UNISON NDC 12: Income Inequality

Gloria Hanson, Regional Delegate and Regional Convenor for the Greater London Region, moving composite E – Income Inequality.

UNISON has a tremendous track record in fighting inequality. But there is one form we seem to have stopped talking about. Income inequality. Wealth discrimination. As my mum would say – the rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer.

I know I don’t need to tell you this.  But it’s time to go back to basics. To expose the ever increasing gulf between rich and poor.

Today the richest 10%of the UK population own more than 100 times the wealth of the bottom 10%. What an absolute disgrace .

This is the biggest gap in wealth since the Second World War. What’s even more frightening is that the gap is becoming a gulf.

At work, income inequality causes low staff morale; resentment and mistrust from clients, residents and services users alike – where the ordinary worker earns chicken feed in comparison to the chief executive. Even ‘not for profit’ organisations are jumping on the bandwagon - paying huge salaries to senior managers and slashing pay and terms & conditions of those of us who actually provide services and do the job.‘not for profit’ organisations are jumping on the bandwagon - paying huge salaries to senior managers and slashing pay and terms & conditions of those of us who actually provide services and do the job.

 

The book "the spirit level" has shown a clear link between income inequality, health and social problems. If you haven’t read it –do; you won’t regret it. It proves that the smaller the gap between rich and poor, the more successful the society is. If we reduce levels of income inequality in the UK we could increase life expectancy, decrease infant mortality rates, reduce crime and achieve better education attainment for our children.

Countries where the gap between the top and bottom earners is almost non-existent like Cuba; prove it - 　　 improved mortality rates; quality free healthcare for all; quality free healthcare for all; lowest crime rates in all of Latin America; lowest crime rates in all of Latin America; 99.8 percent literacy rate.  They’ve got it right; all workers sharing the wealth of the country

But back to - ‘we’re all in this together Britain’. I’d like to know exactly WHO is in WHAT together;

The Tories are so divorced from reality. A reality where bankers – who we all know caused the financial crisis - are once again earning bonuses of millions of pounds each year. Whilst ordinary workers are still barely earning the minimum wage.  Having to do two or three jobs to put food on the table and simply pay soaring bills.

This Tory government is robbing the poor to stuff the bank accounts of the rich. Cameron; Clegg and Osborne are no Robin Hood or merry men; and I certainly don’t want to see them in green tights!

The Government isn’t listening; it’s blithely continuing with its agenda. So what is the answer?

Let’s go back to why trade unions were formed in the first place, why we formed the labour party over 100 years ago ......to campaign for workers and the working class.  We need to remember our roots and lead the way in the fight for a fair and just society. Work with other like minded organisations; campaign for laws to ensure income regulation in the public sector.

In the London region we have affiliated to the Equality Trust; and will work with them to raise this issue with our members and keep them informed of the facts. We must elect politicians with enough bottle to tackle this; to work with us to win a society where workers earn what they are due and not a pittance because the rest is in the pockets of the fat cats; chiefs and bosses

As a mother I want a better future for my children and for their children.  As a life-long Labour party member; I want Labour to be brave politicians who will grasp this nettle and return Britain to the workers.

As a trade unionist, I want my union to work within the Labour Party to campaign for this policy to make Britain a fairer place to live and work.  Workers across Britain know what’s wrong; but they don’t know how to fix it – we need to lead the way.

Conference – I move

UNISON Housing Association Branch AGM 2012

Picture from my branch AGM held last week at the UNISON centre in Euston.  The branch has 3500 members working in 180 different employers in Greater London and the South East.  We organise and represent all Housing Association staff staff, whatever post they hold. Sixty per cent of branch members are women. We have over 150 elected local representatives.

I had been been re-elected (unopposed) as Branch Secretary. The guest speaker was Sean Baine from the Equality Trust who spoke on "Why inequality is bad for all of us - and what we should do about it".   Sign the "Fair London" petition calling for the London Mayor candidates to take action on income inequality in London (Ken Livingstone is the only mainstream candidate to have signed). A branch motion "Why Income Equality at Work is Better for Everyone" will be going to 2012 UNISON National Delegate Conference.

By coincidence Sean had worked with our office manager Moira in Haringay Council 30 years before (see left of picture next to our branch Chair Joel Bodmer). This was the first time they had met since then. Sean was also the CEO of Stepney Neighbourhood when I worked for Tower Hamlets (don't think we met).

