Blog: Celebrating our LGBT+ members and history

This month, UNISON has been celebrating LGBT+ History Month. It was founded in 2004, as an opportunity for everyone to raise awareness of the history, lives and experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people.

UNISON has taken a look back at the positive contribution activists and members have made to the struggle for equality. Meanwhile, across the union, events continue to celebrate the union’s Year of LGBT+ Workers.

The theme for the 2024 LGBT+ History Month is medicine – #UnderTheScope – serving as a reminder that the NHS and healthcare services would not be the same without LGBT+ people and their contribution to medical advances and health care. But we must also remember and understand the health inequalities faced by LGBT+ people.

In recent years, the UK has been steadily falling in the rankings of the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association’s Rainbow Map of European countries. As discrimination against LGBT+ people increases in the UK, it’s more important than ever to take steps to tackle the growing inequalities.

With the current government fuelling hate and prejudice and actively stopping progressive legislation, we must get together and fight for positive change in workplaces and society, to make LGBT+ workers more visible and confident in their rights. We cannot tolerate hateful speech and rhetoric.

Over the past decades, UNISON has built a great community of LGBT+ activists and now we have a chance to give a platform to and listen to LGBT+ people and their needs. I hope you will join me and UNISON in celebrating LGBT+ History Month – together we can be the change this country needs to make every LGBT+ person feel safe and valued.

The article Blog: Celebrating our LGBT+ members and history first appeared on the UNISON National site.

Blog: Celebrating our LGBT+ members and history

This month, UNISON has been celebrating LGBT+ History Month. It was founded in 2004, as an opportunity for everyone to raise awareness of the history, lives and experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people.

UNISON has taken a look back at the positive contribution activists and members have made to the struggle for equality. Meanwhile, across the union, events continue to celebrate the union’s Year of LGBT+ Workers.

The theme for the 2024 LGBT+ History Month is medicine – #UnderTheScope – serving as a reminder that the NHS and healthcare services would not be the same without LGBT+ people and their contribution to medical advances and health care. But we must also remember and understand the health inequalities faced by LGBT+ people.

In recent years, the UK has been steadily falling in the rankings of the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association’s Rainbow Map of European countries. As discrimination against LGBT+ people increases in the UK, it’s more important than ever to take steps to tackle the growing inequalities.

With the current government fuelling hate and prejudice and actively stopping progressive legislation, we must get together and fight for positive change in workplaces and society, to make LGBT+ workers more visible and confident in their rights. We cannot tolerate hateful speech and rhetoric.

Over the past decades, UNISON has built a great community of LGBT+ activists and now we have a chance to give a platform to and listen to LGBT+ people and their needs. I hope you will join me and UNISON in celebrating LGBT+ History Month – together we can be the change this country needs to make every LGBT+ person feel safe and valued.

The article Blog: Celebrating our LGBT+ members and history first appeared on the UNISON National site.

A union that keeps making LGBT+ history

February is LGBT+ History Month – and 2024 is UNISON’s Year of LGBT+ Workers – so what better time to take a few minutes to consider how UNISON has been making history in the fight for LGBT+ equality?

Decriminalisation of homosexuality in England and Wales finally occurred in 1967, while lesbianism had never been illegal. In 1976 NALGO, one of UNISON’s founding unions, was urging negotiators to seek to add sexual orientation to non-discrimination clauses in all collective agreements.

In 1981, NUPE member Susan Shell was sacked from her job as a residential care assistant for being a lesbian. While she had the support of her union, the law offered no protection at the time.

Ms Shell’s situation – and the lack of protection – saw NUPE affiliate to the Labour Campaign for Lesbian and Gay Rights, becoming the first trade union to do so.

Also in 1981, decriminalisation finally arrived in Scotland and, 12 months later, in Northern Ireland.

Marching on the Isle of Man

Fast forward to 1983 and NALGO’s annual conference in Douglas, on the Isle of Man. On the island, a British Crown dependency, homosexuality was still a criminal offence. At the conference, many delegates wore stickers saying: ‘Glad to be gay in Douglas’ and ‘Gay OK’ and, on the Thursday, some 300 delegates marched along the promenade and through the main shopping centre to deliver a petition to the government building, calling for gay rights.

