News

Academies initiative rushed through as BSF is scrapped (362 words)

The axeing of the £55 billion Building Schools for the Future (BSF) programme last month gave a new and urgent focus for campaigners opposed ...

Con-Dems may struggle on savings (288 words)

No sector or job appears immune from the huge programme of public spending cuts, as the TUC’s Cuts Watch feature on its ToUChstone policy ...

Redundancy Watch (259 words)

In the public sector,Croydon Council is cutting 60 jobs, while Oxfordshire & Buckinghamshire NHS Mental Health Trust is shedding 47 jobs. ...

Government obliges GPs to front health service upheaval (308 words)

The government has set out its plans on transferring control of most English health service spending to GPs. But evidence has emerged that private ...

Aviation workers may take action (232 words)

As staff at airports operator BAA began voting on industrial action over pay, British Airways cabin crew once again rejected company proposals aimed at ...

Rail union fears (149 words)

Transport budget cuts of between 25% and 40% would mean “catastrophic cuts to rail infrastructure ... with lethal consequences”, Bob Crow, general secretary of ...

Sacking threat by blog (96 words)

The FBU firefighters’ union has condemned the London Fire Brigade commissioner after he threatened all firefighters with the sack — in his personal blog. ...

Jobless figures ‘disappointing’ (214 words)

The number of people unemployed in the UK fell by 34,000 to 2.47 million in the three months to May, official figures show. ...

Inflation down slightly (61 words)

Under the Retail Prices Index (RPI), inflation was down to 5.0% in June from 5.1% in May. Inflation under the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) ...

Key economic indicators

Key Economic Indicators (180 words)

% annual rise in average weekly earnings1% rise in LRD pay deals2Whole economyManu-facturingServicesPrivate sectorPublic sector3May 2009 (r)0.6-0.11.10.42.91.5June1.21.11.40.43.91.5July0.6-0.60.5-0.52.31.6August 0.71.70.5-0.32.61.9September 0.81.61.10.02.91.9October 0.51.60.5-0.42.82.0November 0.82.01.10.32.61.5December 0.73.20.80.32.21.5January 2010 1.24.4-0.5-1.02.91.9February ...

Union news

Unions denounce government plans for tougher strike laws (391 words)

Union leaders lined up last month to condemn government plans to toughen up the UK’s already restrictive strike laws. ...

Cameron declines invitation to address Congress delegates (237 words)

Union bodies campaigning against an invitation to David Cameron to address the annual Trades Union Congress next month have expressed delight at the prime ...

Union merger (63 words)

The 3,500-strong Association for College Management (ACM) has voted to merge with the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL) by 88% to 12% against. ...

Prentis re-elected (51 words)

Dave Prentis has been re-elected general secretary of public services union UNISON. ...

Union membership (81 words)

Trade union membership went down by 3.5% in 2008-2009, the first decline in three years, according to the Certification Office. ...

Magazine awarded (24 words)

The magazine of the Usdaw shopworkers’ union, Arena, was named best magazine/journal at the TUC’s annual Trade Union Communications Awards last month. ...

European news

Pensions changes lead to fresh protests in France (429 words)

Six of France’s main union confederations have called on their members to take part in a major mobilisation on 7 September against plans to ...

Greek workers set to work longer for smaller pensions (242 words)

The Greek parliament has voted through changes to the country’s pensions system, which mean public sector workers will have to work longer for lower ...

Cuts plan rejected by court in Romania (228 words)

Romania’s constitutional court has ruled that the government’s plan to cut pensions by 15% as part of its package of austerity measures is unconstitutional. ...

Features

Using immigration law to break our unions? (2116 words)

Clara Osagiede is in no doubt. “It’s about targeting the union. That’s very clear,” said the secretary of the cleaning grades branch of the ...

Benefit cuts will hit poor hardest (1909 words)

If a new vocabulary was needed for the Con-Dem government’s attack on public spending, Mark Serwotka may have coined it. Political “shock and awe” ...

Responding to redundancy (1630 words)

Unions have vowed to fight the enormous cuts in public services announced by the coalition Con-Dem government and say they are determined to avoid ...

Play aims to strike the balance for equal pay (1659 words)

When Mr Winner, a fictional factory owner, announces in the new play Striking the balance that he is moving all the women onto the ...

Law Matters

Two into one doesn’t go for health visitor (351 words)

Sometimes an employer will suggest that disciplinary proceedings be condensed into a single hearing. But there may be risks associated with an employee agreeing ...

Tribunal claims leap up (316 words)

Last year saw a massive rise in the number of tribunal claims: up by 56% on the previous year to 236,100 — the highest ...

Strike ballot reforms (229 words)

The recent High Court decisions preventing industrial action by amongst others, Unite and RMT members, have caused consternation in the trade union movement. ...

Law Queries

Employee status (239 words)

Q. A lot of the workers at a workplace where we are trying to organise are classified as self-employed. We suspect they should really ...

Positive discrimination (216 words)

Q. One of our members, who is of Afro-Caribbean origin, recently applied for a managerial position. Although the candidate (of white British origin) who ...

Scab labour (237 words)

Q. We have been in dispute with our employer for some time and are currently engaged in industrial action. However, we think that the ...

Law Back-up

Courts block access to info needed by claimants (927 words)

When conducting an employment tribunal claim, the main focus of the claimant will be presenting evidence that supports their case. An employer, however, may ...

Health & Safety Back-up

Sun poses danger for outdoor workers (859 words)

The TUC says there are around 100,000 new cases of skin cancer every year and 8,000 of these are malignant melanomas, the most serious ...

Equality news

No profession is seen as free from racism (380 words)

Racism puts ethnic minorities off pursing careers in banking, politics, law and journalism despite them having a stronger work ethic and higher career aspirations ...

Qualified welcome given to LGBT commitment (255 words)

TUC deputy general secretary Frances O’Grady has welcomed the coalition government’s commitment to lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans (LGBT) equality. ...

Women mean business (222 words)

Seven key reasons why women are essential in science, engineering and technology are set out in a new guide. ...

Workplace Back-up

Holidaytime and the childcare ain’t easy (863 words)

The issue of childcare is a perennial nightmare for working parents who face lack of choice and availability and escalating and prohibitive costs. At ...

E-views

e-views (442 words)

The NUT teachers’ union used to communicate with lay officers across England and Wales via post and phone. The union saw how this could ...