My N30: Day of Action for Decent Pensions for All

This collage is a snap shot of some of the experiences that I had during the Strike and Protest action held on Wednesday. Double click pic to bring up detail.

Pictures of Highbury and Islington roundabout full of UNISON placards and flags; the Housing Association private repair contractors who drove past and gave us the "thumbs up"; the Jiving for decent pensions and (of course) the march and SERTUC rally and finally the St Thomas hospital Picket line.

I will post these pictures on FaceBook later. (UPDATE see here)

One thing I should add is that this industrial dispute and day of action was really about decent pensions for all. Public service pensions are benchmarks for every decent pension scheme.  If they are destroyed then in my view,  every single good pension scheme is also at risk. Defined Benefit or Defined Contribution.

Now, I realise I might be a little bit unfair but the Government seem to be using the argument that since some private sector workers have rubbish pensions then so should the public sector.  Does this mean that since some workers are on the minimum wage (£6.08 per hour) then all workers should be on a minimum wage?

Vote YES in Public Service Pension Strike Ballot: Fair Pensions for all

Dear Members

Vote YES in Public Service Pension Strike Ballot
Look out for the ballot papers in your post during the next few days asking you to vote for industrial action.

We are asking you to vote YES since the proposed changes are just not fair.

The pensions dispute affects thousands of UNISON members in community and voluntary organisations. This is about your future, about the sort of life you want when you stop working.

Hundreds of employers outside the public sector participate in the Local Government and NHS pension schemes – so that employees transferring into them from the public sector can remain in the schemes.

As a result, thousands of UNISON Community service group members are affected by the changes to public sector pensions that are being proposed by ministers. The proposals will mean those members will pay more for their pension, if they earn more than £15,000 a year. Most of them will work much longer. And changes already imposed mean their pension is already worth less and they will receive less when they retire. 

Not a penny of this major increase in contributions will go towards improving the pension scheme. Instead it will go to the Treasury to pay for the excesses of the bankers. 

The proposed changes will harm Community UNISON members just as much as those in the public sector, and we say enough is enough. 

UNISON is therefore balloting thousands of members in community and voluntary organisations and housing associations, so that they too can have their say. (It may be that some members who are not in a relevant pension scheme have been included in the ballot. This is ok – not every member within any employer has to be affected for all members within that employer to be balloted on that issue.)

Vote YES, and make it clear to ministers that what they are proposing is unacceptable. 

Yours faithfully

John Gray

Branch Secretary 

...the end of the NHS as we know it...

This evening there was a candle vigil outside the House of Commons to draw attention to the potential
destruction of the NHS by this Tory led government. In particular the removal of the private patient cap and the threat of privatisation.

The Health and Social Care Bill was given its 3rd reading and will now go on to the House of Lords. UNISON General Secretary Dave Prentis had warned Lib Dem MP's that by voting for this bill they will find their party out of power for a
generation.

"Our candlelight vigil marks the end of the NHS as we know it.

“Despite the denials, this government is throwing the door wide open to private companies, who will cherry pick profitable parts of our NHS, and make a fortune. We know that talks have already taken place with a German firm company about running 10-20 NHS hospitals".

I missed the vigil since by coincidence, I was chairing a meeting of my Branch Labour Link members at the Commons with shadow Labour Housing Minister, Alison Seabeck MP and UNISON National Officer Mike Short (I will post on this meeting later).  She had to dash out of the meeting for 10 minutes in order to go and vote against the Bill.  Afterwards, on the way out at the foot of the stairs from the committee rooms, we passed the statue head of the NHS founder, Aneurin Bevan.   I was reminded once again of his argument that "The NHS will last as long as there are folk with the faith to fight for it".