The Isle of Man finally caught up with the march of progress in 1991.

In the meantime, in 1985, the Labour Party conference included a vote on whether to include lesbian and gay rights in its manifesto. Campaigners were on edge, but they knew that, as well as the support of the National Union of Mineworkers – in the wake of the events during the miners’ strike that are portrayed in the film Pride – their only other guaranteed support would come from NALGO and NUPE.

The vote passed and campaigning moved to the next stage.

COHSE joins the struggle

In 1987, COHSE joined the fight, passing a resolution at its conference to support equal opportunities for gay men and lesbians “at work and in the trade union and labour movement”.

UNISON’s constituent unions continued working around lesbian and gay equality throughout the 1980s – not least against Clause 28 of the Local Government Act, which is also known as Section 28.

It was finally repealed in Scotland in 2000, in England and Wales in 2003 and in the Isle of Man in 2006 (it never applied in Northern Ireland). No case had ever been brought under the legislation, but it caused a climate of censorship, confusion and fear, a loss of funding and support to organisations, and contributed to the struggles of lesbian and gay people.

Inclusivity is our name

In 1990, The Voice newspaper published a series of articles, attacking and ridiculing Black lesbians and gay men.

Activists from NALGO formed Black Lesbians and Gay Men against Media Homophobia and, with the union’s help, launched a successful campaign to persuade public service employers not to advertise jobs in the paper.

The boycott was lifted when the paper’s directors met with campaigners and NALGO reps, and agreed to a full-page right of reply, improved representation for Black lesbians and gay men and a comprehensive equalities policy for its own staff.

Making more history

In 1991 NALGO elected Mike Blick as president – the first openly LGBT+ trade union leader in the UK.

In 2005, eight years after COHSE, NALGO and NUPE had founded UNISON, the union took the historic vote that created the LGBT group, including bisexual and transgender members in our self-organisation. In the same year, the union was recognised as bi-inclusive by BiCon, the UK’s national conference for bisexual people.

But nobody has been resting on their laurels.

Cover star Phillippa Scrafton

In 2013, Phillippa Scrafton was elected as the national LGBT committee’s first out trans chairperson (two years later, she was the cover star of magazine, which went out to every one of the union’s then 1.3 million members) and Maureen Le Marinel became the union’s first out gay president.

Adding the ‘plus’

And let’s not forget 2019, when activists won unanimous support at national delegate conference to change the group’s name to LGBT+, making us even more inclusive.

Since then, our successful trans equality campaign has seen over 3,000 UNISON members trained to be a good trans ally, while over 30 workplaces have adopted the union’s trans equality model policy.

The work goes on – providing support for LGBT+ members across the union.

Resources and further reading

Everyone who is not themselves trans can be a ‘trans ally.’ And UNISON has produced guidance to help you do that – and you can find it here.

You can find a checklist here of workplace policies for LGBT+ inclusion.

If you’re interested in reading more, Peter Purton’s Champions of Equality: Trade unions and LGBT rights in Britain, looks at the wider union work on LGBT+ rights, but of course the book includes UNISON – with mentions for both then UNISON national officer Carola Towle, and also Phillippa Scrafton. It’s published by Lawrence & Wishart.

For more about the role of LGBT+ activists in the miners’ strike, not only is there the film Pride, but also the book, Pride: The unlikely story of the unsung heroes of the miners’ strike, by Tim Tate, with LGSM (Lesbians and Gays Support the Miners), published by John Blake.

Paul Baker has penned an excellent, really accessible history, The story of Section 28 and Britain’s battle for LGBT education, which not only illustrates the impact of the legislation, but also the rhetoric used in media and by politicians about LGBT+ people. It’s published by Reaktion Books.

• This article was originally published in February 2020, but has been updated and amended for February 2024.

 

The article A union that keeps making LGBT+ history first appeared on the UNISON National site.

Blog: Let’s make 2024 a success

Happy New Year to everyone in UNISON and here’s to a successful year for you and your families.

