NJC Proposals and decision to cancel the strike
This union notes:
· The 2014/15 NJC pay claim was not awarded by the employer.
· Following the strike on 10 July 2014 there was no further action taken by Unison members in pursuit of the claim.
· The decision to call off the strike due on 14th October 2014 was made on the basis of the promise of a revised offer following a negotiating meeting which did not involve any elected lay members of the NJC Committee
· The decision of the NJC Committee to tell members this proposal was the best that could be achieved by negotiation and that the only alternative was significant all out action was taken without any consultation with Branches and Regions on the specific nature of the 2 year proposal.
· The 2 year deal nature of the deal does nothing to address the increasing decline in real term pay, but actually prevents members unhappy with this year’s campaign to propose a different strategy for 2015/16.
This Union resolves to:
· Censure the leadership for failing to consult branches and regions over the revised offer before calling off strike action.
· Ensure in the future that decision to suspend strike action must involve a consultation process involving Branches and Regions on an actual offer from the employer
Future Pay Consultation and Pay Proposals going forward
Notes:
· The current timetable for pay claims means that members wait several months for new pay deals to come into effect, hitting lowest-paid members hardest, and means lower-paid workers are more likely to accept whatever pay deal is offered at an earlier stage.
· Unison represents some of the lowest paid workers in Britain, for whom industrial action can cause significant loss in pay.
· Unison’s rules state that strike pay will not be awarded until the fourth day of strike action.
Resolves that:
· All future negotiations with the employer should involve lay elected representatives of the NJC
· Unison should begin its pay claim process earlier, and demand that employers respond to the union’s claim at least four months before any pay award is due to come into effect.
· Claims should be made annually and no settlement should be accepted for a period longer than one year.
· If employers fail to do this, Unison commits to launching a dispute to win the pay claim through industrial action.
· The question on the ballot paper should normally include strike action and action short of strike / work to rule unless a very clear mandate from branches and regions to do otherwise.
· Any offer made by the employer that is below the level in the NJC claim should be put to a workplace ballot before any action is suspended.
· To win any pay dispute including winning the commitment of our members to take action, we need a clear and transparent programme of action underpinned by a national commitment and preparation to resource and where necessary re-direct resources including an identified pot of money to fund industrial action
· Such a strategy should include:
o sustained and escalating programme of industrial action which moves beyond one-day strikes.
o begin with a two-day national strike, with the union announcing an ongoing timetable of action beyond this, with the dates for further strikes set and announced in advance, and including:
o Selective action involving groups of workers to maximise impact (e.g., parking inspectors, caretakers, revenue staff, etc.)
o Programmes of action-short-of-strikes in between national strike days, including a work-to-rule and overtime ban
o Attempts to coordinate where possible with other unions
o A commitment to coordinate and distribute hardship payments, levied from both branch and national funds
o Encouraging branches to convene local, cross-union strike committees to inform regional and national SGE strategy
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