Equality for All

Remploy to provide support for mental health problems

2012-01-25T11:22:00.000Z

Source: Occupational Health. 1 Janauary 2012.

A new government-funded "mental health in work" support service has been launched by specialist employer Remploy.
The £4.8 million contract between the Department for Work and Pensions and Remploy Employment Services will see Remploy delivering mental health provision and support under the Access to Work programme in England, Wales and Scotland.
Remploy has said this new service will assist more than 1,600 people with mental health conditions to stay in employment.
The service will provide support for six months and will include:

a work-focused counselling service or other tailored work-focused mental health support;

provision of a personalised action plan and exit report;

employer education;

assessing an individual's needs and identifying coping strategies; and

identifying reasonable adjustments in the workplace or within the confines of working practice.

Beth Carruthers, Remploy director of employment services, said: "Creating a mentally healthy and open workplace will help employers to reduce costs, improve commitment and satisfaction amongst employees."

Top Back

Election of delegates to TUC Womens Conference 2012

2012-01-25T11:09:00.000Z

Dear Colleague

Elections of:

CWU Delegates to the TUC Women’s Conference - 2012
Please find attached regulations and nomination forms for the above Conference the details of which are as follows:-
TUC WOMEN’S CONFERENCE
Date: 14 March – 16 March 2012
Venue: Congress House, London

Nominations open: 25 January 2012

Nominations close:                             8 February 2012 (14.00)
Despatch ballot papers:            10 February 2012
Ballot closes:                            24 February 2012 (14.00)

Reminders:-

All candidates for election to the TUC Women’s Conference shall be women.
All nominees require the nomination of their own Branch.

Any enquiries regarding this LTB should be addressed to the Senior Deputy General Secretary’s Department on telephone number 0208 971 7237 or email address sdgs@cwu.org.

Yours sincerely,

Tony Kearns

Senior Deputy General Secretary

Employment Law Reforms 2012

2012-01-24T15:18:00.000Z

Thanks to Linda Stewart at Simpson Millar for supplying he following.

News from IDS Brief - Employment law reforms - clarifications and timings

The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) has confirmed to IDS Brief that the increase in the qualifying period for unfair dismissal claims to two years will only apply to those starting a new job on or after 6 April 2012. Employees whose employment started before 6 April will remain subject to the one-year qualifying period. Thus, someone with 18 months' continuous employment on 6 April will not lose their right to claim unfair dismissal, and an employee with 11 months' service on that date will still only have to wait one month before being able to claim. The regulations to extend the qualifying period will be published shortly and will be subject to Parliamentary debate.

BIS also stated that it will not implement the revised EU Directive on Parental Leave (No. 2010/18) in March 2012. Instead, due to the ongoing Modern Workplaces policy development, the Government will use the additional year's grace allowed by Art. 2(3) of the Directive and implement the changes in March 2013. Consequently, the number of weeks of unpaid parental leave will increase to 18 per parent per child ahead of the other changes proposed in the consultation for 2015, such as a new flexible system of shared parental leave and an extension of the right to request flexible working.

Further details on the intended dates for a number of reforms announced last year as part of the Employment Law Review were given by the Employment Relations Minister Edward Davey in a written answer to Parliament on 17 January. Subject to parliamentary approval, changes to be effected via secondary legislation - witness statements being taken as read, the removal of witness expenses, judges sitting alone in unfair dismissal cases and changes to limits for cost awards and deposit orders - will come into force on 6 April 2012. Measures requiring primary legislation, including early conciliation, financial penalties for employers, judges sitting alone in the EAT as a default arrangement and an amended formula for uprating tribunal awards and redundancy payments, will be implemented when parliamentary time allows. The revised procedural code for employment tribunals expected as a result of Mr Justice Underhill's fundamental review of the Employment Tribunal Rules of Procedure is expected to come into force in 2013, following public consultation and subject to parliamentary approval.

View Edward Davey's written answer to Parliament in Hansard.

Source: BIS 23/1/2012; Hansard 17/1/2012

© Incomes Data Services Ltd, 2012 (this news alert may not be reproduced without prior permission of IDS).

www.idsbrief.com www.incomesdata.co.uk
Follow IDS on Twitter or visit our blog at www.idseye.com

Gay/Lesbian/Pride events 2012

2012-01-20T10:48:00.004Z

If you have any events you wish to add please leave a comment with details.

February 2012

National Student Gay Pride 2012 Brighton 25 Feb 2012
March 2012
The Pride Ball 2012 International Convention Centre Birmingham 23 Mar 2012
April 2012
North Wales Mardi Gras 2012 Beaumaris Centre, Beaumaris, Anglesey 28 Apr 2012
June 2012
Birmingham Gay Pride 2012 The Gay Village, Southside Area, Birmingham 02 Jun 2012
Sheffield Gay Pride 2012 Endcliffe Park, Ruskins Road, Sheffield 02 Jun 2012
Blackpool Gay Pride 2012 Blackpool 09 Jun 2012
Calderdale Pride 2012 The Halifax Piece hall 16 Jun 2012
Gloucestershire Gay Pride 2012 Gloucester Park 16 Jun 2012
Oxford Gay Pride 2012 Oxford 16 Jun 2012
July 2012
World Pride London 2012 London 07 Jul 2012
Bourne Free Pride Festival 2012 Bournemouth 14 Jul 2012
Glasgow Gay Pride 2012 Glasgow 14 Jul 2012
Northern Pride 2012 Leazes Park Newcastle upon Tyne 14 Jul 2012
Hull Pride 2012 West Park Hull 21 Jul 2012
York Pride 2012 Rowntree Park, Terry Avenue, York 21 Jul 2012
Norwich Gay Pride 2012 Norwich 28 Jul 2012
Nottingham Gay Pride 2012 Forest fields recreation ground 28 Jul 2012
August 2012
Liverpool Gay Pride 2012 Pier Head, Liverpool 04 Aug 2012
Swindon & Wiltshire Gay Pride 2012 Swindon 04 Aug 2012
Manchester Gay Pride 2012 Manchesteer 17 Aug 2012
Cornwall Gay Pride 2012 Truro Cornwall 25 Aug 2012
September 2012
Brighton Gay Pride 2012 Brighton Madeira Drive / Preston Park 01 Sep 2012
Cardiff Mardi Gras 2012 Cardiff Coopers Field 01 Sep 2012
Grimsby Pride 2012 Meridian Park, Cleethorpes 01 Sep 2012
Leicester Gay Pride 2012 Victoria Park Leicester 01 Sep 2012
Reading Gay Pride 2012 Kings Meadow Park, Reading 08 Sep 2012

Stop the forced sterilisation of transgender people in Sweden

2012-01-17T11:15:00.000Z

Thanks to Gary Williams for supplying the following. Please do all you can to help stop this.

If you are a transgender person in Sweden wanting to change your legal gender, you are forced to undergo surgery that will render you permanently infertile and unable to have children in the future. That's right: in 2012, Swedish law still mandates forced sterilization in order to do something as simple as changing the gender on your driver's license.

Despite a massive push to repeal the law, including support from 90% of Swedish MPs, Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt has stayed silent on the issue: allowing one small conservative party to block the change.
Right now a reform of the law is being debated in Sweden. We need a massive show of support across Sweden and Europe that finally convinces PM Reinfeldt to speak out and break the deadlock. Will you take one minute to sign our urgent letter? RFSL, the Swedish federation for LGBT rights, will publicly deliver our signatures directly to the Prime Minister and demand that he intervene right now:
www.allout.org/stop_forced_sterilization
Forced sterilization has a long and frightening history in Sweden. Beginning with programs in the 1930s that tried to eliminate certain "undesirable" traits in society by forcing individuals to be sterilized, Sweden has long grappled with the painful history of stripping from citizens what we now consider to be a basic human right. Even Prime Minister Reinfeldt has publicly called sterilization law a "dark chapter in Swedish history".
Now he has a chance to close that chapter for good. A reform of the law is ready to be presented directly to the Parliament - where 90% of MPs are in favor of banning forced sterilization - but without a push from the Prime Minister, the conservative KRISTDEMOKRATERNA party will use its seat in the government to block the change.
We know he is on our side: whether you are straight, gay, lesbian, bi or trans, will you take a moment to raise your voice and ask Prime Minister Reinfeldt to take a stand for human rights?
Our friends at RFSL, the Swedish LGBT Federation, will deliver your signatures directly to the Prime Minister's office.
www.allout.org/stop_forced_sterilization
Thank you for going All Out.
Best,
Andre, Emmy, Erika, Flavia, Guillaume, Jeremy, Joseph, Oli, Tile, Wesley and the rest of the team at All Out
Sources:

Sweden

: Transgender actress mourns her "forcible sterilization" - Many countries typically seen as progressive on LGBT rights continue to mandate the practice.
www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/culture-lifestyle/111101/sweden-transgender-LGBT-gay-lesbian-bisexual-sterilization

Sweden

keeps sex-change sterilization law
www.thelocal.se/38466/20120112/
Human Rights Watch's Letter to the Swedish Prime Minister
www.hrw.org/node/104368

More information can be found at http://www.allout.org/en/actions/stop_forced_sterilization?akid=460.584383.ekjteB&rd=1&t=6&utm_campaign=sweden&utm_content=english&utm_medium=email&utm_source=actionkit

Haiti - What's changed.