I have high hopes for 2024 – 12 months of campaigning for UNISON’s Year of LGBT+ workers and for a national care service, securing pay deals across all public services and a general election that will push the chaotic Tories out of Westminster and bring in a new government.

A new government is a must for our members and for our public services. Our NHS, schools, local councils and emergency services are on their knees and stuck in a state of crisis. The current government’s legacy is one of slashing jobs, squeezing budgets, and falling living standards for millions of working people. We need a Labour government that will rebuild our public services, put workers first with a new deal for working people and create a national care service.

Campaigning for that change in government will be a big part of our mission this year, but we won’t let election fever take over our daily task of fighting for our members’ pay and conditions. Day in, day out, our activists and organisers are supporting members in workplaces across the UK, and our teams in head office are mounting legal challenges, influencing politicians, preparing campaigns and helping members when they need us most.   

We’ll also be celebrating our Year of LGBT+ workers in UNISON style – continuing to be loud and proud against homophobia and transphobia, and ensuring that UNISON always remains the best trade union for LGBT+ public service workers.  

And later this year, there’s something that every working member can get involved with. From 22 April to 17 May, voting will be open for your representatives on UNISON’s service group executives (SGEs) – the lay leaders who decide on campaigns, pay claims, strike ballots and industrial action. Ahead of that member ballot, from next Monday (8 January) until 9 February, branches can nominate their preferred candidates.

Our SGEs are so important in UNISON. They’re powerful groups of activists that keep UNISON with you throughout your working life, campaigning for fair pay and conditions, safe and healthy working conditions, job security, work-life balance, equal pay and against discrimination.

So if you want some more new year’s resolutions, here’s two for you – have your say in UNISON’s SGE elections and get involved in our Year of LGBT+ workers activities that will be taking place throughout 2024.

From everyone in UNISON, we hope you have a happy, healthy and successful 2024.

The article Blog: Let’s make 2024 a success first appeared on the UNISON National site.

Blog: Let’s make 2024 a success

Happy New Year to everyone in UNISON and here’s to a successful year for you and your families.

I have high hopes for 2024 – 12 months of campaigning for UNISON’s Year of LGBT+ workers and for a national care service, securing pay deals across all public services and a general election that will push the chaotic Tories out of Westminster and bring in a new government.

A new government is a must for our members and for our public services. Our NHS, schools, local councils and emergency services are on their knees and stuck in a state of crisis. The current government’s legacy is one of slashing jobs, squeezing budgets, and falling living standards for millions of working people. We need a Labour government that will rebuild our public services, put workers first with a new deal for working people and create a national care service.

Campaigning for that change in government will be a big part of our mission this year, but we won’t let election fever take over our daily task of fighting for our members’ pay and conditions. Day in, day out, our activists and organisers are supporting members in workplaces across the UK, and our teams in head office are mounting legal challenges, influencing politicians, preparing campaigns and helping members when they need us most.   

We’ll also be celebrating our Year of LGBT+ workers in UNISON style – continuing to be loud and proud against homophobia and transphobia, and ensuring that UNISON always remains the best trade union for LGBT+ public service workers.  

And later this year, there’s something that every working member can get involved with. From 22 April to 17 May, voting will be open for your representatives on UNISON’s service group executives (SGEs) – the lay leaders who decide on campaigns, pay claims, strike ballots and industrial action. Ahead of that member ballot, from next Monday (8 January) until 9 February, branches can nominate their preferred candidates.

Our SGEs are so important in UNISON. They’re powerful groups of activists that keep UNISON with you throughout your working life, campaigning for fair pay and conditions, safe and healthy working conditions, job security, work-life balance, equal pay and against discrimination.

So if you want some more new year’s resolutions, here’s two for you – have your say in UNISON’s SGE elections and get involved in our Year of LGBT+ workers activities that will be taking place throughout 2024.

From everyone in UNISON, we hope you have a happy, healthy and successful 2024.

The article Blog: Let’s make 2024 a success first appeared on the UNISON National site.

