UNISON NJC Pay Claim 2012-13

LG 55 2011 – 2012 – 13 NJC Pay Claim Branch Consultation (As at August 2011)

UNISON Branch News – Strike Rally, EDL & Pensions

CAMBRIDGERALLY & MARCH IN SUPPORT OF THE STRIKE ACTION
Thursday 30th June at Parker’s Piece, 12 noon
Come and support your fellow public sector workers by joining in with a rally & march in Cambridge. There will be music, family entertainment and speakers.  The fun starts at 12noon and we will be setting off from the branch office at 11:45am if you want to join us on the walk down.

 30th Strike Rally Poster

LATEST STRIKE ACTION ADVICE FOR UNISON MEMBERS IN SCHOOLS/COLLEGES
Thursday 30th June

ADVICE FOR UNISON MEMBERS IN SCHOOLS AND COLLEGES

STOP THE RACIST EDL IN CAMBRIDGE – A Celebration of UNITY & DIVERSITY
Saturday 9th July at the Market Square, 11am
Unite Against Fascism and Love Music Hate Racism have organised this event in protest to the proposed EDL rally in Cambridge.  Come and join colleagues and other UNISON members help keep Cambridge Nazi free.  The UNISON Cambridgeshire County Branch is also fully supportive of a locally organised UNITY Statement and calls for as many members as possible to get signed up.  Please see the attached information.

Cambridge EDL poster 9th July 2011
Unity statement Cambridge

PROTECT OUR PENSION – Campaign News
The parliamentary public accounts committee says public sector pensions are affordable! – see attached for the latest newsletter.

Pensions Campaign News Number 4 June 2011

Latest advice to UNISON members working in Schools & ‘Support a Teacher to Strike’ template letter for parents.

Please see below for the latest UNISON advice about the strike action on 30th June 2011 for members working in schools.

ADVICE FOR UNISON MEMBERS IN SCHOOLS AND COLLEGES WHERE TEACHERS ARE TAKING ACTION

Please see below a template letter for those members who may want to show their support to striking teachers, in a particular school, especially in light of the comments made by the Education Secretary Michael Groves this weekend.

Support_a_teacher_to_strike

Congratulations to Janet King from everyone at the Branch

UNISON Cambridgeshire County Branch member Janet King has been given a national award at UNISON conference this week for her outstanding work as a Social Worker.  Janet was nominated for the award by her colleague, friend and branch steward, Rob Turner.

Picket of Pickles

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=145994308806530#!/event.php?eid=145994308806530

UNISONCambridgeshireCountyand City Branches along with PCS Cambridge Branches are holding a ‘Picket of Pickles’ from 6pm on Tuesday 24^th May atBridge Street inCambridge.

Eric Pickles is the Tory minister for Local Government and Communities whose policies of budget cuts have been passed on to local councils to implement.

In Cambridge, this means £165 million pounds of cuts to theCountyBudgetand £2 million for the City Council leaving our public services in tatters and more than 500 people facing redundancy and an uncertain future.

We are seeing the cuts affect frontline services with redundancies and closures for vital services including the fire service, social services, school support staff, libraries and the withdrawal of subsidised bus services leaving many people isolated.

On top of this, students have seen the withdrawal of the Educational Maintenance Allowance denying access to those from less well off backgrounds access to education.

With unemployment rising and economic growth contracting, we are calling on people to join a ‘Picket of Pickles’ as he has been invited to address students at the Cambridge Union by the University Conservative Association. We want Pickles to hear our voice and show him that the people of Cambridgeshire are united in opposition to the policies of the Tory led government.

Bring banners, placards, friends and family and let’s give Pickles a warm Cambridgeshire welcome!

Cambridge TU’s at the MARCH

http://www.cambridge-news.co.uk/Home/Protesters-join-march-against-spending-cuts.htm

UNISON Branch News

UNISON/PCS Budget Day Activity
UNISON Cambridgeshire County and City Branches will be joining our friends from the PCS on Budget Day for a leaflet, petition and demonstration against the austerity measures and attacks on our jobs, pensions, services and standards of living.