2012-01-16T11:57:00.000Z

I am indebted to Mark Bastiani for supplying what follows.

Haiti Briefing 2 years on and what has changed?

I was happy to attend the above briefing yesterday 12^th January 2012 on behalf of the CWU at the TUC headquarters, Congress house, 23-28 Great Russell Street, London WC1B 3LS.
In attendance were Mr Mario Joseph Avocat and one of the leading civil rights activists in Haiti, with Mr Owen Tudor head, European Union and International Relations at the TUC was chairing this briefing.
There were 3 members from the Haiti Support Group and other leading Union Officials from different sectors attending this event.
Mr Joseph spoke about how there were no creditable Trade Union in Haiti with many accepting money and gifts from the Government in return for not representing the members when they need the Union most of all. Mr Joseph went on to say that a MP in Haiti has tried to get the minimum wage increased from $2 Haitian Dollars to $5 Haitian Dollars per day, and it was the so called Trade Unions not supporting this cause, with many receiving money and gifts in return.
Mr Joseph spoke how 2 years on and not much has changed in his country in fact it’s been made worse since the arrival of the United Nations (UN) Troops who were sent to help the people of Haiti after the terrible earthquake. When UN troops arrived from Nepal they were found to be dumping their human waste into the nearby river causing Cholera resulting in 7,000 deaths so far and rising, with half a Million infested and on average 200 people a month dies.
The UN are being sued by Mr Joseph as well as the former Government, tests done by the UN, France the experts all point to the same conclusion that UN Troops from Nepal are the cause, Haiti had been cleared of Cholera for over a 100 years.
Mr Joseph pointed out that the IMO (International Missions Outreach) are working with private landlords, telling the refuges to jump on to waiting trucks as there are new houses for them to move into only to find out after driving around and around there is nothing, and then being dump at a Police Station next to their camp. Some are getting $20,000 Haitian Dollars around 500 US but this is not enough to put a deposit or to rent a property and some young woman are being forced to give sexual favours in return for the money.
There are unfortunately many more that the people of Haiti have to go through every day just to survive. When some try and join a union they face the sack, leading official face problems everyday some not being paid in months and the Government spend over a 100 Million Haitian Dollars last month with no control and it’s the UN paying the Civil Servants and not the Government.
In conclusion
Money is not always the key but it helps, what is needed most of all is making sure the organizations working in Haiti are paying local staff a proper and fair rate of pay equivalent to what Western staff are being paid.
To get Unions from the United Kingdom (UK) to get Representatives to go to Haiti to sit down with them, talk about the pride you feel Representative your members, showing that no matter what part of the world or background there are many like minded people out there fighting for the rights of the working class. If this is not possible maybe try to sponsor Union Officials from Haiti with the help of Mr Joseph to learn online, or to be able to get out to the workplace and spread the word without the fear of being sacked and not being able to provide for there families.

Useful Links

www.tuc.org.uk
www.haitisupportgroup.org
Mario Haiti@aol.com

Sex and Power report from the EHRC

2012-01-16T10:29:00.001Z

"The results of this year’s survey indicate that it will take another 70 years to achieve an equal number of women directors in the FTSE 100 and another 45 years to achieve an equal number of women in the senior judiciary. It will take another 14 general elections – that is, up to 70 years ‑ to achieve an equal number of women MPs"

The full report can be downloaded here http://www.equalityhumanrights.com/key-projects/sexandpower/.

A true story of Courage and Resistance comes to Liverpool

2012-01-12T16:09:00.000Z

I am indebted to Billy Butterworth for supplying details of this film. If you can get there please do.

Latest factsheet on Access to Work

2012-01-12T11:54:00.001Z

Find more factsheets here http://www.cwu.org/factsheets.html

BT engineer awarded £18000 for hearing loss

2012-01-09T11:10:00.000Z

The following appears courtesy of Simpson Millar's law update.

BT engineer receives £18,000 for hearing loss claim

Dated: 03/01/2012 Key Contact: Phillip Gower
We recently acted on behalf of a client who during his course of employment as a jointer/engineer had been exposed to excessive levels of noise. We helped our client bring a noise induced hearing loss claim for compensation against his previous employer and he received £18,000 in compensation for his work-related injury.

Our client worked as a jointer/engineer from 1987 to 2004 with British Telecommunications PLC which meant that during his employment he often used tone sets (oscillators and amplifiers) used to produce and detect a tone on a line during cable changing, fault finding and cable jointing. The tone sets or tests were at various stages coloured green and yellow.

BT admitted that they had been negligent and were in breach of their statutory duty to keep employees safe in relation to the green and unmodified yellow testers and agree that our client's hearing loss was attributable to his work with them as a jointer/engineer.

Our client was diagnosed with high frequency sensorineural hearing loss as a result of ageing, dyslipidaemia and noise exposure on both sides. Medical experts on both sides agree that our client suffers with mild tinnitus and hyperacusis and would benefit from having his hearing aided.

Phil Gower, Noise Induced Hearing Loss Claims Specialist at Cardiff based Simpson Millar LLP said: "The client's claim is one for general damages for pain, suffering, and loss of amenity, the requirements for hearing aids and tinnitus retraining therapy."

"I am pleased that we were able to negotiate a settlement on behalf of our client that reflects his needs and ongoing treatment. This is one of a large number of claims we are dealing with against a number of Telecommunication Companies."

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Sutton United Pictures

2011-12-22T16:42:00.000Z

Thanks to all at Sutton United FC for helping us celebrate Disability History Month. It was a great day thanks to them and London Region sec Jim,Vic, Alan, Fevzi and Mehmet. That's two football matches in 8 days for me. Still can't figure out the offside rule. Best wishes to all for a successful and prosperous 2012.

Help celebrate Disability History month at Sutton United FC

2011-12-12T15:28:00.001Z

This Saturday 17th December 2011, Sutton United Football Club is embracing Disability Awareness Month by dedicating their matchday to raising awareness of Disability-related issues. The Communication Workers Union have agreed to play an active role on the day and we are planning on getting some t-shirts specially done for the day and these will be given out to fans participating in the days activities. There will also be balloons with a special message released from the centre circle prior to the game starting and balloons will also be given out to the children on the day.
Linda Roy, National Equality Officer said "We are very pleased that Sutton Utd FC have organised this excellent initiative and we are more than happy to help to support this local team. We would encourage as many of our members to come down and enjoy the game as possible".
The match itself will see Sutton Utd take on Welling Utd and kick off is at 3pm. Sutton's ground is based at:

The Borough Sports Ground, Gander Green Lane, Sutton, Surrey, SM1 2EY

All welcome.

Transgender equality

2011-12-12T10:57:00.000Z

The government has announced a transgender equality plan. It can be downloaded by clicking on this link http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/publications/equalities/lgbt-equality-publications/transgender-action-plan

Kick Homophobia Out of Sport on Saturday December 10th - Map and details

2011-12-09T10:05:00.002Z

Meet at Bradford City FC, Valley Parade, Bradford at 12.45pm.

Main rail/bus station - Bradford Interchange.
Nearest rail station to Valley Parade - Forster Square.

ValleyParade is approximately 0.6 mile from the Midland Hotel (A on map) and 1.1 miles from Bradford Interchange.

Nearest pub to the Midland Hotel - Shoulder of Mutton 100 yards away. (Sam Smiths)

See you all there.

Rape is a Crime!

2011-12-02T15:09:00.000Z

Please download and display this poster. The words say it all.

CWU says Capita TVL contract win should bring pay rise

2011-12-02T11:03:00.000Z

1^stDecember 2011
For immediate release
CWU says Capita TVL contract win should bring pay rise
The Communication Workers Union (CWU) today urged TV Licensing services provider Capita to “pay workers a fair and decent pay rise” as news broke that the company has been awarded an eight-year contract extension by the BBC. The contract is worth around £560 million, starting in July 2012, but the company has been locked in a dispute with staff over pay for the last few months. Four days of strike action have been taken.
In a statement to employees this morning (Thursday), “delighted” Capita divisional director Terry Boynes said to staff: “I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your ongoing hard work.”
Andy Furey, CWU assistant secretary, said: “We congratulate Capita on winning the new TV Licensing contract and urge them to celebrate by giving staff a decent pay rise.
“This win is down to the hard work, professionalism and dedication of the workforce. It’s good to hear My Boynes recognising the contribution of the workforce, but hard-working staff want him to prove he means it in deeds not just words.
“Only yesterday, hundreds of Capita workers took their fourth day of strike action in pursuit of a fair pay rise and I urge Mr Boynes to act now to settle this dispute, use some of the £560 million that this contract is worth to give the workers a fair share of the success they have created.”
Capita has refused to increase a pay offer worth around 2.6%. Capita makes more than £1 million profit every day and last year gave the CEO and other senior executives a 17% pay rise. Many staff earn just above the minimum wage and are struggling to cover rising food and fuel bills.
Notes to editors:
·         Capita staff working on the BBC TV Licensing contract haven’t had a pay rise for almost two years. They rejected the original offer from Capita by 88 per cent in a consultative ballot. This was imposed in October.
·         Staff have staged four walkouts – on 17^th and 31^st October and 18^th and 30^th November.
·         CWU balloted 586 Capita workers. 301 members voted in favour of strike action, with 89 members voting against, giving a 77.2 per cent yes vote on a 66.6 per cent turnout.
For more information please contact:
Sian Jones, Press Officer, tel: 020 8971 7267, mobile: 0779 3314249 e-mail: sbjones@cwu.org

Amended Advisory Committee results

2011-12-01T11:33:00.001Z

This is the amended list of successful candidates to the Advisory Committee. Due to a computer error two mistakes were made on the original results LTB. The amended results mean that Linda Kietz was not elected and Piers Doughty Brown was not elected instead Catherine Heath from Bootle was elected on the LGBT and Mizan Muqit West Yorkshire was elected on to the RAC. An LTB has been sent out explaining this.