UNISON president welcomes the union’s Year of LGBT+ Workers

UNISON president Libby Nolan addressed the union’s LGBT+ conference in Liverpool last weekend for the launch of the Year of LGBT+ Workers in 2024 and pledged: “I look forward to working with you to make this the best year possible.”

“This is a Tory administration that has come to the end of the road,” she told delegates. “It’s just a crying shame that we may have to put up with another year of it.

“Because make no mistake, this is a dying government … yet determined to continue running our country into the ground.

“We have seen the Tories’ relentless attacks on trans, non-binary and gender diverse people and their rights. I’m not going to peddle the same myths that members of the Tory party are happy to spout – it’s unfair to draw attention to it.

“But let me be clear, the presidential team and UNISON will not tolerate or excuse any form of trans hate or anti-trans rhetoric.

“Trans rights are human rights and, as trade unionists, we are committed to fighting alongside our trans siblings against this.

“So, a general election cannot come soon enough. The public need a chance to boot Sunak and his cronies out of office.

And Ms Nolan also wanted to celebrate LGBT+ victories over the past 12 months.

“Our trans equality campaign, which has been driven by our wonderful trans, non-binary and gender diverse network, has been a huge success. Over 2,000 members have been trained to be trans allies.

“Over 450 trans, non-binary and gender diverse members have joined the network nationally, and over 50 workplaces now have our trans equality model policy adopted in their workplaces.”

The article UNISON president welcomes the union’s Year of LGBT+ Workers first appeared on the UNISON National site.

UNISON president welcomes the union’s Year of LGBT+ Workers

UNISON president Libby Nolan addressed the union’s LGBT+ conference in Liverpool last weekend for the launch of the Year of LGBT+ Workers in 2024 and pledged: “I look forward to working with you to make this the best year possible.”

“This is a Tory administration that has come to the end of the road,” she told delegates. “It’s just a crying shame that we may have to put up with another year of it.

“Because make no mistake, this is a dying government … yet determined to continue running our country into the ground.

“We have seen the Tories’ relentless attacks on trans, non-binary and gender diverse people and their rights. I’m not going to peddle the same myths that members of the Tory party are happy to spout – it’s unfair to draw attention to it.

“But let me be clear, the presidential team and UNISON will not tolerate or excuse any form of trans hate or anti-trans rhetoric.

“Trans rights are human rights and, as trade unionists, we are committed to fighting alongside our trans siblings against this.

“So, a general election cannot come soon enough. The public need a chance to boot Sunak and his cronies out of office.

And Ms Nolan also wanted to celebrate LGBT+ victories over the past 12 months.

“Our trans equality campaign, which has been driven by our wonderful trans, non-binary and gender diverse network, has been a huge success. Over 2,000 members have been trained to be trans allies.

“Over 450 trans, non-binary and gender diverse members have joined the network nationally, and over 50 workplaces now have our trans equality model policy adopted in their workplaces.”

The article UNISON president welcomes the union’s Year of LGBT+ Workers first appeared on the UNISON National site.

‘Pay gaps exist because no one is looking,’ disabled members hear

Delegates at this year’s disabled members conference yesterday debated a range of issues that affect their members.

The motion ‘mind the pay gap’ noted that, even for those disabled people in work, the disability pay gap is growing and now stands at a shocking 17.2% or £3,700 less a year than non-disabled workers.

Looking also at the pay gaps across other equality strands, the motion notes that since gender pay gap reporting has been required, for organisations with more than 250 employees, there has been an improvement – from 18.4% in 2017 down to 14.9% in 2022.

And it states: “It is becoming clear that, until organisations are held to account, they will not take responsibility and they will not take action.”

Pay gap ‘an issue across all identities’

Lucy Power from the Kent Police and Justice branch (pictured above) introduced the motion on behalf of the disabled LGBT+ committee.

She told delegates: “The pay gap is an issue across all identities. As a woman, you’re more than likely to be impacted by the gender pay gap. Add disability into that mix, and then, for good measure, chuck in race and gender identity or sexual orientation. What started as a single impact has started impacting doubly, triply, quadruply.

“The fact is that these other pay gaps exist because no one is looking. Since gender pay gap reporting was introduced it has decreased, while other pay gaps appear to be increasing. It is time to act.”