Why Income Equality at Work is better for everyone

This is my speech to the UNISON London Regional Council AGM last week on Motion 4 "Why Income Equality at Work is better for everyone". Which was passed and selected as a regional motion to send to our national conference.

"Council, Convenor, John  Gray Housing Assocaition Branch moving motion 4. "Why Income Equality at Work is better for everyone". Council, Let us not forget that it is not just the Bankers and the Executives in the private sector who have been filling their pockets with other peoples money to a degree out of all recognition to their worth. In the traditional public sector and in supposedly “Not for profit” organisations, who provide public services, you also find that many Executives and members of the SMT have in recent years, enjoyed massive pay rises and massive increases in their income. We use the example of the CEO of the housing and social care association, Anchor, who earned over 330k last year - up 14%. At a time when many of her employees, doing a difficult and demanding job, caring for the frail and the vulnerable, earn little more than minimum wage. Nearly 30 times less.

For crying out aloud, Anchor Housing, was originally set up by the respected charity “Help the Aged”. This pattern of greed at the top for a few and poverty for the many at the bottom is repeated in many other private and public organisations providing public services up and down the country.

This issue is not just about fairness or social justice nor is it about the so called “politics of envy”. Such vast and growing inequalities in income are not just morally wrong it is deeply damaging and destructive to those organisations that allow it.

In the same way as researchers for the book “The Spirit Level” found compelling evidence that the more unequal societies are, with regard to incomes, the more rotten the society. The more unequal the greater the death rates of new born babies; the greater the levels of mental illness; the greater the drug abuse; the greater the violence; the greater the ignorance and squalor. It is ironic that the day after the 200th birthday of the birth of Charles Dickens, we still find in our own Capital city, one of the very richest cities in the world, that your life expectancy, how long you live, is determined largely by how affluent the postal code is in the area you happen to have been born in.

With regard to income inequality in the work place it is not enough for us to simply condemn but to explain to our members how harmful it is not only to society but to that workplace– If you are managed by not just highly paid or people on a good earning but the super rich; while most workers struggle to keep their head above the water - it is corrosive it is divisive. It causes low staff morale and poor service; it causes resentment and mistrust from our clients, residents and services users who after all have to pay for all this inequality.

We are told that there is no choice, competition is king, the market must decide the rate of pay, yet there is a choice. There are successful modern countries in the world such as Sweden where there is much, much less inequality. Where for example trade unions reps sit on boards and remuneration committees as a matter of course. They have done this for decades and act on as a brake on greed. There are countries such as Japan were if there are economic problems, managers become leaders and will often be the first to volunteer for pay curbs or restraint. Unlike in my sector, where yesterday I found out that staff at project being tuped over to a supposed charity, who had won a tender, were told by this charity that they had to have pay cuts and low jobs since they had to “pay their way” to keep to the new contract. While at the same time the SMT of that organisation pays itself massive bonuses to reward themselves for winning new business. This culture, this attitude, this view of life, can and must change.

The Equality Trust is the charitable arm set up by the authors of the Spirit level to promote income equality. Please also consider affiliating your own branches to them. Next week they are coming to my branch AGM to speak to us about what we can do to help bring about change.

Finally Council remember that greater income equality at the work place will make it a better place and help bring about greater income equality in our society, which will make it a better world for all.

Thank you please support this motion (orignal motion similar to this)

UNISON Housing Association Branch AGM 2012

My Union Branch AGM takes place on Thursday 16 February 2012 at the new UNISON headquarters in Euston (5 minutes walk from either Euston or Kings Cross station). I have been re-elected unopposed as Branch Secretary. We will hold two separate meetings during the day and evening to try and maximise attendance.  All branch members welcome!

Our guest speaker will be Sean Baine, the Co-Chair of the London Equality Trust on "Why inequality is bad for all of us - and what we should do about it".  There is also a motion to be debated on income inequality in Housing Associations. The Equality Trust was set up by the authors of the "The Spirit Level". 

I will try to arrange a visit beforehand to the Elizabeth Garrett Anderson museum which is inside the UNISON building. 

Record inequality between rich and poor

Hat tip Equality Trust  The OECD says rising inequality is not inevitable.  Progressive taxes and making sure that people are in well paid jobs is essential.