Women's Advisory Committee

Postal
Vera Kelsey
Jackie Gatward
Helen Ogilvie
Katherine Kelly
Kate Hudson
Vicki Turner
Amanda Hill

T&FS Constituency

Karen Bosson
Jean Sharrocks
Jacinder Roberts

Vivien Holding

Sylvia Beckett
Ann Nicholson

Disability Advisory Committee
Postal
Ted Stead
Tony Sneddon
Sajid Shaikh
Gary Clarke
Ann Marie Mcall
Richard Hirtsh
Brian Booth

T&FS Constituency
Jacqui Stewart
Nicola Coughlan
Steven Taylor
Gary Jacobs
Elspeth Bettany
Jonathan Bellshaw

Lesbian Gay Bisexual & Transgender Advisory Committee

Postal

Lesley McLean
Dave Daniel
Kate Stewart
Leo Haynes
Merlin Reader

Neil Cocks

Sarah Woolaghan

TFS Constituency

Rob McCracken
Duncan Scriven
John Monk

Sarah Devereux

Diana Carver

Catherine Heath

Race Advisory Committee

Postal
Greg Amissah

Romanus Amaefule

Mark Bastiani

Bola Omoyeni

Sajid Shaikh

Armarjite Singh

Ian Taylor

T&FS Constituency

Sylvia Beckett

Gus Alleyne

Colin Bell

Winston Richards

Vic Paulino

Mizan Muqit

Action day Against Homophobia in Sport - December 10.

2011-11-29T20:05:00.000Z

CWU Ladies Lunching

2011-11-29T19:54:00.001Z

Today i attended our Women in Public Life event. It was an extremely successful afternoon with some excellent speakers. Thanks everyone.

Advisory Committees election results

2011-11-29T19:29:00.000Z

Congratulations to all who have been elected to our advisory committees. I look forward to working with you to drive our equality agenda forward. If you were unsuccessful this time don't give up. I've lost elections and I've won elections.

CWU Womens Conference 2011 in pictures

2011-11-27T15:35:00.000Z

CWU condemns the fat cats

2011-11-22T15:40:00.000Z

22^nd November 2011
For immediate release
CWU says the 'the greed game has gone on too long'
The Communication Workers Union welcomes today’s High Pay Commission report and says “the greed has gone on too long”.
Billy Hayes, CWU general secretary, said: "Executive pay has been out of control for some time in the

. We've been warning about the effect that it has on the morale of workers and the whole of society by creating gross inequality.
“CEO pay in the

is 170 per cent higher than the average in the rest of the world and this gap is increasing. From 1949 to 1979, the proportion earned by the top 0.1 per cent decreased from 2.5 percent to 1.3 per cent. But over the past decade, earnings by the top 0.1 per cent have increased by 64.2 per cent, while average pay went up by just 7.2 per cent,” Billy explained.
"The government should adopt the High Pay Commission's 12-point plan to restructure executive pay. These are practical actions to bring fairness, transparency and accountability.
“Big business leaders say big bonuses lead to better results – not true – the big bonus culture encouraged the reckless risk-taking that sent us into recession.
“They claim that the best talent is being lured abroad – not true – not one FTSE 100 company has had its CEO ‘lured’ abroad in the past five years.
"There are too many John Plutheroes with the ability to award themselves massive bonuses regardless of company performance which ultimately put jobs and services at risk. The greed game has gone on too long. It's time for fair wages for all, not more for the rich and forget the rest.”
For more information, please contact:
Sian Jones, Press Officer, E: sbjones@cwu.org T: 020 8971 7267 M: 0779 3314249

Royal Mail interim results

2011-11-21T15:05:00.002Z

Financial performance beginning to improve. But core Universal Service activities remain loss-making

Key financial highlights	Half year to 25 September 2011	Half year to 26 September 2010
	£m	£m
Group revenue	4,606	4,402
Operating profit including modernisation costs *	67	22
Free cash inflow/(outflow)	309	(52)

* - Operating profit after modernisation costs, before other operating exceptional items

· Our financial performance, including our cash flow, is beginning to improve. We have a great deal to do still to return Royal Mail to sustained financial viability;

· Revenue grew by 5% and costs before modernisation increased by 1%;

· The business unit that provides the core Universal Service to the UK’s 29 million addresses remains loss-making. But as a result of tight cost control and price increases introduced last spring, the loss at the half year was £41 million - not as great as the £55 million loss a year ago;

· Were it not for profits from GLS (£58 million) and Post Office Limited (£55 million), the Group overall would have made a loss;

letter volumes fell 6% compared to a year ago. UK packet volumes rose 5% in tough market conditions;

· Modernisation is painful for our people as working practices are changing and there are continuing job losses – over 5,000 people left over the last 12 months, with almost 2,000 of them in Head Office or other managerial roles;

· EU approval for the Government’s State Aid application remains vital;

· Our strategy to achieve our goal of a financially sustainable Royal Mail and to attract private capital investment remains the same:

o Modernise Royal Mail,

o Respond better to customers’ needs and grow our business,

o Work with Ofcom to secure a new, appropriate regulatory framework.

Moya Greene, Chief Executive Officer of Royal Mail Group, said: “Our financial performance at the Group level in the first half of our financial year, including our cash flow, shows some improvement on the same period a year ago. The necessary measures we implemented earlier in the year – increasing our prices and tight cost control – are a key part of our strategy to return Royal Mail to sustained financial viability. They are beginning to deliver results. But, we have a great deal to do.

“We are half way through our financial year and are operating within a difficult and challenging business environment. The economic downturn is proving to be prolonged and, like many other predominantly UK and European-based companies, our trading conditions are challenging. Our focus therefore remains on returning to sustained financial viability. We will continue to reduce our costs wherever possible without compromising the six–days-a-week service.

“We look forward to working with Ofcom to secure a new regulatory approach as the need to do so is pressing. Furthermore, it will be essential for Royal Mail that the European Commission approves the Government’s State Aid application to relieve the Company of its historic pension liability and allow restructuring of the Royal Mail balance sheet”.

More good news

2011-11-21T15:00:00.000Z

CWU welcomes 300 new BT jobs
The Communication Workers Union today (Friday) welcomes the announcement that around 300 new jobs are being created by BT at their Sandwell site in West Bromwich. CWU has been closely involved in ensuring these jobs are permanent, directly-employed posts based in the

.
Recruitment for the customer service jobs started this week and will continue over the next couple of months. Full training and support will be given to new recruits.
Andy Kerr, CWU deputy general secretary, said: “This is a good news story for everyone at BT and for job-hunters in the Sandwell area.
“We’ve worked closely with BT to create these jobs in the

and we’re really pleased that the outcome is permanent, stable and directly-employed jobs. For us this is the best scenario as it offers job security and real investment for the local economy.
“We hope that this model will be used in the future to create more permanent UK-based jobs in BT customers services and other areas.”
CWU represents BT workers in a range of roles including call centre positions, engineering and support functions.
For more information please contact:
Sian Jones, Press Officer, tel: 020 8971 7267, mobile: 0779 3314249, e-mail: sbjones@cwu.org

O2 4G trial welcomed.

2011-11-21T14:55:00.000Z

15^th November 2011
For immediate release
CWU welcomes O2 4G trial
CWU – the union representing workers in the telecom and mobile sector – welcomes O2’s 4G trial launched today (Tuesday) which will cover 40 square kilometres of London.
Andy Kerr, CWU deputy general secretary, said: “We warmly welcome the launch of O2’s 4G trial across London. Clearly, this is good news as it’s about trialling future technologies and assessing new capabilities.
“With the explosion in demand for smartphones and data downloads on the move there’s a desperate need for increased spectrum to service this rapidly growing market. This trial is one part of essential investment in 4G which will potentially bring large dividends to mobile companies.
“When the auction for 4G spectrum takes place next year we want to see a plan which ringfences some of the income to be used for universal access to broadband, addressing the problems which the digital divide will bring to businesses and services across the UK.”
Consumers, businesses and venue owners will be provided with the latest 4G technology as part of a nine-month trial so the firm can collect information about the performance of the network and receive feedback from users.
The initiative has been welcomed by Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt.

Help save Rik's life!