She said that for employers to report pay gaps, they had to know their workforce. “And they can’t know their workforce if their workforce doesn’t trust them enough to declare their particular protected characteristic.”

Workers are often reluctant to declare protected characteristics due to stigma, and the perceived detrimental effect on promotion or workplace development.

This particularly affects disabled workers, and especially LGBT+ workers who may not be ‘out’ at work. In many sectors, workers have no confidence that their employer will handle that data with appropriate security and regard.

Delegates called on the disabled members committee to follow an effectively two-pronged approach:

  • Working with organisations on safeguarding their workers’ data, to instil confidence in reporting disability and other equality related data
  • Campaign for the mandatory annual reporting by all employers with over 250 employees, of the numbers of disabled, LGBT+, and black workers employed, at what levels, and the pay gaps associated with each of those characteristics.

Ms Power concluded: “Conference, we believe the pay gap issue is one that can be tackled and must be tackled. And if this government won’t act, we must encourage our organisations to take the lead.”

National care service

Delegates also passed a motion on developing UNISON’s vision of a national care service, which reasserted the belief that all social care should be provided as a funded, universal service that is free at the point of delivery service and works in the interests of all.

This would mean an end to private companies making profit out of care, and a commitment to deliver care services primarily through local government. Fair work, decent pay and improved status should be the norm for all care workers.

Photo of Denise Thomas speaking at the UNISON podium

Moving the motion, Denise Thomas of the national disabled members committee (pictured above) told delegates: “Time and time again we see the money for social care being syphoned out of the care sector to faceless corporations and shareholders. Social care is being asset stripped and people with disabilities, care workers and the most vulnerable in our society are paying the price.

“In a world where demographics are shifting, where the elderly and disabled population is growing, our current approach to care is unsustainable.”

Ms Thomas said that UNISON’s vision for a national care service would “revolutionise the way we approach care in our nation.” For disabled people, this would mean greater access to care, including medical and non-medical assistance, personalised care plans, and empowerment – to live more independently, participate in their communities and have a stronger voice in decisions affecting their lives.

Sean Fox, of Haringey local government branch agreed. “A national care service is not just a badge,” he said. “We need a publicly owned and properly funded care service.”

Health and disability white paper

A motion on the government’s health and disability white paper, which was published in March this year, called it “an attack on disabled people’s income and independence”.

The government claims the new set of policies related to welfare benefits will help more disabled people and people with health conditions to start, stay and succeed in work.

However, delegates agreed that the opposite is true and that the key changes will push disabled people further into financial hardship, at a time when they are already experiencing the sharp end of the cost of living scandal.

For example, the introduction of personal independence payments (PIP) – adult disability payments in Scotland – as the qualifier to exempt people from looking for work “is just a ploy to force more disabled people into work whether or not they are ready for it, and to pay them less money in universal credit,” the motion said.

Sonya Howard speaking at the UNISON podium

Moving the motion for the national disabled members’ committee, Sonya Howard (pictured above) observed: “We live in a society that has negative assumptions about disabled people and we need to change this false narrative, to gain both political and social progress that is long overdue.”

In passing the motion, delegates charged the committee to:

  • Widely publicise the proposed changes to the benefits system and their potential negative impact on disabled people’s income and independence.
  • Work through UNISON Labour Link to lobby the Labour Party to develop a realistic and supportive plan to reform the welfare benefits system, so that it puts the needs and independence of disabled people at its heart.

Among other subjects discussed during a wide-ranging conference was a motion that noted the “huge lack of understanding” about neurodiversity in society, particularly in relation to women.

The disabled members committee is to consider working with neurodiverse members to develop guidance on neurodiversity in the workplace, which includes specific reference to the challenges faced by women workers with neurodiverse conditions.

Living with neurodiversity

The article ‘Pay gaps exist because no one is looking,’ disabled members hear first appeared on the UNISON National site.

‘Pay gaps exist because no one is looking,’ disabled members hear

Delegates at this year’s disabled members conference yesterday debated a range of issues that affect their members.

