Your Pay, Your Say - What Do You Think of the New Pay Offer?

After the Joint Trade Union side flatly rejected their first pathetic pay offer, the National Employers have produced a (slightly) improved offer.

The Joint Trade Union side have decided to consult their membership on the basis that the new offer is the best achievable by negotiation, reminding members that if they choose to reject the offer, members must be prepared to take part in decisive industrial action, including 'all out' strike action, to secure an improved offer.

Branch Officers and stewards will be holding workplace meetings, and the results of this consultation will be fed back, via the region, to the Joint Trade Union side.

Briefly, the 8.9% pay increase would be spread over three years as follows: 2.75% from April 2004; 2.95% from April 2005; and 2.95% from April 2006 (or the October 2005 rate of inflation figure if this is higher). This would give a minimum hourly rate of £5.80 by April 2006.

Full details of the offer have been circulated to members via stewards and can be found here. Have you had your say?

Branch Secures Successful Working Hours Result

Following protracted negotiations between Tony Caffery, UNISON Branch Secretary, Politicians and Senior Officers, agreement has been finally reached on reducing the working week in accordance with the Framework Agreement.

As previously reported here, the Council were initially unwilling to fulfil the further agreed reduction in the working week to 35.5 hours for former 'manual' workers.

Consequently, the Branch recommended that members vote to ballot for strike action at the AGM in March to ratchet up the pressure on the Council. This call was backed unanimously by the membership. Patient negotiation backed up by this threat of industrial action has paid off, with the Council now agreeing to abide by the terms of the Framework Agreement.

Employees contracted to work 36 hours will now work 35.5 - backdated as necessary to April 2004 - with the expectation that next April, all staff will be contracted to work to the same 35 hour week.

It's taken some time, but '35 Hours For All' is now in sight. Just one more reason why you are better off in UNISON.

News in Brief

• Voters rejected the far right BNP, thanks in part to the work of UNISON members who have been denouncing the party's racist policies. No BNP candidates were elected as Euro MPs in the UK, though worryingly over 134,000 people in our region voted for the fascist BNP. Here in Manchester, the only BNP candidate to stand in the Council elections was thoroughly beaten in the Miles Platting and Newton Heath ward. There is no room for complacency however as their candidate received 480 votes, just under half that secured by the winning candidates. Sadly, it appears that even as we commemorate the brave troops who fought and beat fascism in the Second World War, the battle to fight racism, intolerance and the politics of hate at home is still not over.

• UNISON General Secretary Dave Prentis has called for the Labour Party to rethink its policies in order to win a historic third term in power. "The government needs to reconnect with its core voters and activists, We need to look forward to a radical manifesto which contains clear policies that makes the activists want to work for the party and campaign again, as well as to appeal to traditional voters. We need vote-winning policies on the public services, pensions, fairness at work and manufacturing to bring greater security for people at work and in retirement."

• Are you young - in UNISON terms that means under 27 - and want to get more involved in your Branch? If so, contact Wendy Allison, Equalities Officer at the Branch Office.