2011-11-21T14:48:00.001Z

Please support the Zapatas

2011-10-31T18:06:00.000Z

From: Eastern Region
Sent: Monday, October 31, 2011 05:34 PM
Subject: MOVEMBER 2011 - The team Zapata's

Dear all,

November is almost upon us this year for the third year running the Team Zapata’s will embarking on a month of moustached madness growing various lengths, thicknesses and styles of moustache to raise much needed funds and awareness of male cancer specifically prostate cancer and other forms of men’s cancer.
I would be very grateful for any donation you can manage no matter large or small it will all go towards the team pot and hopefully a successful final amount. Please find attached a poster regarding Movember 2011 with details of how to donate, two times donation forms and a link below to donate directly to the site online.
http://uk.movember.com/mospace/299330/
My thanks for considering a donation to the team and I we all look forward to the final Mo, looking a bit daft and raising awareness of men’s cancer.
Thanks once again,

Paul
Paul Moffat
Eastern Regional Secretary
Communications Workers Union
Tel: 01908-218197
Mobile: 07912-945417
E-Mail: easternregion@cwu.org

Brilliant CWU join anti EDL demo in Birmingham

2011-10-31T17:32:00.000Z

Saturday 29th October 2011 will live long in my memory. It was a day when delegates to the CWU Black Workers conference joined Unite Against Fascism, CWU branches, trade unions and community groups to protest at the presence of the EDL in Birmingham. I'm so proud of you all. You can watch video of the event on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=10150355855764143&saved#!/photo.php?v=10150355855764143&set=vb.553909142&type=2&theater

Support CWU members in Virgin media, Liverpool. Help save their jobs.

2011-10-27T19:56:00.000+01:00

From: North West Region
Sent: 27 October 2011 15:51
Subject: THE CWU CAMPAIGN TO KEEP THE VIRGIN MEDIA SITE OPEN IN LIVERPOOL

CWU's campaign in the North West in defending the 435 jobs in the Virgin Media call centre based in Liverpool’s Albert Dock is hotting up with the launch of an on-line petition. Click here to sign! Then please forward to your friends!

It only takes you a minute to show you support:
Just click on the link below then scroll down and fill in the blank boxes and press sign. Alternatively you can also sign the petition by clicking on the Facebook and twitter logos after following the links. It only takes a minute, so click here NOW
http://www.petitiononline.co.uk/petition/stop-the-closure-of-virgin-media-liverpool-site/3781
Why not forward this email to your friends and work colleagues; put it on your Facebook page, Tweet it to your mates: we need your support.

Carl Webb
Communication Workers Union
North West Regional Secretary
302a Barlow Moor Rd
Chorlton Park
Manchester
M21 8AY
Tel: 07850 019 602
Email: northwestregion@cwu.org
Website: www.cwunorthwest.org

Love the Difference - stop the EDL in Birmingham

2011-10-27T10:21:00.000+01:00

"Love the Difference" event called by the UAF and local community groups, trade unions, and faith groups Assembles 12 noon, Saturday 29th October, Chamberlain Square central Birmingham.
Delegates to the CWU Black Workers Conference will be going to this event for 1hour on Saturday from12.30 - 1.30 to show the EDL Birmingham is proud to be multiracial, multicultural city and the EDL are not welcome. Please come along and show your support.

Elections to Advisory Committees, Members Auditors.

2011-10-26T19:54:00.001+01:00

No. 900/11

Ref: TK/PM/sn

Date: 26/10/2011

To: All Branches
Dear Colleague
Election of National Delegations & National Representative Positions - 2012
· Women’s Advisory Committee
· Race Advisory Committee
· Lesbian and Gay Bisexual and Transgender Advisory Committee
· Disability Advisory Committee
· Members Auditors
· Independent Review Body The NEC has agreed the 2012 election arrangements for the National positions listed above. Accordingly please find enclosed the regulations and nomination forms for these elections.
Branches will wish to note that the term of office for these positions is for a 2 year period commencing from 1^st January 2012. Additionally branches should be aware that in respect of the Equal Opportunities Advisory Committees that the number of members to be elected is now 7 Postal Constituency members and 6 TFS Constituency members.
The rationale behind these changes is that as you will be aware CWU General/Special Rules Revision Conference 2011 agreed that the NEC and Industrial Executives will now hold office for a period of two years. In order to try and introduce consistency to such positions the NEC believe that a two year term of office is appropriate for members of the advisory committees and this has been incorporated into the regulations.
You will also be aware that the NEC proposed and was successful in making reductions to the size of the NEC and Industrial Executives as well as reducing the number of CWU officers by one. Clearly against a background of membership reductions this was both a logical and prudent course of action and was accepted by CWU Conference and therefore in line with this principle similar reductions have been made to the Advisory Committees.
The Timetable for the elections is as follows:-
Nominations open 27 October 2011Nominations close 7 November 2011 (14:00)Despatch ballot papers 14 November 2011 Ballot closes 28 November 2011 (14.00)
Also attached for you information is a list of the scheduled dates for each of the relevant advisory committees.
Any enquiries regarding this Letter to Branches should be addressed to the Senior Deputy General Secretary Department on telephone number 020 8971 7237 or email address sdgs@cwu.org.
Yours sincerely

Tony Kearns
Senior Deputy General Secretary

CWU Education course for new activists 2012.

2011-10-25T11:20:00.000+01:00

UNION SKILLS 1 Course

The essential 5 day course for all new CWU activists.

This course is aimed at new workplace activists and representatives. During the five day programme you will receive a thorough grounding in:
...
• Your role as union activist
• Communication skills
• Problem solving skills
• Understanding the support and facilities that are available to reps
• Disciplinary procedures
• Recruitment and organising
• Representing members

This course is designed to ensure that everyone gets the chance to participate fully through working in small groups, taking part in group discussions, role play and practical exercises. You do not need to have any qualifications or previous experience to attend this course.

RELEASE

Please note that this course attracts PAID RELEASE from most BT, Openreach, Virgin Media, Parcelforce, Post Office Limited, ROMEC, O2 and Royal Mail Group.

DATES

The following Residential Union Skills 1 courses are currently scheduled to take place at the CWU Education and Training Centre at Alvescot Lodge.

• 16 – 20 January 2012 (Closing date for applications – Thurs 1st Dec)
• 26 – 30 March 2012 (Closing date for applications – Thurs 9th Feb)
• 30 April – 4 May 2012 (Closing date for applications – Thurs 15th March)
• 2 – 6 July 2012 (Closing date for applications – Thurs 17th May)
• 23 – 27 July 2012 – FOR YOUTH MEMBERS (Closing date for applications – Thurs 7th June)
• 10 – 14 September 2012 (Closing date for applications – Thurs 26th July)
• 8 – 12 October 2012 (Closing date for applications – Thurs 23rd August)

Application forms should be returned to: Trish Lavelle, Head of Education & Training, CWU Education & Training Centre, Alvescot Lodge, Alvescot, BAMPTON, Oxon OX18 2PY. Telephone: 01993 843373; Fax: 01993 840960: e-mail: mtodd@cwu.org

A million could lose Council Tax Benefit

2011-10-24T15:37:00.001+01:00

More than a million families could lose out in Council Tax Benefit changes

More than a million families could lose over 16 per cent of their council tax allowance under government proposals to replace the universal Council Tax Benefit (CTB) with local authority-run schemes, says the TUC today (Wednesday). Under the new plans, from 2013-14 the national CTB allowance would be scrapped and local authorities would decide who should pay less council tax and how much they should pay.

The government wants these changes to cut 10 per cent from CTB spending, but the TUC is concerned that parameters to the scheme - such as excluding pensioners and disabled people and ensuring that those in work are not worse off - mean that local authorities will have little option but to create significant hardship for families.
In total, 5.8 million people receive CTB. As pensioners and disabled people will be exempt from the changes and many in work will be ineligible to have their benefit cut, the TUC has calculated that those remaining groups of people will have to take at least a 16 per cent cut to bring the overall bill down by 10 per cent.
As 1.6 million families with children currently receive CTB it seems very likely that - even with the lowest estimates - more than one million families with children will face a cut of at least 16 per cent. This will inevitably increase the number of children living in poverty around the UK.
CTB for those under 65 is £15.74 a week, or £818 a year. Losing 10 per cent would bring the benefit down to £736 a year - and a 16 per cent cut would see it fall to just £687.
TUC General Secretary Brendan Barber said: 'Everyone who receives this benefit does so because they live at the very least on the verge of poverty.
'Excluding pensioners, disabled people and many in work from this 10 per cent cut will simply exacerbate the problem for those remaining. The planned reforms will force local authorities to push vulnerable families deeper into poverty and debt.
'The government is already set to miss its child poverty targets and this change will only make things worse.'
NOTES TO EDITORS:
- The TUC's full response to the consultation by the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) on the localisation of council tax support in England from 2013-2014 is available at www.tuc.org.uk/tucfiles/107/localisingcounciltaxsupport.pdf
- All TUC press releases can be found at www.tuc.org.uk
Contacts:
Media enquiries:
Liz Chinchen T: 020 7467 1248 M: 07778 158175 E: media@tuc.org.uk
Rob Holdsworth T: 020 7467 1372 M: 07717 531150 E: rholdsworth@tuc.org.uk
Elly Gibson T: 020 7467 1337 M: 07900 910624 E: egibson@tuc.org.uk
Press release (500 words) issued 19 Oct 2011

