Report: Unite Policy Conference 2018

This isn't an official report, but is accurate to the best of my knowledge. If you spot any errors or omissions, please let me know. I have also uploaded the official "progress of business".

You can refer to the conference agenda (the pack of motions prior to compositing (merging motions), emergency motions and most Executive Statements). EC statements on Brexit and Gender Identity are available on the conference page of the Unite web site. UniteLive carried reports on several debates, though some (including on an Emergency Motion I moved) appear to have been well hidden.

The mood of conference was positive. In particular, the involvement of young members continues to grow. We've had young member observers for several conferences now. It was striking that we appeared to have more young member delegates this time. Certainly they played a more significant part in debates. Many had been involved in or leading campaigns and disputes, and young members significantly influenced debate on several questions, succeeding in getting the top table to respond.

Less positive was the continuing excessive use of Executive Statements. The Executive Council (EC) can issue statements at any time, for insertion into any debate. Votes on EC statements are taken first, and if one is passed all the motions on the same topics fall. They have a legitimate role - effectively enabling the EC to put forward an alternative motion on a topic where they would otherwise have to oppose motions and leave us with big gaps in policy. But they are now prolific, and rarely used for this purpose, instead enabling fudge and preventing clear debate and decisions. They often help create a mood of unity in conference, but this is illusory if it is unity around a fudge which hinders coherent action in workplaces and communities.

Jargon:

• M: Motion
• ES: Executive Statement
• C: Composite (merged motions)
• EM: Emergency Motion
• Carried: Agreed by conference
• Fell: Not voted on by conference, e.g. because it conflicted with an ES or M that had already been passed, or nobody moved it
• Withdrawn: the movers agreed to withdraw the motion, which was not debated. In many cases motions are withdrawn in favour of Composites that include most/all of their points.
• Remitted: not voted on, but sent to the EC for consideration
• Lost: put to a vote and rejected
• Substantive: a motion including one or more amendments
• A: Amendment

See also my Glossary & Jargon Buster.

The Economy

C6, Industrial Strategy (M 26, 27, 28 & 29) - Carried
M30 UK steel and manufacturing post Brexit - Carried
C7 Public ownership (M31, 33, 34, 35) - Carried
M32 nationalisation - Carried
M36 public ownership - Carried
M40 Change in UK law for companies ceasing trading - Carried
M41 Mergers and acquisitions legislation - unwanted & hostile takeovers - Carried
Speaker: Frances O'Grady, TUC General Secretary
C8 Public transport (M37, 38) - Carried
M39 East Cost Rail bailout - Carried

Defence Diversification

ES1 Defence Diversification - Carried
Comment: though this remains a fudge, it represents a step forward for Unite in trying to implement our longstanding commitment to diversification
M21 Defence Diversification Strategy - Remitted
M22 Defence Diversification - Fell
M23 Defence Jobs - Fell
M24 Opposition to Trident Nuclear Missile System - Fell
M25 Nuclear disarmament - Fell

Political & Labour Party

M102: Against the Football Lads' Alliance - Withdrawn in favour of EM2
EM2: Opposing Racism, The Football Lads Alliance and the Democratic Football Lads Alliance
Note: this was actually a (rather mangled) Composite of two Emergency Motions and M102. I moved it on behalf of the GPM&IT NISC. The text was:

Conference notes the Football Lads Alliance (FLA) is attempting to organise football supporters in demonstrations against 'extremism'. It is taking legitimate concerns around terrorism and then using Islamophobia to stir up fear, division and racism. It represents a dangerous development on the right of British politics.

Whilst claming to be against racism, within their ranks they seem happy to harbour known and organised racists and fascists many who have previously or still are active in groups such as EDL, BNP and the likes. On one demonstration Diane Abbott MP was picked out as a target by one of their leaders where they disgracefully said "Diane Abbott we are coming for you".

Some from within the FLA marches have abused and threatened anti-racists from Stand Up To Racism campaign (SUTR) who were leafletting their demonstration. The FLA Facebook group moderators tolerate hate speech from their supporters against women; against Muslims; against Black and ethnic minorities.

It would be wrong to identify all those who are attracted to FLA or who have marched with the FLA as racists and Islamophobes, however there is a danger that if the group goes unchallenged that those elements within it who are pushing a racist agenda are able to mobilise a new far right street movement.

