As the school members’ Convener in Camden UNISON, I have organised successful industrial action amongst nursery nurses and teaching assistants to raise them out of poverty pay; I have organised to stop cuts and closures recently preventing the Authority from closing a deaf school.
I want our national leadership to change so we become a fighting and democratic union.
Defend Services: Fight Job Cuts
Autumn 2010’s ‘Spending Review’ will unleash cuts threatening 1 in 4 of our jobs over the next four years: What they can’t cut, they’ll privatise. A fight branch by branch will leave members in weaker branches in trouble. I believe UNISON must co-ordinate a national fightback against these national attacks.Save Our Pensions
The government claim council workers have ‘gold-plated’ pensions – the average is £77 a week for men and £50 for women! We need a national campaign to protect our pensions, a leadership organising action including coordination with other public sector unions.No to Pay Cuts
Hard-nosed Local Government Employers introduced the pay freeze this year when everything is 5% more expensive. Members are asking 'what is UNISON doing?’ We have not been asked for our opinion or what action to take to defeat this pay freeze?We need a hard-nosed union leadership to fight this pay cut. Successful national pay campaigns build confidence and organisation to fight cuts.
Save Our Schools
UNISON must fight Academies aimed at tearing up contracts and threatening other local authority schools’ budgets by uniting school staff with parents in national opposition to these plans.Schools Workforce Remodelling failed to deliver our members out of poverty pay. It delivered more exploitation by Headteachers wanting ‘teachers on the cheap’! We need national action to fight for the best pay, terms and conditions for our members in schools.
End Racism
I oppose any attempts to divide our campaigns or UNISON by racism.Economic Crisis
An extra 1.3 million face unemployment. Public Sector workers could be forced to pay for a crisis created by private greed and the ‘market’s’ chaotic planning.I believe UNISON’s leadership must campaign for:
- Democratically planned and accountable public services
- Democratically run nationalised banking and finance sector
- Democratic control of the wealth created in society
Stop Funding New Labour!
Even before the election, Labour Councillors voted for cuts rather than fight for the budgets our services need.We shouldn’t hand over our funds to New Labour when they will hand back cuts to our jobs and conditions.
I want UNISON members to democratically decide to fund candidates in elections who support UNISON policy. As a socialist, I believe we need a new party based on the trade unions with socialist policies to fight for working people.
Hugo Pierre
Camden UNISON