Help save the NHS

2011-10-23T18:47:00.000+01:00

Dear Friend

It’s a moment to seize. This Thursday at 2pm, 38 Degrees will meet with key Lib Dem members of the House of Lords. [1] They’ve asked us to bring along our independent legal experts to discuss the alarming impact the government's plans could have on the NHS.
But that’s not all we will bring to the meeting. We will hand in a copy of the Save our NHS petition to make them realise how many of us expect them to act to protect our health service. It’s the numbers of us involved with the campaign that forces politicians to listen.
Can you help grow this petition right now, by forwarding this email to friends and family? Ask them to click below to add their signature by 2pm Thursday:
https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/Save-our-NHS
Thursday's meeting could be crucial. If we can persuade senior Lib Dems to demand big changes to Andrew Lansley's plans, we could stop some of the worst damage to our health service. [2] The legal experts we paid for together will set out the legal details. But what will really convince the politicians on Thursday is the huge tidal wave of public support.
Our job is to let the senior Lib Dems know this isn’t a technical issue to be left to lawyers alone. There are hundreds of thousands of us determined to protect the future of our NHS. We all rely on the NHS. We can show the Lib Dem Lords we will work together to defend it as long as it is under threat.
It’s the numbers in this campaign that compel them to sit up and listen. So let's present them with a petition bigger than they’ve ever seen. We’ve already got 443,251 signatures. Will your friends and family join in and help take it over half a million?
https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/Save-our-NHS
We had a disappointing result in the first round of voting in the House of Lords last week, when the government's plans scraped through to the next stage. [3] But a 38 Degrees member named Richard summed it up when he said, “It is not yet over and any opportunity that presents itself must be used to pressure and attack Lansley’s plan for the NHS.”
Suzie, another 38 Degrees member, added, “This is just another skirmish. We may have lost this one but now we need to re-group and go forward again!”
So many of us have already signed this petition, because we know the NHS is worth defending. Together generations of British people have built and maintained a health service that looks after all of us - rich or poor, whenever we need it. The NHS isn’t perfect, but it does an incredible job. We can't afford to let it be damaged or destroyed.
Please forward this message to family and friends and ask them to sign the petition right now, before 2pm Thursday:
https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/Save-our-NHS
If you use Facebook you could also share the petition on your profile:
https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/NHS-facebook-share
If you are on Twitter you could also send a tweet:
https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/NHS-twitter-share
Thanks for being involved,
Johnny, Hannah, David, Becky, Marie, Cian and the 38 Degrees team
P.S. Let's show the senior Lib Dem Lords that there isn't just independent legal evidence behind our worries. Nearly half a million petition signers have put their name to concerns such as increasing competition from private health companies and scrapping the Secretary of State's "duty to provide" health services too. Please press forward on this email and ask your friends and family to add their voice:
https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/Save-our-NHS
NOTES
[1] The meeting will be with Baroness Jolly (the Lib Dem health spokesperson in the Lords), Lord Marks QC (a leading Lib Dem legal expert) and their political adviser.
[2] The plans go into committee stage in the House of Lords, a chance for 'line by line examination' and detailed changes, next week: http://services.parliament.uk/bills/2010-11/healthandsocialcare.html
[3] You can read more about what happened last week, and 38 Degrees members' reactions to it, here: https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/nhs-lords-vote-result

CWU/Royal Mail talks update.

2011-10-18T19:08:00.002+01:00

Dear Colleague

National Talks – Update
Under the terms of the recent Joint Statement the Royal Mail Group and the Union committed to a series of national talks covering the following:-
...
- Issues arising from the Postal Services Act.

- Issues affecting employees in the Royal Mail Group (pensions and ColleagueShare).

- Issues associated with Business Transformation.

Since the publication of the Joint Statement, although there have been a number of meetings it has been difficult to build momentum. Initially, this was due to the summer leave period and subsequently, because the complexity and wide ranging nature of the talks has required a lot of positioning from both parties. However, in the last couple of weeks talks have intensified and there is a two day meeting planned for the 19th and 20th October, which will focus on the Business Transformation element of our talks.

Last week there was a tripartite meeting with Royal Mail and the Government, which concentrated on the pension changes proposed under the Postal Services Act. There was also a separate meeting with Royal Mail which covered current Business Performance, EU State Aid, Colleagueshare, POL separation and employee ownership.

On Colleagueshare, the company reaffirmed it is unlikely the scheme will ever return to a positive valuation. In response to the Union’s claim for alternative remuneration the company stated that they are prepared to look at new incentive arrangements and they committed to putting their ideas forward over the next few weeks. However, the Union left the company in no doubt that unless they are willing to put money on the table as a replacement for what was due from Colleagueshare, then this would inevitably damage the prospects of concluding Business Transformation.

In preparation for the meeting on the 19th and 20th October, we have been exchanging views with the company on where we currently are with deployment of the BT Agreement. These recent exchanges have confirmed that both parties have real concern that we appear to be running into major difficulties.

From our perspective, the Union has told Royal Mail that we see growing evidence of management reverting to old behaviours, that border on bullying (e.g. unagreed absorption), in pursuit of unrealistic local budget savings. In particular, we have seen evidence that in some delivery areas these local budget savings are being pursued as an alternative to the agreed approach in Business Transformation. This is resulting in frontline employees being placed under unacceptable pressure on a daily basis.

For their part, the company are saying that they are disappointed with the overall progress in delivery and that they have not been achieving their anticipated savings or the level of targeted revisions. The company also claim that the focus at local level for savings is part of ‘a business as usual’ approach and is being driven by their financial position. However, the Union’s view is that in many cases these managerial activities are outside of the terms of our agreement. They appear to be running in tandem with other Royal Mail unilateral delivery initiatives that have been the subject of communications from Bob Gibson the Outdoor Assistant Secretary.

At the meeting on the 19th and 20th October, the Union will be explaining that we cannot accept a so called ‘business as usual approach’ that is in reality placing unfair pressure on our members and is outside the terms of the agreement. We will be making it clear to Royal Mail that they must decide whether or not they remain committed to the national agreement and if so, whether they want to work with the Union, at all levels, to resolve some of our current difficulties.

A further update on the outcome of the two day meeting will be provided in due course.

In the meantime, we would ask all Branches to ensure that the content of this LTB is conveyed to all local representatives and our members in the workplace.

Any enquiries on the general content of this LTB should be directed to the DGS (P) Department, enquiries on specific functional activity should be directed to the relevant Assistant Secretaries.