This conference notes that:

1) The racist march of about 15,000 in London on 9 June, was the largest mobilisation of the far right in the UK since the 1930s and the counter-demonstration called by Stand Up To Racism was small.
2) That it followed large racist demonstrations in several cities in previous weeks, which were followed by racist attacks.
3) The rise in mainstream Islamophobia from politicians and the press and the scapegoating of migrants for problems in employment, housing and public services.

Conference resolves to instruct our Executive to:

• Support, publicise and mobilise attendance at the demonstration called by Stand Up To Racism on Saturday 14 July against the next major far-right mobilisation in London, and any future far-right marches in our towns and cities and that trade unions should provide stewarding instead of relying on the police to keep people safe.

• Educate our members about the rise of Islamophobia and the racism of the FLA and DFLA and other similar groups, and by distributing information to all our branches and members.

• Run a campaign to encourage all football clubs, football fans and supporters' clubs to take a stance against groups such as the FLA and the DFLA and encourage and provide resources to Kick Racism Out of Football and Show Racism the Red Card.

• Redouble our work with all appropriate anti-racist organisations to build strong local organisation capable of opposing racist mobilisations in our communities

• Write to the TUC to demand it launch a 'jobs, homes not racism' campaign to unite the wider trade union movement and to campaign effectively against the far right. This should include workers taking all legal steps (up to and including strike action) to disrupt all attempts to organise for hte purposes of extending the rhetoric of the FLA and DFLA or any similar organisation.

Note: the importance of it became even clearer on 14 July when RMT and Unite trade unionists were physically attacked after a demonstration in support of "Tommy Robinson" (Stephen Yaxley-Lennon) and Donald Trump.

M104 Restore clause 4 in the Labour Party - Lost
M105 Extension fo the franchise - Carried

Improving Health & Safety

C15 Mental Health - a union matter (M76, 77, 78, 79) - Carried
Comment: This was a very moving debate with delegates recounting their own experiences
M72+A Workplace health & wellbeing representatives - Carried
M73 Shift working and its impact on our members - Withdrawn
M74 Classifying stress as a reportable occupational disease - Carried
M75 Occupational health in the workplace - Carried

Global Solidarity

M68 Yemen - humanitarian aid and ceasefire - Carried
EM3: Latin America - Carried
M70 Mexico - Carried (Amendment withdrawn)
EM5 Brazil - Carried
EM4 Turkey / Kurds and progressive forces - Carried
M71 Israel / Palestine - Carried
EM6 Gaza - Carried
Note: this was from the GPM&IT NISC

Brexit

ES2: Brexit - Carried
C1: Brexit and working people (M2, 3, 10 & 11) - Fell
C2 Brexit - a vote on the final deal (M4 & 5) - Fell
C3 The Future of Brexit (M6 & 7) - Fell
C4 Brexit and Free Movement (M12 & 14) - Fell
M8 Brexit - Fell
M9 Leaving the EU - Fell
M13 Workers' rights to move freely and be treated equally - Fell
Comment: I moved M13, from my own branch, and was disappointed that the EC knocked out what was primarily an equalities motion using its Brexit statement, which failed to clearly defend the rights of  workers and members who may have travelled or decide to travel. When Unite materials talk about workers' rights under Brexit, the rights of current and future members who aren't UK citizens barely get a mention.
M1 Brexit and Ireland - Carried
EM1 Brexit and Gibraltar - Carried

Pensions & Retirement

M96 the future of state pension - Carried
M97 How do we improve the quality of life for our ageing population - Carried
M100 Challenging the mass media portrayal of older people - Carried
Speaker: Jeremy Corbyn
M98 Fuel Poverty - Carried
M99 Funeral Poverty - Carried
M101 Carers' Allowance - Carried

Industrial

C16 Automation (M80, 81, 82) - Carried
C17 Shorter Working Time (M83, 84) - Carried
M85: 4 day, 28 hour working week - Remitted
C18 Dignity At Work (M88 & 89) - Carried
M86 setting an agenda for excellent apprenticeships - Carried
M87 Future skills - Carried
M90 organising young workers - Carried
M91 worker cooperatives as opposed to workplace closures - Carried
M92 challenging increased workloads - Carried
M93 + A direct labour organisations - Carried
M94 collective bargaining and solidarity action in workplaces, industries and services - Carried
Speaker: Ken Neumann, USW

Equalities

C13 sexual harassment and sexual abuse (M60 & 61) - Carried
C14 women's health (M63 & 64) - Carried
M62 menopause at work - Carried

Speaker: Lauren Townsend, TGI Fridays

Membership at TGI Fridays has rocketed in response to the (highly profitable) company wanting to take a huge chunk of tips off waiting staff to subsidise low pay for kitchen staff. Members at several restaurants were on strike during the conference. Delegates joined a protest at the Brighton restaurant and engaged in a bit of direct action, with Len McCluskey addressing diners to explain the dispute. For more information see #AllEyesOnTGIs.


