumn the new Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Matt Hancock, launched a digital platform that allows health and social care workers in England to provide feedback about their working lives - https://dhscworkforce.crowdicity.com
The website encourages workers to contribute their views around the six following areas:
- Challenge 1: Feeling empowered and achieving their full potential.
- Challenge 2: Working without fear of bullying, discrimination or violence.
- Challenge 3: Having access to the training, development and support that staff need.
- Challenge 4: Feeling included and valued.
- Challenge 5: Getting the basics right.
- Challenge 6: How can we measure success?
We have been told by civil servants that this new website is intended to supplement and
not replace other mechanisms for providing feedback on the working lives of health and
social care workers.
Given that Government Ministers are regularly informed of the views of the care workers
that have contributed to the site please take this opportunity to encourage your social care
members to register for the site and contribute their views, particularly around the myriad
of challenges that they face in their jobs. We are particularly keen for care workers to
stress the need for improved levels of pay and training in the sector.
We have been assured that care workers are able to contribute to the website on an
anonymous basis.
Details of the website have already been distributed by UNISON health branches to their
members.
With best wishes
Jon Richards
National Secretary
Local Government, Police and Justice Section
This incredible prize includes breakfast each day for up to 6 guests, £200 towards your travel or expenses and is valid for bookings throughout the year.