The motion ‘mind the pay gap’ noted that, even for those disabled people in work, the disability pay gap is growing and now stands at a shocking 17.2% or £3,700 less a year than non-disabled workers.

Looking also at the pay gaps across other equality strands, the motion notes that since gender pay gap reporting has been required, for organisations with more than 250 employees, there has been an improvement – from 18.4% in 2017 down to 14.9% in 2022.

And it states: “It is becoming clear that, until organisations are held to account, they will not take responsibility and they will not take action.”

Pay gap ‘an issue across all identities’

Lucy Power from the Kent Police and Justice branch (pictured above) introduced the motion on behalf of the disabled LGBT+ committee.

She told delegates: “The pay gap is an issue across all identities. As a woman, you’re more than likely to be impacted by the gender pay gap. Add disability into that mix, and then, for good measure, chuck in race and gender identity or sexual orientation. What started as a single impact has started impacting doubly, triply, quadruply.

“The fact is that these other pay gaps exist because no one is looking. Since gender pay gap reporting was introduced it has decreased, while other pay gaps appear to be increasing. It is time to act.”

She said that for employers to report pay gaps, they had to know their workforce. “And they can’t know their workforce if their workforce doesn’t trust them enough to declare their particular protected characteristic.”

Workers are often reluctant to declare protected characteristics due to stigma, and the perceived detrimental effect on promotion or workplace development.

This particularly affects disabled workers, and especially LGBT+ workers who may not be ‘out’ at work. In many sectors, workers have no confidence that their employer will handle that data with appropriate security and regard.

Delegates called on the disabled members committee to follow an effectively two-pronged approach:

  • Working with organisations on safeguarding their workers’ data, to instil confidence in reporting disability and other equality related data
  • Campaign for the mandatory annual reporting by all employers with over 250 employees, of the numbers of disabled, LGBT+, and black workers employed, at what levels, and the pay gaps associated with each of those characteristics.

Ms Power concluded: “Conference, we believe the pay gap issue is one that can be tackled and must be tackled. And if this government won’t act, we must encourage our organisations to take the lead.”

National care service

Delegates also passed a motion on developing UNISON’s vision of a national care service, which reasserted the belief that all social care should be provided as a funded, universal service that is free at the point of delivery service and works in the interests of all.

This would mean an end to private companies making profit out of care, and a commitment to deliver care services primarily through local government. Fair work, decent pay and improved status should be the norm for all care workers.

Photo of Denise Thomas speaking at the UNISON podium

Moving the motion, Denise Thomas of the national disabled members committee (pictured above) told delegates: “Time and time again we see the money for social care being syphoned out of the care sector to faceless corporations and shareholders. Social care is being asset stripped and people with disabilities, care workers and the most vulnerable in our society are paying the price.

“In a world where demographics are shifting, where the elderly and disabled population is growing, our current approach to care is unsustainable.”

Ms Thomas said that UNISON’s vision for a national care service would “revolutionise the way we approach care in our nation.” For disabled people, this would mean greater access to care, including medical and non-medical assistance, personalised care plans, and empowerment – to live more independently, participate in their communities and have a stronger voice in decisions affecting their lives.

Sean Fox, of Haringey local government branch agreed. “A national care service is not just a badge,” he said. “We need a publicly owned and properly funded care service.”

Health and disability white paper

A motion on the government’s health and disability white paper, which was published in March this year, called it “an attack on disabled people’s income and independence”.

The government claims the new set of policies related to welfare benefits will help more disabled people and people with health conditions to start, stay and succeed in work.

However, delegates agreed that the opposite is true and that the key changes will push disabled people further into financial hardship, at a time when they are already experiencing the sharp end of the cost of living scandal.

For example, the introduction of personal independence payments (PIP) – adult disability payments in Scotland – as the qualifier to exempt people from looking for work “is just a ploy to force more disabled people into work whether or not they are ready for it, and to pay them less money in universal credit,” the motion said.

Sonya Howard speaking at the UNISON podium

Moving the motion for the national disabled members’ committee, Sonya Howard (pictured above) observed: “We live in a society that has negative assumptions about disabled people and we need to change this false narrative, to gain both political and social progress that is long overdue.”