EM8: Irish repeal the 8th - women's choice - Carried
C10: Brexit and equalities (M66 & 67) - Carried
C11 Rights for people with disabilities (M52 & 53) - Carried
M47 improving the face of our union by increasing employee diversity - Carried
M48 union representation at constitutional committees - Remitted
M49 equality impact assessments - Carried
M50 unconscious bias - Carried
M51 black and asian ethnic minroity activity based budgeting - Remitted
M54 asylum seekers - Carried
M55 migrant workers - Remitted (Amendment fell)

ES3 Gender identification - Carried
C12 gender identification (M56, 57, 58) - Remitted
M59 Gender recognition act - Withdrawn
Comment: this was a significant debate, which unfortunately I missed due to industrial business. I am told that young members made a key contribution, particularly in criticising the decision of leading figures in Unite signing a one-sided letter to the Morning Star with notorious transphobes. Len responded with a clarification. Many others signed responses such as this and this from delegates at the TUC LGBT conference. Thankfully, despite the distraction of the letter, Unite now has policy supporting the rights of trans people.

M65 International Women's Day 2019 - Remitted (with assurances that the EC would act on it)

Campaigning against austerity

C5 Universal Credit (M17, 18, 19, 20) - Carried
Speaker: Sharon Graham - Work Voice Pay

NHS 70th birthday

Conference marked the 70th birthday of the NHS and recognised the importance of defending and improving it.

Social Action

C24 NHS (M127, 128, 130) - Carried
C25 - NHS 70th anniversary (M131, 132, 133, 134) - Carried
M126 NHS pay parity - Carried
M129 NHS car parking costs - carried
M155 Health & social care - Carried
C23 Housing (M124 & 125) - Carried
M122 homelessness and rough sleepers - Carried
M123 Grenfell Tower - Carried
M121 Community Rights - Carried
M135 Public scrutiny over public money - Carried
M136 Justice in crisis - Carried
EC report and 2017 accounts - Received by conference
Speakers: John McDonnell and Ann Pettifor
ES4 local government funding - Carried
M15 local government cuts - a Unite strategy - Fell
Comment: M15 from the London & Eastern Local Authorities RISC was calling on Labour councils to take a firmer stance against cuts and privatisation than the EC statement
M16 tackling the impact of austerity - Carried

Rights for workers and their unions

C19 Trade union freedom (M107, 108, 109) - Carried
M106 Campaign for trade union rights - Carried
M111 banning of subcontracting of work during industrial action - Carried
C20 precarious employment (M112, 113) - Carried
C21 precarious employment (M115, 116) - Carried
M114 Gig economy - Carried
C22 age and the National Living Wage (M119 & 120) - Carried
M110 strengthening TUPE legislation - Carried
M117 Direct Action - Carried
Comment: this is a significant motion to train activists in direct action techniques to support our campaigns
M118 amendment to the Equality Act 2010 - Remitted

Energy and Environment

C9 atmospheric pollution (M42, 43) Carried
M44+A clean energy - Carried
M45 Backing of UK coal industry - Carried
EM10 Swansea Bay Tidal Lagoon - Carried
EM7 National Grid dispute - USA - Carried
Comment: the US subsidiary of National Grid has locked out over 1000 USW members

Union Administration and Membership services

C26 Union Learning Fund (M142, 143, 145) - Lost
M144 Sustainable learning opportunities for all Unite members - Carried
M153 Paperless meetings - Remitted
Note: this was from the GPM&IT South East RISC
M154 environment - Carried
M137 Regional Officer Allocations - Remitted
Comment: this important motion from the GPM&IT NISC aimed to address a situation where sectors are scattered across the allocations of dozens (hundreds in many cases) of Regional Officers. It was remitted after assurances that the issue would be addressed.
M140 Servicing our membership - Remitted
M138 Unite branches - access to Unite resources and support - Carried
M139 Helping Unite activists communication with members - Carried
Comment: conference overturned the EC, who were hiding behind bogus GDPR data protection arguments, on this motion, which is vital for effectiveness at workplace and branch level.
M147 bank charges for small branches - Withdrawn
M151 administration - Carried
Comment: again conference overturned the EC. The motion was to stop members being moved between branches and regions without branch officers being kept informed.
M141 strike funds - Carried
Comment: I moved this motion to help more members benefit from their own strike funds
M146 review of Unite carers' policy - Carried
M148 Lack of respect towards the retired members section - Remitted
M149 Protecting Unite's reputation online - Remitted
M150 safeguarding the union's heritage - Carried
M152 lond worker policy - Carried
EM9 Marc Wadsworth - Lost