Yours sincerely

Dave Ward Ray Ellis
Deputy General Secretary (P) Assistant Secretary

Bob Gibson Joe Malone
Assistant Secretary Acting Assistant Secretary

CWU Disabilities Conference Report and pictures

2011-10-18T15:37:00.000+01:00

Disabilities conference report - Paul Donovan

Hate crime against the disabled and anger at ATOS, dominate Disability Conference agenda
The issue of hate crime against the disabled and anger at the role being played by private company ATOS in assessing fitness for work dominated the agenda at the Disability Conference on Saturday.
National Equalities Officer Linda Roy raised the issue of bullying and harassment against disabled people.
She recalled the case of David Askew, who died of a heart attack at the age of 64, after being harassed by 26 different people. One 19 year old was convicted of harassment rather than murder and hate crime. He got 16 weeks. "Some of the agencies involved took action but there was no joined up approach, no checking of repeat victimisation.
The police dealt with the incident in isolation, " said Linda, who questioned why so many people in society think of people with disabilities as different. She then cited the Panorama programme on Southern Cross as highlighting the danger of private sector companies, driven only by the profit motive, operating in the care sector.
Linda attacked the process of the private company ATOS - that is assessing individuals capability for work for government - as fatally flawed. "The high success of appeals against decisions prove it," said Linda, who highlighted how much worse it is for people with disabilities in a discriminatory jobs market where already there are five people chasing every one job. "The CWU know that the disabled are under-represented in work and civil society," said Linda.
Guest speaker Stephen Broakes, MBE, co-ordinator of the Disability Hate Crime Network, told how the study, Hidden in Plain Sight, revealed the high levels of hate crime being directed at disabled people.
Disability hate crime is defined by the Crown Prosecution Service as "any criminal offence which is perceived by the victim or any other person to be motivated by hostility or prejudice based on a person's disability or perceived disability."
Stephen, who had been involved in compiling the report for the Equality and Human Rights Commission, called on people to stand up to the bullies who felt it was ok in society to practice this form of discrimination against the disabled. He gave a couple of personal examples of how he had suffered some abuse on a bus and at a London Underground station. As a result of his reporting the incidents to the requisite authorities corrective actions were taken to address the problem. "Hate crime needs confronting. If we don't stop hate crime, then there will be an escalation," said Stephen, who believes that "there are not more cases now just more reporting of bad incidents."
Stephen revealed that the police believe that 90 per cent of disability hate crimes are not reported."They are not reported due to fear of not being taken seriously and fear of reprisal," said Stephen, who believes failure to stand up on these issues will see more injuries and deaths involving the disabled. "There is also the danger of a fast return to the institutionalised model of disability seen in the past," said Stephen.
Chair of the Disability Advisory Committee Tony Sneddon highlighted the criticism there has been of ATOS, pointing out that 40 % of the decisions had been challenged in England and 70 % in Scotland.
Tony suggested that the higher levels of employment in Scotland and the Equalities Act 2010 had given workers greater confidence to challenge ATOS decisions in that country.
He called on members to use the Equalities Act 2010 to take on employers who knowingly discriminate against employees.
During the debate of motions, there were strong feelings expressed on the role being played by ATOS, both in terms of the work it does for government in assessing those on incapacity benefit relating to fitness for work and in its role working for companies like Royal Mail.
Sandy Best of South West Number 7 called for "ATOS to be made much more accountable."
"If ATOS are not providing the service they should be brought to task," said Sandy.
Addressing the same motion, which called for the union to conduct a full investigation of ATOS and the services they are providing, Andy Hide of Kent Invicta criticised the way that the company dealt with people's problems via telephone interviews.
Tony Pedel of York and District Amal also criticised the telephone interview technique and suggested that some companies use ATOS's services as a way of removing people from work.
There was support for a motion calling for a renewed effort to increase awareness of the dangers of ongoing undiagnosed diabetes. Efforts were made with the help of the CWU under the BT Workfit campaign last year but there was a recognition that the increasing levels of obesity and unhealthy lifestyles in the UK today make diabetes that much more likely to occur.
The campaign had found that a quarter of those working for BT who had diabetes were unaware of their condition.
Chic McGlynn for the DAC described diabetes as "the silent assassin."
Globally 20 million people die from diabetes related causes. "The evidence shows that if people are given the information they will act on it," said Chic.
A motion calling for a joint working party to be established with Royal Mail to deal with ongoing problems for disabled members due to the lack of training for managers was passed.
There was also strong support for work to be done with employers to ensure that their adverse weather policies were up to standard. Reports ensued of injuries to workers who had been sent out regardless of adverse conditions on the streets caused by weather.
Somewhat surprisingly a motion calling for choice to be allowed relating to assisted suicide was passed without debate.
Proposing the motion for the DAC, Anne Marie McCall recalled her own experience of having to watch her brother in law suffer and die at home. She agreed the issue was controversial and drew parallels with the question of abortion when it first came up. "It is about having choice," said Anne Marie.
The essence of the motion was that at present the upper classes, who have the means, can fly to Switzerland and visit specialised euthanasia clinics. This is a choice denied to the poorer in society who don't have that chance.
Seconding for the DAC, Dave Curtis described assisted suicide as an equality issue.
There was also strong support for a motion calling for better coverage of the Para-Olympics in the media.

October Equality Ezine

2011-10-13T11:01:00.000+01:00

TUC public sector equality toolkit

2011-10-12T15:05:00.001+01:00

The TUC has produced a new public sector equality duty toolkit which is available for download from:
http://www.tuc.org.uk/equality/tuc-20159-f0.cfm
The toolkit includes:
- a brief overview of the new equality duty in s.149 of the Equality Act 2010 which requires public authorities and those carrying out public functions to have ‘due regard’ to equality in all that they do
- a section explaining what having ‘due regard’ to equality means in practice, drawing on case law decided under the former race, disability and gender equality duties
- an ‘FAQ’ section
- checklists for union negotiators when dealing with a public authority that is making a decision which will impact on equality and when negotiating implementation of the new duty
- a draft letter which can be adapted and sent to public bodies who are not intending to carry out equality impact assessments.
The TUC has worked with John Halford of Bindman’s solicitors, who has successfully run public duties cases, and Barbara Cohen, independent discrimination law adviser, in developing this toolkit and we thank them for their contribution.
We hope you find this toolkit useful and will circulate within your union. Please contact me if you are interested in having hard copies for distribution.
Best wishes,

Sally Brett

Senior Equality Policy Officer
TUC
Tel: 020 7467 1210

Is there anything you can do for carers?

2011-10-12T11:04:00.000+01:00

NEWS RELEASE
Carers Campaigner Dave Warren is pleased to report a number of Important developments
# Crusaders Rugby League Club being admitted to the League Championship 1 for next season.
This means the club have been saved and Daves' offer to purchase a season ticket for a young carer
can become a reality.
# Constructive discussions with Reading Green party council group leader Rob White have resulted
in Rob confirming his interest in attending a cross party meeting with Dave to discuss social care.
# Positive responses from the other three parties to Daves proposal for the cross party meeting giving
real hope that his proposed meeting can become a reality.
# Discussions with national carers group Carers UK about the campaign and joint working to raise
the plight of carers.
# BBC Radio Berkshire confirming Daves appearance on their breakfast show on Wednesday 12th
October.
Commenting on the above Dave said 'Things are really started to happen and i am really hopeful
that can we can continue to build on this progress. I know times are tough but i believe there are
lots of things we can do to help carers'
Dave Warren
warren_david@hotmail.co.uk
Dave went on to repeat the call he made recently on BBC Radio Berkshire ' i am doing something
to help carers is there something you can do?

Crusading for Carers

2011-10-09T11:24:00.000+01:00

Please support this initiative which was founded by former CWU NEC member Dave Warren.

NEWS RELEASE

A campaigner for Carers has offered to facilitate cross party discussions on the future of adult social care in Reading.
Dave Warren who has been a full time carer for a number of years and recently launched 'Crusading for Carers' wants the politicians in Reading to put aside their differences to work together in an attempt to make improvements in the boroughs adult social care service.
Commenting on this initiative Dave said 'as a full time carer i have tried speaking to social workers, management in adult social care and various other agencies to try to resolve the issues but a resolution appears to be outside their control'.
Continuing Dave added 'the system needs to be reformed, the level of waste and inefficiency is phenomenal if we could eliminate this then that money could be spent on front line services.'
'I firmly believe you have to experience things as i have to actually see how crazy the system can be. The workers in social care are trying to run a department that is failing in some many ways but of course they don't make the rules'.
I called for cross party talks on this during my recent BBC Radio Berkshire interview. I am up for it I hope the politicians are too.'
D Warren
I can be contacted via warren_david@hotmail.co.uk or on 01189 567421.

Disability Rights and the Equality Act - new factsheet

2011-10-07T10:03:00.001+01:00

This factsheet will be available to download later on today at http://www.cwu.org/factsheets.html

Jarrow March for Jobs arrives in Leeds and Wakefield.

2011-10-04T12:25:00.000+01:00

The Jarrow march for Jobs arrives in Leeds this Friday. Friday 7 October. Here are the details.

Jarrow March for Jobs 2011
Friday 7 October
Marching between Harrogate to Leeds
4:30pm rally at Leeds Trinity
5pm Meeting at Leeds University with a guest marcher
speaking
8pm reception at the Wellington Pub, Leeds
Saturday 8 October
Demonstration through Leeds City Centre
Assemble 12 noon at Leeds University Parkinson steps
6pm Yorkshire PCS Young Members Network social at the Fenton, Woodhouse Lane
Monday 10 October
Marching between Leeds and Wakefield
4pm Rally at the precinct by the cathedral
4:30pm meeting at the Wakefield Labour Club (also known as the Red Shed)
7:30pm gig at the Wakefield Labour Club (also known as the Red Shed)
Please come along and support the marchers especially on Saturday as I understand the EDL may be making an unwelcome appearance. I hope to see you all there.

Sign up to support the march and find further details here http://www.youthfightforjobs.com/home

Workplace nurseries squeezed for all but MP's

2011-10-04T12:03:00.000+01:00

Interesting article about workplace nurseries which highlights our fight to stop the closure of Mount Pleasant's creche. While my members are facing the threat of having this facility withdrawn it appears that our elected and unelected politicians have a new nursery in the Houses of Parliament. I wonder how much it's costing us all?
http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2011/sep/30/workplace-nurseries-squeeze?INTCMP=SRCH

National Poetry Day

2011-09-29T16:33:00.002+01:00

It's National Poetry day next Thursday October 5th. The theme is games. If any of my members can make a contribution which they'd like displayed on this blog then email them to lroy@cwu.org.

I'm Tweeting

2011-09-29T16:23:00.002+01:00

I'm now on Twitter . You can follow me by clicking on the link on the right.

New minimum wage rates from October 1st

2011-09-29T09:42:00.000+01:00

The minimum wage increases from this Saturday October 1st. The rates are as follows.

	Current rate	Oct 2011
Adults	£5.93	£6.08
18 to 20-year-olds	£4.92	£4.98
16 and 17-year-olds	£3.64	£3.68
Apprentice rate (under the age of 19 plus older apprentices in the first year of their course)	£2.50	£2.60

If you know of an employer who is not paying these rates or have any queries contact the Pay and Work Rights Helpline on 0800 917 2368 or visit http://payandworkrightscampaign.direct.gov.uk/index.html

ConDem proposals to reform Employment Law

2011-09-28T12:40:00.002+01:00

From Daniel Barnett's Employment Bulletin.

