Category Archives: Campaigns

INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE AGAINST RACISM, FASCISM, ISLAMOPHOBIA & ANTISEMITISM

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Saturday 19th October

9.30 till 16.30

Friends House,

173-177 Euston Road, London NW1 2BJ

 Johnson, Trump & The International Far-right: How do we unite to defeat them?

Speakers include: Gary Younge, Journalist • Miguel Roldan, Spanish firefighter • Louise Raw, author • Richard Burgon MP • Emma Dent Coad MP • Alex Mayer MEP • Claude Moraes MEP • Julie Ward MEP • Jean Lambert, Green Party • Mark Serwotka, PCS General Secretary • Kevin Courtney Joint General Secretary NEU • Tony Kearns Deputy General Secretary (postal) CWU • Jane Loftus, CWU Vice President • Nita Sanghera UCU Vice President • Anas Altikriti, Muslim Association of Britain • Ged Grebby, Show Racism the Red Card Chief Executive • Mohammed Kozbar, Finsbury Park Mosque Chairman • Unmesh Desai, GLA Member, Labour, City and East London • Damien Gayle, Journalist • Ben Chacko, Morning Star editor • Rakhia Ismail, Islington Councillor • Gerry Gable, Editor/Publisher, Searchlight • Sabby Dhalu and Weyman Bennett, Stand Up To Racism

Sessions include:

  • Challenging the rise of racism, Islamophobia and antisemitism
  • Windrush, Grenfell, deaths in custody – The fight for justice
  • Reporting racism – The media and the growth of racist ideas
  • Solidarity forever – Refugees and migrants welcome here
  • A coordinated international movement against Trumpism & the far-right
  • Love Music Hate Racism – culture & the anti-racist movement
  • Fighting Islamophobia in the age of Boris Johnson

SHU UNISON Branch has passed a motion supporting the conference and have agreed to pay for two delegates from the branch to attend (paying for tickets and transport down – there is a Sheffield coach going down)

 If you would like to attend please email both Lucinda Wakefield ( l.m.wakefield@shu.ac.uk) and Ana Yousaf  (f.yousaf@shu.ac.uk) as soon as possible so that we can book tickets and coach seats in good time.

 

 

UNISON PAY CONSULTATION

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You should have received an email from Jon Richards, UNISON’s Head of Education in the last week or so, urging that you use your vote in the ongoing pay consultation.   You may also have received a reminder.

The email includes a link to allow you to vote.  In the past we have conducted these consultative ballots locally, but they are now being run from National HQ.

If you are an eligible member but have lost your voting email or didn’t receive one, you can use this voting link instead (membership number required):

Vote now

Please do use your vote.    You can vote until 1st July.

The pay offer affects you, and your vote helps determine UNISON’s response.   UNISON is urging members to REJECT the offer, and will decide whether to proceed to a full ballot for industrial action based on the results of this consultative ballot.

UNISON’s pay claim, submitted jointly with the other Higher Education unions, was for a rise of inflation (using the RPI measure), plus 3% (or a minimum of  £3,349).     The claim also asked for a £10 an hour minimum rate of pay, for all Universities to become accredited Living Wage employers, a 35 hour working week, action to close gender and ethnicity pay gaps, and action on excessive workloads and stress.

The employers offered a rise of 1.8%, with an offer of between 1.82% and 3.65% for the lowest paid.

Check what it would mean for you here:  final pay offer.

Use UNISON’s pay calculator below to see how much pay you’ve lost over the last ten years:https://www.unison.org.uk/at-work/education-services/about/higher-education/pay-now-higher-education.

UNISON PAY CAMPAIGN 2019

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University employers improve offer at latest pay talks.

Unions representing workers across the UK higher education sector met employers for the second round of pay talks, and received an improved offer over that made at the first meeting on 26 March.

UNISON head of education Jon Richards (above) said: “While the employers made an increase to their opening offer, this still falls far short of the fair claim made by unions.

“As negotiations continue, the unions will push for an improved deal at the next meeting later this month.”

In March, the university employers said they had “an initial envelope for discussion of 1.3% across all the elements of the pay claim”

This week, they increased that ‘envelope’ to 1.5% and spoke of a 2.5% pay rise for the lowest paid staff.

 The unions and employers are due to meet again on 7 May.

 

INTERNATIONAL WORKERS MEMORIAL DAY

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 Wreath laying ceremony and speeches by The Memorial Tree

outside Sheffield Town Hall, Pinstone Street

12:30- 13:30

FRIDAY 26 APRIL 2019

“Remember the Dead – Fight for the Living”

International Workers Memorial Day is a big event this year with plenty of rousing and inspiring speakers’ present- there’s also a wreath laying service at the Town Hall memorial tree in which we as a branch have been asked to participate.

If your about next Friday and can spare a bit of your lunch break please attend as it’s important we show our support- it’s good for our members and the general public. If enough of us can attend on Friday, we’ll raise our banner high in a show of strength and solidarity with our fellow Trade Unionists.

 Will Tierney
UNISON SHU Health & Safety Officer

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UNISON SURVEY: SKILLS FOR THE FUTURE

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Help us to help you!

UNISON are carrying out  a survey to find out how you feel about your current level of skills and what skills you think you would want for the future. This survey will help us develop future training courses to support you in your workplaces.

This quick survey will take only 15 mins to complete.  There are no wrong answers, we just want to hear about your views. For taking the time to do the survey you will have the chance to win an all expenses paid weekend trip to Croyde Bay, Devon or the chance of winning £200 or £100 Love2Shop voucher UNISON SKILLS FOR THE FUTURE SURVEY