Elections:

The following were elected as the Standing Orders Committee for the 6th Policy Conference: Stephen Frogatt, Frances Hourihane, Pat Davies, Dave Allen, Martin McMulkin, Siobhan McCready, Sam Webster-Moore, Agnes Hilditch, Lisa Higgins, Barry Hartshorn

The following were elected as the Appeals Committee for 2018-20: Lorraine Mannion, Jeff Robinson, Jim Kelly, Ian King, Lisa Colquhoun, John Gillespie, Gaynor Worrell, Tracey Blythe, Ivan Monckton, Melanie Sutton

Rulebook:

Though it wasn't discussed at conference, delegates were given copies of an updated Unite Rulebook. The changes are a response to the new GDPR Data Protection legislation.

Fracking:

Delegates were provided with copies of a new Unite Anti-Fracking Toolkit. This should be going on the Unite web site soon. For now I've uploaded a copy myself.

Fujitsu:

As ever, much of the value of attending conference is the informal discussions with other attendees, from which you learn as much as the debates, and can get things done. I spent a fair amount of conference discussing the unresolved dispute at Fujitsu, particularly given that the company sent proposals shortly before conference began. I was dismissed in January (see the "reinstate Ian Allinson" statement) but am still actively involved in the dispute and, as a victimised worker under Rule 6, was still able to attend conference. Reps in Fujitsu post updates on their web site from time to time: tiny.cc/fujitsudispute.

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Latest anti-union laws

The government has published new draft documents relating to the Trade Union Act 2016. These include:

• Draft Code of Practice on industrial action ballots and notice to employers (which includes the new ballot thresholds)
• Draft Code of Practice on picketing

These are expected to become law on 1 March 2017.

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Unite Policy Conference 2016 - Thursday's business

I've written a report for rs21 which covers the highlights of Thursday's business. It was a packed day, which included the momentous decision to back mandatory reselection for Labour MPs - something that would not have been supported a few weeks ago.

John McDonnell addressed conference, took questions and was enthusiastically received:

Below are the decisions I managed to note - I had to miss a few to take phone calls about my workplace.

Motion 83: Right to receive: Carried
Composite 20: Equalities Monitoring: Carried
Motion 82: Hidden disability and neurodiversity awareness: Carried
Motion 89: Equality Training: Carried
Motion 90 + Amendment: Assistance with Training and Support for new/existing Reps who have a Disability: Carried
Composite 33: Equipping Unite to Resist the Trade Union Act: Carried
Composite 34: Campaigning Against the Trade Union Act: Carried
Composite 35: E-balloting for Industrial Action and Executive Bodies: Carried
Composite 36: Redundancy Rights: Carried
Motion 170: Agency Workers Directive and 'Swedish Derogation': Carried

Conference watched a short film about blacklisting:

A fundraising appeal was circulated for a documentary about the blacklist.