Government Proposals for Employment Law Reform

The Government has published on the internet (but not yet in any sort of press release) proposals to deregulate business. They cover all sorts of things, from planning to procurement. Of interest to employment law practitioners, the proposals are:-

increase the unfair qualifying dismissal period from one year to two years

introduce fees for bringing tribunal claims

consult on removing Equality Act provisions imposing liability on employers for third party harassment which they do not take reasonable steps to prevent

All these were the subject of consultation some time ago, but no Response to the Consultation has yet been published. This new document, 'One-In, One-Out, Second statement of new Regulation', suggests that the government has already decided what steps it intends to take. See page 14 (Appendix D) of the document.

The question does arise whether these proposals are genuine, or whether they are little more than political grandstanding and cannot be implemented due to EU law issues. Watch this space...

New rights for agency workers from October 1st

2011-09-28T10:44:00.000+01:00

The CWU has been at the forefront of the camapign to gain fairer treatment for agency workers. From this Saturday October 1st hundreds of thousands will benefit from improved working conditions when the new equal treatment rights for temps come into effect. For more information visit http://www.tuc.org.uk/workplace/tuc-20079-f0.cfm

Same Sex Civil Marriage consultation.

2011-09-27T18:55:00.000+01:00

Lynne Featherstone announced on 17 September that a public consultation to consider how to make civil marriage available to same-sex couples will begin in March 2012. This would allow any legislative changes to be made before the end of this parliament. The consultation will cover civil marriage for same-sex couples only - not religious marriage or opposite-sex civil partnerships. As and when we receive details of the proposed consultation I'll let you know.

Please support the Hardest Hit!

2011-09-27T10:22:00.002+01:00

In October disabled people, their families and friends will be taking to the streets in cities across the UK protesting against Government cuts to disability benefits and services. For a full list of events happening in your region go to http://thehardesthit.wordpress.com/ where you can also download publicity materials.like this poster.

York kids kick racism out of football.

2011-09-24T18:32:00.004+01:00

Today I was on the football field at York college to take part in a Kick Racism Out of Football event. I thank Paul Clays, CWU North East Region secretary, Yorkshire & Humberside TUC, the GMB, Unite, and all who made the event a success. A special thanks to all the junior football players you can see below. Best of luck for the rest of the season.

Billy Hayes speech in Birmingham. September 18th 2011.

2011-09-21T20:21:00.000+01:00

Disabled employee - reasonable adjustment ruling

2011-09-16T10:00:00.004+01:00

I am indebted to Daniel barnett employment law barrister for supplying the following.

Does there need to be a good or real prospect of an adjustment alleviating the disadvantage suffered by a disabled employee for that adjustment to be a reasonable one? Not necessarily, held the EAT in Leeds Teaching Hospital NHS Trust v Foster.

Mr Foster was placed at a substantial disadvantage by the requirement for him to work within the security department, because his disability, stress, was caused by that department. It would have been a reasonable adjustment to put him on the redeployment register. It was not necessary to find that there would have been a good prospect of a redeployment opportunity becoming available and Mr Foster being well enough to work. There need only have been a prospect of that at the date of the decision. A real prospect of an adjustment removing a disadvantage is sufficient to make an adjustment reasonable, but an adjustment may be reasonable even if there is a lower chance.

New CWU Disability Champions

2011-09-14T19:12:00.004+01:00

Last week I did a slot in a CWU Disability Champions course taught by the excellent Bob McGuire. On behalf of the Union can I record my thanks and appreciation to them all.
Here are our new CWU Disability Champions with Bob 6th from the left.

The legal status of rest breaks

2011-09-13T10:57:00.000+01:00

I am indebted to Daniel Barnet for highlighting the following from the Court of Appeal. Follow the link for the full ruling.

Does requiring a security guard to remain on call during his rest breaks contravene the requirements of the Working Time Regulations? Not necessarily, according to the Court of Appeal in Hughes v The Corps of Commissionaires Management Ltd.

Regulation 12 provides that a worker is entitled to an uninterrupted 20 minute rest break when his daily working time is more than 6 hours. Regulation 21 excludes that requirement where the worker "is engaged in security and surveillance activities requiring a permanent presence...", but Regulation 24 provides that an employer should "wherever possible allow him to take an equivalent period of compensatory rest".

The security guard in this case was provided with an area where rests could be taken, but he had to remain on call during those periods, meaning that his break might be interrupted. Significantly, if that happened he was permitted to start his break again.

The Court of Appeal held that the employee's work fell within Regulation 21, and that the breaks provided to him were properly described as an "equivalent period of compensatory rest" (Regulation 24). The employee's suggestion that a risk assessment might be required because of the possibility of interruption was firmly rejected, the Court noting that he might well end up with a break longer than the 20 minutes typically required by the Regulations.

The scale of the ConDem Cuts.

2011-09-12T14:33:00.000+01:00

I am indebted to Gary Clark of Scotland No.2 branch who represents the CWU on the Cross Party Group on Disability in the Scottish Parliament for suipplying the following.

Welfare Reform or Plain Old Fashioned Cuts?

Scale of the Benefit Cuts
•         £18 billion of cuts to welfare benefits
•         £9 billion taken out of disabled people’s households.
•         Impact in Scotland = £2 billion being taken out of local economy
•         IS estimate at least half of that (£1 billion) is being taken from Scottish disabled people and their families)
Impact 2011 – 2015
•         Families with disabled children to lose over £3,000 each by 2015
•         Couples where one partner acts as a carer to their disabled partner will lose more than £3,000 as a couple by 2015
•         Individuals moved from Incapacity Benefit or Severe Disablement Allowance to JSA will lose nearly £9,000 each by 2015
Numbers affected
•         The welfare reforms announced in June will see 3.5 million disabled people lose over £9.2 billion.
•         Moving disabled people off ESA and onto Job Seekers Allowance will account for over half (£4.87 billion) of these losses.
•         The 12 month cap on entitlement to contributory ESA will, on its own, push an estimated 1 million disabled people into poverty (equivalent to 100,000 in Scotland)
Impact on Scots Disabled People
•         A disproportionate amount of the cuts are falling on benefits paid to disabled people - DLA, ESA, ILF
•         Many other benefit cuts will also have a disproportionate impact because disabled people are less likely to be in employment and thus more likely to be reliant on benefits for all of their income.
•         Scotland will suffer more than its fair share of these cuts because we have more people with impairments & long term health conditions than other areas of the UK.
Employment & Support Allowance
•         Between Oct. 2010 & Spring 2014 ALL disabled people receiving Incapacity Benefit or Severe Disablement Allowance or Income Support paid because of illness/disability will be assessed for Employment Support Allowance (ESA).
•         Those assessed as fully capable of work will be sent to claim Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA) and/or Income Support or will be moved off benefit.
•         Those who cannot work or have limited capability to work will move to Employment Support Allowance.
The Work Capability Assessment (WCA)
•         Since the new WCA was introduced around 69% of new ESA claimants have been found fully fit for work and made to claim JSA or have moved off benefits altogether.
•         Applying the same failure rate to the 239,550 existing Scots IB recipients means that the total number of claimants will be reduced by 66% (160,000) leading to annual benefit losses of £236 million.
Disability Living Allowance
•         The Government intends to reduce the amount of DLA paid out by 20%.
•         For Scotland this means that one fifth of the current 340,510 DLA claimants (68,000) stand to lose entitlement entirely - leading to benefit losses of £260 million annually.
•         However if the new assessment tests are restricted to claimants of working age then 1 in 3 disabled people aged 16 - 65 would need to lose ALL of their current entitlement to achieve the necessary savings.
Personal Independence Payment
The Personal Independence Payment (PIP) will replace DLA in 2013/14. There will be 4 different rates of PIP:
•         The daily living component standard rate (equivalent to middle rate care)
•         daily living component enhanced rate (equivalent to higher rate care)
•         mobility component standard rate (equivalent to lower rate mobility)
•         mobility component enhanced rate (equivalent to higher rate mobility)
NB: There is no equivalent under PIP to Lower Rate Care
Potential Losers
•         The Mobility component of PIP is to be taken away from all disabled people living in residential care.
•         This will save £135 million a year by 2014-15. The current mobility component is: £18.95 (lower rate); £49.85 (higher rate).
•         According to figures obtained by the Learning Disability Alliance Scotland this will affect a total of 74,850 disabled people (25% more than officially announced).
•         If ALL current working age recipients of Lower Rate Care, some 60,000 disabled people, were to lose their current entitlement that would only save £60 million a year.
•         This means that many thousands more people currently on the higher rates of the Care Component and/or the Mobility Component would have to lose benefits to make the additional +£200 million in savings
•         The draft PIP Assessment Criteria are very similar to the Work Capability Assessment Criteria. They are a series of questions designed to measure “functionality” – the ability to carry out certain tasks.
Housing Benefit (HB)
A package of changes to Housing Benefit is being introduced this year (2011). Further changes will follow in 2013. The 2011 changes will result in -
•         Private sector tenants losing several HB allowances.
•         In Scotland 49,730 recipients of Local Housing Allowance (97% of all LHA recipients) will lose an average of £10 a week.
•         Throughout the UK 18% of those affected will be disabled people.
From April 2013 housing benefit for working age people in social rented homes will be linked to the size of property that the Government believes they need.
•         This change will disproportionately impact on households containing disabled people. DWP figures show that across the UK of a total of 670,000 households affected by this change about 450,000 (66%) will contain a disabled person.
•         These households will see their Housing Benefit cut by an average of £13 per week.
•         Scottish Government estimates that 95,000 Scots households will be affected.
•         If the two thirds DWP estimate holds good then at least 62,000 households containing a disabled person will lose up to £15 pw in housing benefit.
•         Although tenants will be penalised for under-occupying, they have little option but to do this, because there is a chronic shortage of 1-bedroom properties.
•         44% of working-age Housing Association tenants need a one-bedroom property but only 24% occupy one.
Homelessness & Poverty: The Dept. for Communities & Local Government estimates that, in England & Wales, up to 20,000 households could become homeless due to the introduction of the benefits cap.
•         This is on top of the 20,000 households expected to become homeless because of other changes to benefits.
•         This would translate into approximately an additional 4,000 households becoming homeless in Scotland.
•         The Scottish Federation of Housing Associations estimate that due to claimants losing DLA, ESA, HB and/or other benefits as many as 1 in 5 Housing Association tenants may have their incomes affected, with some very substantial income losses for some tenants.
Main Sources:
1.    Scottish Local Government Forum Against Poverty report, 2010, “People, Councils, Economy” link here - www.scottishpovertyforum.org.uk/ImpactReport.pdf
2.    SFHA’s research, June 2011, “The impact of proposed Welfare Reform on HA/Co-op Tenants”, link here - http://www.sfha.co.uk/sfha/latest-news/sfha-launches-report-on-impact-of-welfare-reforms/menu-id-8.html
3.    Inclusion London paper, Nov. 2010, “Comprehensive Spending Review and disabled people: a brutal attack on equality”, link here - http://www.inclusionlondon.co.uk/csr-attack-on-disabled-people
4.    Demos report, Spring 2011, “Destination Unknown”, link here- http://www.demos.co.uk/publications/destinationunknownspring2011

