Wolverhampton

General Branch
AGM – 2011
BRANCH SECRETARY'S REPORT

During 2010 Branch Officers worked tirelessly to defend

our member's jobs and terms and conditions against a
backdrop of the remainder of the £40m of cuts in budgets
forced through by the controlling Conservative/Liberal
Alliance Council.
Consultation had reached a point where threats to
establishments such as Blakenhall Resource Centre and
the Ekta Day Centre had been withdrawn and threats of
compulsory redundancies had been withdrawn.
However, all this changed with the general election in May and the new
Conservative Chancellor's June budget and October spending review, at
the stroke of a pen Wolverhampton citizens were faced with 28% cuts in
budgets, a massive £70 million of cuts in services over the next 5 years
and for City Council employees compulsory redundancies.
By December, UNISON had been issued with three Section 188 notices
amounting to 524 job losses across the City Council ranging from
directors to cleaners.
A branch delegation attended a UNISON led national lobby of Parliament on the eve
of the October spending review, and have been fully involved with the formation of
the Wolverhampton Public Sector Union Alliance (under the umbrella of
Wolverhampton, Bilston & District TUC), in defence of public services, which has
been involved with leafleting and raising awareness of the planned cuts to services by
holding stalls in Bilston, Wednesfield and Wolverhampton, as well as lobbying
council meetings.

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The impact of the October cuts has also affected some school budgets,
Wolverhampton Homes and the city college, undermining the good work done by
UNISON at the college earlier in the year when a threat of compulsory redundancies
was withdrawn following our intervention.

The local Labour Party seized back control of the City Council in December, but
tweaking around the edges of the budget and imposing a further year of council tax
freezes will be cold comfort to employees that will be made compulsory redundant
during 2011, a "new" voluntary redundancy scheme was introduced in late 2010 but
the cap attached to the scheme is off putting to some employees whilst others are
knocked back because of cost, again Branch Officers are working hard to fight for
every job, but I would urge every member to get involved with branch campaigns,
lobbying and the recently launched goodbye to goodwill, no cuts no cover initiative.
Keeping the pressure on our elected councillors can and does work, UNISON
presented a 7,500 name petition to the council during 2010 in relation to cuts in the
meals on wheels service some of the issues raised in the petition are now being
adopted.

Single Status
During 2010 the City Council
introduced Ways H/R
Consultancy to help implement
the Single Status Job Evaluation
Scheme and achieve an equal
pay proofed pay model, Ways
H/R methodology includes job
families, and job profiling, once
profiles have been evaluated
jobs are then evaluated and
allocated to a profile within the
family, UNISON did secure a full
time secondee to help with this
time consuming process and by
the end of the year about 80% of
allocations had been completed
(started in June). However,
UNISON has raised serious
concerns about the processes
that Ways H/R use and
expressed our doubts that an
equal pay proofed pay model
with be achieved using these
methods! Pay modelling has still
not started. £3 million that had
been set aside for pay protection
in 2007 was put back into the
City Council's general reserve in
2010 by the previous
Conservative/Liberal,
administration, implementation
or imposition is not expected
until 2012.
Education
The 1st September 2010 saw the
opening of Wolverhampton's second
academy, the North/East Academy was
the merging of the Northicote and
Pendeford schools, Branch Officers
were involved with the TUPE transfer
of our members and with the teaching
unions are now closely monitoring
attempts by the Academy Trust to
weaken our members terms and
conditions.
In the meantime two years of hard
work and potential improvements for
school support staff was scrapped in
the Con/Dem Government's burning of
the quango's. The newly created
School Support Staff Negotiating Body
fell victim to this act of spite.
Pay

The national employer continues to play hardball over annual pay

awards for 2010/11 and 2011/12.

• On 10/11 UNISON has endeavoured to refer the issue to ACAS,

while the employer argues that they cannot afford an
increase, even though the majority of council's allowed 2.5%
on average in their budgets for an increase.
• It was mooted that all those employed on less than £21k some
66% of the workforce would receive £250 but this never
materialised.
• For 2011/12 UNISON lodged a claim for £250 on all pay points,
but again the national employer refused to consult.

Clearly our national employer believes UNISON members are not in

the mood to engage in any serious campaign of industrial action
over pay, I believe this issue needs to be turned around and UNISON
members must prepare ourselves for a genuine battle over pay
including strike action otherwise annual pay rises will become a
thing of the past and not something we take for granted.

At a regional meeting held during 2010 our branch was the only one
arguing for industrial action on this issue.

General Secretary Elections

Dave Prentis was re-elected as UNISON General Secretary

during 2010, he comfortably beat the challenge of two
other candidates, Roger Bannister and Paul Holmes.

Recruitment

01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10
565 673 585 671 679 617 750 621 500 454

Recruitment during 2010 was the lowest of the previous 10 years, however, this is to
be expected with our biggest employer starting fewer staff because of cuts in public
spending.

The branch continues to run with the £20 Recruit a Friend Campaign and I urge every
member to get active and help the branch grow.

We also gave 121 members to the recently created Regional CVS Branch.

BNP/EDL

The branch has continued to work with the Wolverhampton, Bilston & District Trades
Union Council in opposition to the racist views of the BNP in local and national
elections, helping to distribute thousands of leaflets. Also a counter demonstration
was organised in Queen's Square at short notice after the EDL's plans to march
through Wolverhampton became evident.
There are outside organisations that the branch either affiliated or donated to during
2010, these included –

Defend Council Housing Palestine Solidarity

Liberty ACTSA
Solidarity with Venezuela Searchlight
LRD CAAT
Banana Link ICTUR
Jubilee Debt Campaign Abortion Rights
Nicaragua Solidarity Campaign Hazards Campaign
National Pensioner's Convention IER
Shropshire & Telford TUC UNISON Welfare
Justice for Colombia Save the Children
Shropshire & Telford TUC Burma Campaign
Justice for the Shrewsbury 24 War on Want
Wolverhampton May Day
Labour Behind the Label
Anti-BNP, Bilston, Bushbury distributing leaflets
Black List Support Group
Anti Academies Alliance

Branch Committee

Branch Committee has met on a monthly basis averaging 23 attendees, Minutes of the
meetings are available on request, the branch has continued to have a high profile
regionally and nationally sending delegates and motions to various committees and
conferences.

I would like to express my thanks to all the Branch Stewards and Officers who have
done an excellent job in 2010 trying to hold back the attacks we are facing to our
working conditions, in particular Sue Brealey and Dave Auger, who provide me with
endless support, also Kim Byrne for the tireless effort she gives to the functioning of
the branch office.

2011 is going to be a massive year for UNISON, our Government's plans for social
enterprise and big society are a direct attack on public sector jobs, pay, pensions and
our terms and conditions, join UNISON's fightback, get involved, become a UNISON
Steward in your workplace. Help UNISON organise, join the national TUC
demonstration in London on 26 March, join us in our campaign for the alternative

Adrian Turner
Branch Secretary - February 2011