We will be at the Guildhall, Market Square from 12pm-2pm on Wednesday 23rd March, so feel free to pop down on your lunch break and join us in sending a message to the Con-Dem government.

March 26th TUC Demonstration
There are still places left on the UNISON coach to London for the TUC March for Jobs and Services on Saturday 26th March. We want to send a clear message on what will be the largest demonstration for many years.

If you would like to book a place on the coach, please contact the Branch Office on 01223 717015 or email unison@cambridgeshire.gov.uk

Coaches leave from Ely at 08.00am, Queen’s Road, Cambridge at 08.30am and Trumpington Park and Ride at 08.45am. It is anticipated that we will leave London at approximately 16.30pm – 17.00pm

Placard Making Session
On Friday 25th March between 12pm-2pm in the branch office their will be a placard making session for the demonstration in London.  The session will be a chance to write or draw a message to the government on why you are marching.

Can you be a UNISON Pension Champion?

The Tory-led Government wants to make major changes to our public pensions schemes, which are likely to leave us working longer and paying more, while getting less.  They have already made changes:

• A 3% increase in our contributions – equal to paying 50% more for most people – starting in 2012
• Moving the inflation rate measure from the retail price index to the consumer price index, which will mean smaller annual pension rises

The Hutton review of all public pension schemes will report this month.  Until the government announces its response, we won’t know quite how hard the fight ahead will be.  That is why it is crucial that we prepare now.

Can you be a Champion? – What the branch needs are some Pension Champions amongst our membership in the workplace.  You will be trained and supported by our Regional Office and receive campaign packs, ideas and news.  A workplace Pension Champion will take on the role of discussing with colleagues the issues we face, passing on news about campaign activities and asking people to get involved, both with the campaign and by joining the union.  You will not be asked to represent or negotiate on behalf of members.

If you want to be a UNISON Pension Champion, please contact the branch on 01223 717015 or email your details to protectourpensions@unison.co.uk

For the latest information look here:
http://www.unison.org.uk/pensions/pop_involved.asp

TUC MARCH FOR THE ALTRNATIVE – 26th March/London

We still have places available for UNISON members and family on our FREE coaches to London on the 26th.

See attached flyers for more information:
TUCMARCH2603_Useful_Information
TUCMARCH2603_Route_Map



Butchers and Bakers thin on the ground!

Do we have too many stockbrokers, architects and professional people representing us?  Do we need more Butchers, Bakers and Candlestick makers?

Draw your own conclusions from some of the pre-parliamentary list of careers below:

THE CABINET

David Cameroon – Briefly worked in corporate communications before going into politics

Nick Clegg – Lecturer, journalist, author and director of legal aid programme in Central Asia before working 5 years as an assistant to Leon Brittan, when he was European Commissioner

George Osbourne – Entered politics very early after working for a short time in NHS administration and freelance journalism.

Theresa May – Financial consultant

William Hague – Involved in student politics, then briefly became a management consultant before his election to Parliament

Vince Cable – Economist in various political and corporate roles, including with the Kenyan government and with Shell Oil company

Eric Pickles – Broadly political career (former leader of Bradford Council)

Jeremy Hunt – Management consultant and director of IT company

Liam Fox – Trained as a doctor and worked as a GP and a medic in the Armed Forces

Michael Grove – Journalist for the Times Literary Supplement, Prospect and the Spectator (and the Times), also had a short lived, low-profile career as a film actor as ‘Chaplain’ in Feast at Midnight

Ken Clarke – Barrister

THE SHADOW CABINET

Ed Miliband – Fleetingly a journalist before going into Westminster politics

Harriet Harman – Solicitor

Alan Johnson – Postman and trade union official

Ed Balls – Academic economist and leader-writer for the Financial Times

Yvette Cooper – Briefly a journalist for the Independent and the Independent on Sunday, but this was between political roles she had since university

Sadiq Khan – Solicitor

Douglas Alexander – Solicitor

Andy Burnham – Political Career

Mary Creagh – Taught entrepreneurship in between political careers