1. General Secretary’s report
- The
General Secretary raised the Local Government and Mayoral Election
results, which were positive for Labour. She commented that a number of
members and UNISON staff would be standing as candidates in the
forthcoming general election.
- The
General Secretary asked the NEC to invite Angela Rayner or another front
bench Labour MP to address National Delegate Conference in June,
explaining that it would help to strengthen the Labour Party election
campaign and get rid of the Tory Government. The NEC had a comprehensive
and comradely discussion on this proposal. A number of NEC members
mentioned that we should only have conference addressed by MPs that voted
for a ceasefire in Gaza and supported UNISON policies. This is an
important issue, with 76% of the population calling for a ceasefire. The
point was made that many good Labour Party activists had been expelled or
resigned from the party over the position that the leadership has taken on
Gaza. There were also concerns raised about the Labour Party leadership
‘rowing back’ from commitments on the New Deal For Working People. It was
felt by many NEC members that we needed an MP that supported the critical
SNP motion for a ceasefire. An alternative proposal was put forward,
detailing that 56 Labour MPs voted to support the SNP motion on a Gaza
ceasefire, and that we should invite one of these MPs. A few names were
mentioned including Yasmin Qureshi and Paula Barker, the latter of whom
had been a UNISON regional convenor before being elected to Parliament.
The particular MP invited should be decided by the Presidential team. The
NEC voted on the proposals. The General Secretary’s proposal was defeated:
24 For and 31 Against. The second proposal made by an NEC member was
successful: 32 For and 21 Against, with 1 abstention.
- Other
issues were discussed arising from the General Secretary’s report. There
are two NHS Trusts out on strike at the moment, with Healthcare Assistants
struggling for better pay. It was agreed to send a solidarity message from
the NEC.
- An
NEC member asked for the union’s Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS)
guidance to be circulated to branches, so more members can get involved.
- The
NEC agreed to send a solidarity message to the Peace Camps springing up at
universities and colleges.
- The
NEC discussed the state of Local Government services and finances, and our
pay campaign. Our union will need to add pressure on the new government on
these issues.
2. President’s Report
- The
President was thanked for her efforts in attending the rallies in
Birmingham against the cuts to services there. There are massive cuts
proposed on services, but there is no openness or honesty from the
Council. This is very confusing and upsetting for our members.
- The
Vice-President’s marathon run in aid of Medical Aid for Palestinians was a
great success, raising over £5,000.
- The
NEC discussed the Barnet Mental Health Social Workers’ strike campaign.
They are looking at nine weeks’ strike action now. A solidarity message
from the NEC was agreed.
3. NEC Committee motions and amendments for NDC were
passed.
4. NDC Planning: The International Rally will be on
Tuesday evening and conference will be addressed by the Palestinian Ambassador.
5. Motion to Support Student Peace Camps. The NEC had a
comradely discussion on the issues, with points being made by NEC members that
we needed to condemn the violence from police in the USA.
6. Development & Organisation Committee report: the
Organising To Win strategy is producing positive results. Net new membership so
far in 2024 was 20,000, exceeding our target for 2024 and surpassing our 2023
outcome of 6,800 net new members. All parts of the union are working hard to
sustain this. All regions and all service groups were now in net positive
growth. Reports from branches taking strike action indicated a significant
increase in membership.
7. Industrial Action Committee report: There are two
main areas of action, Healthcare Assistants in NHS Trusts and Teaching
Assistants in Academy Schools. This year over £70 million backpay has been won
by Healthcare Assistants in NHS Trusts who have taken strike action. Officers
are looking at how to facilitate some strikers to attend NDC, but the cost and
time were reported by officers to be a potential block on this.
8. Finance Committee report: The Financial Statements
for 2023 were received and passed by the NEC, as were the management accounts
for January-March 2024.
