Union conferences

Come to NUS conference. Vote “Education Not for Sale”

By Daniel Randall In March 2004, the National Union of Students conference rejected Labour Students’ bid for the NUS presidency for the first time in more than 20 years. The beneficiary was Kat Fletcher, a former support of Solidarity and Workers’ Liberty, and still a self-proclaimed revolutionary socialist. Over the past 11 months, however, Kat has proved anything but revolutionary in office. In fact, she has been a more effective right-wing NUS president than any Labour Student would have been, not only failing to radicalise the national union but marginalising and attacking the left as only...

UNISON to recommend pay deal - but only just!

By Nick Holden, special conference delegate A UNISON special conference last week voted to recommend the proposed new pay system for the NHS, Agenda for Change (AfC), to the union's 450,000 health members in a postal ballot. The ballot opens this week, and follows a similar ballot in the specialist union for X-ray staff, the Society of Radiographers, which saw 83% vote no to the proposals. Amicus is also balloting members, but without making a recommendation. The Royal College of Nursing accepted a draft of the proposals a year ago and has not consulted its membership on the final deal. The...

Unison: the left must organise industrial battles

By Kate Ahrens This year's Unison National Conference was a curate's egg for the left, but perhaps it reveals some of the errors that have been made many times by the left, and some of the strengths that we don't make the most of. The left's 'big idea' for this conference was a single-line motion calling for the resignation of Tony Blair. As is so often the case, this was not a conscious plan, but rather a combination of chance and circumstances, as well as a result of the odd set-up within Unison, where the full National Conference cannot discuss specific industrial issues. The left has for...

Firefighters vote to leave Labour

Anger at the Government's treatment of firefighters since the 2002 pay dispute came to a head on 17 June when the Fire Brigades Union conference voted overwhelmingly to disaffiliate from the Labour Party. Delegates backed disaffiliation by five to one on a show of hands, and by 35,105-to-14,611 on a card vote, rejecting a proposal from the FBU's Executive Council to reduce the union's affiliation fee from £30,000 to £20,000 as part of a political fight within the Labour Party. Those supporting the disaffiliation motion - submitted by the union's Northern Ireland, Strathclyde and Greater...

UNISON: leadership defeated on schools debate

By a delegate At UNISON's local government conference on 21 June delegates overturned last year's decision to take part in the 'remodelling agreement' for schools. Delegates spoke about how the government had not stumped up the funding necessary to make the agreement a success: this was teaching on the cheap. One resolution said that teaching assistants had been 'pushed and bullied' into taking whole classes - the job of a qualified teacher at a third of the wage. UNISON's involvement in remodelling is now to be renegotiated, drawing up national pay and grading structures for classroom...

CWU debates relationship to Labour

By a CWU member The conference of the postal and telecoms workers' union, the CWU, discussed the relationship of the union to the Labour Party in the context of the expulsion of the the RMT, and an expected disaffiliation of the FBU. There were several propositions calling for the union to take a more pro-active stance towards the Labour Party, including one calling for a review of the supported MPs and a calling to account of CWU delegates to Labour Party bodies, as well as support for the Labour Representation Committee. However at the last moment an Emergency proposition was taken that...

Report from CWU conference

The Communication Workers' Union (CWU) Annual Conference discussed the relationship of the Union to the Labour Party in the context of the expulsion of the the RMT, and the expected disaffiliation of the FBU, which was announced the same week. On the political section of the agenda there were several propositions calling for the Union to take a more proactive stance in its relationship with the Labour Party, including one calling for a review of the supported MPs and a calling to account of CWU delegates to Labour Party bodies as well as support for the Labour Representation Committee. However...

Report from UNISON local government conference

At UNISON's local government conference on Monday 21 June, delegates overturned last year's decision to take part in the remodelling agreement for schools, defeating the service group in the process. Speakers from the rostrum, as well as at the well-attended fringe meeting held the previous evening, told how the government had not stumped up the funding necessary to make the agreement a success. They had been exposed in their plans to impose teaching on the cheap. One resolution said that teaching assistants had been 'pushed and bullied' into taking whole classes - the job of a qualified...

CWU to back Labour Representation Committee?

By a CWU member At the General Conference of the Communication Workers Union (CWU) (14 June) the European Working Time Directive will be discussed. At present, different sections of the union have different policies on whether individual opt-outs should continue. The Telecoms Executive negotiates with telecoms companies to get rid of opt-outs, and its policy is for an end to them. The Postal Executive, however, believes that because of the low pay in Royal Mail and other companies, long working hours are necessary for now. The union's answer should be to fight for a shorter working week, and...

Life on Unison fringe

On the fringes of the annual conference of the public services union Unison (from 22 June in Bournemouth), there will be opportunities for both local government and health activists to get together and debate attitudes to the current pay offers, and a meeting to launch an exciting new campaign to raise support for the newly emerging trade union movement in Iraq. There will also be a meeting in the official fringe on the TUC Play Fair at the Olympics campaign - talking about issues around sweatshop workers and how trade unionists in this country can and should get involved in campaigns like...

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