In passing the motion, delegates charged the committee to:

  • Widely publicise the proposed changes to the benefits system and their potential negative impact on disabled people’s income and independence.
  • Work through UNISON Labour Link to lobby the Labour Party to develop a realistic and supportive plan to reform the welfare benefits system, so that it puts the needs and independence of disabled people at its heart.

Among other subjects discussed during a wide-ranging conference was a motion that noted the “huge lack of understanding” about neurodiversity in society, particularly in relation to women.

The disabled members committee is to consider working with neurodiverse members to develop guidance on neurodiversity in the workplace, which includes specific reference to the challenges faced by women workers with neurodiverse conditions.

Living with neurodiversity

The article ‘Pay gaps exist because no one is looking,’ disabled members hear first appeared on the UNISON National site.

Care workers take centre stage at local government conference

The final afternoon of the UNISON’s 2023 local government conference saw several motions on social care passed.

The session, chaired by UNISON president Andrea Egan, kicked off with a motion on a national care service.

Tony Barnsley, introducing the motion on behalf of the NJC local government committee, said: “The pandemic shone a light on social care for a lot of people in this country.

“On the one hand, we saw minimum-waged heroes putting themselves on the frontline, to care, despite lack of PPE. On the other hand were owners of these privatised care homes, demanding more money from the state.

“It is vital UNISON sends a message loud and clear to this government: you can’t fix free market failure in the care sector with more free market policies. Fixing market failure requires the state to step back in, take control, and run care for the needs of the many, not profits for the few.

“Insourcing, insourcing, insourcing is the solution to market failure.

“We need a national care service established in this country, with the same political vigour and principles that the NHS was created with.”

Mr Barnsley encouraged delegates to read UNISON’s bargaining for insourcing guide. 

Council-provided care

However, a second motion, introduced by Brenda Aitchison on behalf of Scotland, outlined the perils of a national care service that is not run by councils.

In a motion titled ‘council-provided care’, Ms Aitchison explained how, in Scotland, UNISON has opposed the current National Care Service (Scotland) Bill, in part because it is “an attack on local government and the local government social care staff”.

The bill will take social care services out of the control of councils and placed in the hands of care boards. Ms Aitchison said: “If this bill is passed, it will remove democratic control from all councils in Scotland.

“We know we need a national care service. We know change is needed, but that change has to be right for both staff and the service users. Our current system promotes the market approach, which drives down standards of pay and conditions. We need to say loudly – we need to take profit out of care.”

Speaking in support of the motion on behalf of the service group executive, Lorraine Thompson said: “The quality of care provided by the council will nearly always be better than the private sector, primarily because the profit motive does not impede on service provision.”

Caring for our carers

A third motion centred on the need to care for social carers themselves. Introducing a motion on behalf of UNISON’s national women’s committee, Sarah Feeney said: “80% of people working in care are women. A greater proportion are Black women. And they’re treated appallingly.”

Speaking in support of the motion, Valerie Bossman-Quarshie from UNISON Barnet said: “In my experience as a young carer, I did not have enough support, I was paid low wages, working long hours, but I do remember loving those I cared for, and that love has not changed or left me.”

“We must remember young carers, those who haven’t even registered as carers, and those from African and African-Caribbean, Black backgrounds, caring for our ageing population. It’s a good thing we are ageing and living longer, but we should celebrate those young carers when there’s no incentive for becoming a carer.”

Adult social care

A final motion passed on adult social care was introduced by the national LGBT+ committee with Jackie Lewis (pictured) moving.

Ms Lewis told delegates: “There is roughly a 50/50 split in the number of adults receiving adult social care, between those who are retired and those who are working age.

“There will be a significant number of people who are or will be users of adult social care who are LGBT+ local government workers.

“Anecdotal evidence suggests that LGBT+ workers are – and have always been – well-represented among social care workers. However, they are often invisible.

“A workforce where LGBT+ workers are unable to be out at work is not likely to be one where workers can confidently meet the specific needs of LGBT+ service users.”

The article Care workers take centre stage at local government conference first appeared on the UNISON National site.