5. Scottish Government have established a Webpage on Welfare reform. Well worth a visit especially this library of resources and reports - http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/People/welfarereform/Library

The harassment and abuse of disabled people is unacceptable!

2011-09-12T09:59:00.000+01:00

The Equality and Human Rights Commission has today published a report entitled "Hidden in Plain Sight". It's findings show "...that hundreds of thousands of disabled people regularly experience harassment or abuse but a culture of disbelief is preventing public authorities from tackling it effectively."
The report says that many disabled people ".. have come to accept harassment – including verbal and physical abuse, theft and fraud, sexual harassment and bullying – as inevitable."
As a union the CWU is committed to ending discrimination and harassment inside and outside the workplace. We condemn those responsible for abusing, bullying and harassing disabled people. We will mobilise all possible resources to support victims and to make perpetrators of harassment and abuse accountable.
The full report can be downloaded from http://www.equalityhumanrights.com/news/2011/september/inquiry-reveals-systemic-institutional-failure-to-tackle-harassment-of-disabled-people/

Talk Talk announce Waterford closure

2011-09-09T11:43:00.000+01:00

9^th September 2011
For immediate release
CWU seeks Talk Talk assurances

CWU is seeking assurances over

jobs in broadband company Talk Talk after the company made the surprise announcement to close its Waterford call centre with the loss of 575 jobs on Wednesday afternoon.

Staff in UK Talk Talk sites received an e-mail telling them that the company has "made enormous progress simplifying our business" and that call volumes have dropped by 40 per cent leading to the "sad news" that Waterford site will be closed. The memo, from Human Resources Director Nigel Sullivan, also blamed fluctuations in the Euro for the decision and goes on to say: "As our largest in-house site, the proposed closure would allow us to quickly reduce complexity, simplify operations and realise the benefits for our customers."

Responding to the shock news, which gives only a 30 day consultation period, CWU deputy general secretary Andy Kerr said: "This is terrible news for staff in Waterford who would have thought their jobs were safe after the recent company reorganisation. We're sending our wishes of support to the Irish CWU which is dealing with this devastating news.

"Many of our members in

sites are now feeling concerned for their jobs so we would like to see Talk Talk reassure people over job security. It's important that this process is managed openly and that all possible options of retaining jobs are explored."

Graham Armstrong, CWU rep from Talk Talk in Warrington, has raised concerns at the sudden decision, saying: "The personnel at Waterford have an enormous amount of experience, energy and commitment. We think the company should look at using their experience for the enormous tasks we in the rest of the Group are facing with resource in provisioning, fault diagnostics and process building and management. It's really shaken staff in the

sites so we'd like to see some assurances over job security from management."

For more information please contact:

Sian Jones, Press Officer, tel: 020 8971 7267, mobile: 0779 3314249, e-mail: sbjones@cwu.org
Kevin Slocombe, Head of Communications, mobile: 07714504413, e-mail: kslocombe@cwu.org

Soaring cost of childcare causing poverty and unemployment.

2011-09-07T19:10:00.000+01:00

My readers will be aware of the CWU's camapaign to prevent the closure of Mount Pleasant nursery. If anyone doubted why my members need this facility they should read a report published today by the Daycare Trust. It's key findings are that the increasing cost of childcare is pushing the poorest out of work and more kids into poverty.Read it here http://www.daycaretrust.org.uk/news.php?id=54

Rewarding failure - High Pay Commision report

2011-09-05T09:27:00.000+01:00

The High Pay Commision has published a report entitled "What are we paying for. Exploring executive pay and performance." The key findings are:
In 2002, for on-target performance, FTSE 100 lead executives received a bonus worth 48% of salary. In 2010, for the same level of performance, a FTSE 100 lead executive’s bonus was worth 90% of salary
· The increase in bonuses has not come at the expense of absolute rises in salary with salaries increasing 63.9% over the last 10 years.
· In 2002, the median maximum grant of shares that a FTSE 100 lead executive could be awarded was 100% of salary. In 2010, this has risen to 200% of salary.
· The average value of Long Term Incentive Plan (LTIP) awards paid out to lead executives across the FTSE 350 has gone up over 700% since 2000.

In short the capatains of industry are prosepring for no good reason.
Read full report here http://highpaycommission.co.uk/

Sheffield Pensioners Action Group March on September 16th

2011-09-01T13:12:00.000+01:00

Equality Act. Free TUC briefing in Leeds.

2011-09-01T13:05:00.000+01:00

Equality Act Briefing- FREE ONE DAY BRIEFING:
Date:   Wednesday 19 October 2011
Time:   10.00am - 4.00pm
Venue:    Regional TUC offices (address below)

This event is free of charge and a buffet will be provided. For further info and an application form contact my department or:

Chris Beastall
TUC
Yorkshire and the Humber
33 Park Place
Leeds LS1 2RY
Tel: 0113 242 9696

Good news on Mount Pleasant nursery.

2011-08-31T10:43:00.000+01:00

31^st August 2011
For immediate release
Deal keeps Mount Pleasant Nursery open
The Communication Workers Union has reached a deal with Royal Mail which gives the Mount Pleasant Nursery a five-month reprieve while its long-term future is discussed.
Hopes have now risen that Mount Pleasant children’s nursery based at Royal Mail's Mount Pleasant mail centre in Farringdon – which had been earmarked for closure this November – can be saved from the axe following a breakthrough in talks at the end of last week.
CWU deputy general secretary Dave Ward, who led the CWU negotiating team, said: “This development is excellent news for hard-working parents across London and good news for the company too.
“Obviously, there’s a long way to go to ensure the nursery’s long-term survival, but this agreement means that we’re all now working towards that aim.
“This facility is a fantastic benefit for our members and companies who show concern for their employees' welfare are more successful than those who don't."
CWU national equality officer Linda Roy also welcomed the agreement, saying: “This is a huge step forward, which will be a great relief to our members who rely on this nursery facility. As Dave says, we’ve got a lot of work to do, but now that both the union and the company are on the same side, I’m optimistic that we can save the nursery.”
Formal terms of reference for the forthcoming detailed discussions will be agreed between the union, Royal Mail and the childcare provider next month and then all parties will work towards a solution.
Childsplay Nursery had been due to close in November, but a high-profile campaign by CWU members has persuaded the company to think again and a five-month reprieve has been agreed to allow detailed discussions aimed at securing the facility’s future to proceed. The nursery provides affordable childcare matching Royal Mail shift times to workers across London.
For more information see the CWU website: www.cwu.org/save-mount-pleasant-nursery.html
-ends-
For more information please contact:
Sian Jones, Press Officer, tel: 020 8971 7267, mobile: 0779 3314249, e-mail: sbjones@cwu.org
Kevin Slocombe, Head of Communications, mobile: 07714504413, e-mail: kslocombe@cwu.org

EU directive for drivers with diabetes, epilepsy and poor eyesight

2011-08-25T10:43:00.000+01:00

This came to my attention following an enquiry from one of my members. I am currently seeking clarification. What follows is a briefing note from the House of Commons library.

Latest UNI Womens Cmmittee Report

2011-08-25T10:26:00.001+01:00

Our new Equality Ezine is now available

2011-08-22T16:05:00.000+01:00

Homophobia poster

2011-08-19T10:20:00.000+01:00

Please download and display in your workplace. Just right click with your mouse and save.