Motion 171: Blacklisting and the next Labour Government: Carried
Motion 173 + Amendments: Casualisation of Employment: Carried
Motion 179: Zero Hours Contracts: [need to check]
Motion 180: Minimum Pay Rates for Working Anti-Social Hours: [need to check]
Motion 177: Corporate Governance: Remitted
Motion 178: Workers' representatives on company boards: Remitted
Composite 32: Regional Devolution: Carried
Motion 153: Regional Devolution: Carried
Motion 156: True Democracy for County Councils, City Councils and Borough Councils: Fell
Motion 159: Anti-fascism: Carried
[This motion committed Unite to ensure support is put in place to assist local groups to take direct action in opposing fascist demonstrations. The mover also referred to the need to support those jailed for anti-fascist activity]
Composite 41: Labour Party Leadership: Carried
Motion 161: Reselection of MPs: Carried
Motion 162: Constitutional Reform: Carried (Amendments were Withdrawn)
Motion 181: Defending Communities: Carried
Motion 182: The Need for a Commissioner for the Elderly in the UK: Carried
Motion 183: Cold Weather Deaths: Carried
Composite 37: Unite in Schools: Carried
Motion 187: HIV Support Services: Carried
Motion 188: Mobility Insurance: Carried
Motion 189: Statutory Youth Service: Carried
Emergency Motion 3: Don't cut our Rights - Save the Equality and Human Rights Commission: Carried
Composite 14: Public Transport as Part of Our Greener Cities Agenda: Carried
Composite 15: Balanced Energy Policy: Carried
Composite 16: Public ownership of utilities: Carried
Composite 17: Fracking: Carried
Composite 18: Action on Climate Change: Carried
Motion 190 + Amendment: Branch Secretaries Email Support: Carried
Composite 38: Towards a Sustainable Unite: Remitted
Motion 192: Outsourcing and Procurement: Carried
Motion 197: Executive Council Elections: Remitted
Motion 198: Reintroduction of Skilled Membership Card: Remitted
Motion 199: Disenfranchised Members: Carried
Motion 200: Route for Emergency Motions: Carried
Motion 147: Affiliate to National Shop Stewards Network (NSSN): Remitted
Emergency Motion 7: Solidarity with USW members at National Grid: Carried

During conference elections were held for the 5th policy conference Standing Orders Committee (SOC) and the following were elected:

• EM: Steve Froggatt
• I: Fraces Hourihane
• LE: Marsha de Cordova
• NEYH: Dave Allen
• NW: Martin McMulkin
• S: Linda Delgado
• SE: Jan Bastable
• SW: Agnes Hilditch
• W: Julie Evans
• WM: Barry Hartshorn

There were also elections for the Appeals Committee, with the following elected:

• EM: Rob Siddons
• I: Liam Gallagher 
• LE: Jim Kelly, Susan Matthews
• NEYH: Ian King, Angela Duncum
• NW: Ian Bruce
• S: Shirley Johnson
• SE: Paul Millam
• SW: And Worth
• W: Phil Jones
• WM: Dave Harrison

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Jeremy Corbyn's speech to Unite Policy Conference

Jeremy Corbyn's speech showed how much his own views align with Unite policies. He got particularly strong applause for his commitments to renationalise the railways and repeal the Trade Union Act. He also talked about the Workplace 2020 discussions about the future of work.

Those planning to stand against Corbyn for Labour leader should note - only a handful of delegates didn't stand and applaud him, and presumably some of those were people who had difficulty standing. This is markedly more enthusiastic than the response to any Labour leader I can remember.

Watch for yourself:

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Report from GPM&IT NISC April 2016

The committee, which covers the Graphical, Paper, Media & IT industries, met Monday and Tuesday. This is a summary of some key points. I’ve not included most of the industrial detail (and some other points) in my report because not everything is appropriate to post publicly. For jargon, see here.

Organising, Campaigning and Education:

1. Osborne’s National Living Wage (NLW) is basically a rebadged and slightly higher National Minimum Wage at £7.20 an hour for over 25s, not to be confused with the real Living Wage of £8.25 or £9.40 in London for over 18s. The NLW is based on a percentage of median income rather than any measure of the cost of living. Some of the worst employers are trying to fund the NLW by cutting terms and conditions elsewhere or setting excessive workload targets so people have to work more hours than they are paid for. Members at one company are balloting over pay in relation to this. Fujitsu has had some bad press from its FSESL subsidiary in the UK. There were many more examples.
2. Members at Tullis Russell who lost their jobs have won £1.5m compensation. The NISC paid tribute to the work of Paul Reilly, the Unite convenor there, who has not yet found alternative employment.
3. In line with the decision of our sector conference, a report on organising is being sent out to RISCs via their secretaries following each NISC meeting and RISCs are asked to feed back their ideas, experiences, comments and plans, as well as including organising in their reports to the NISC. Verbal reports showed some good activity going on in some regions.
4. The NISC’s organising strategy subcommittee will seek a meeting with Sharon Graham from the organising department.
5. The NISC is keen to get a revised version of the strategic report on the sector produced for the sector conference about four years ago.
6. Unite has created a new Manufacturing Combine bringing together reps from relevant sectors. An initial meeting had explored its remit and goals and set up some work groups. We elected two NISC members to attend on behalf of the GPM&IT sector.
7. I gave a report on the use of Skype to increase participation of members not at sites where face to face members’ meetings were practicable. These have been well received by members and are helping offline organising and the education of members about issues and their rights.
8. Education is under attack generally, from student fees, abolition of EMA, academisation of schools and cuts to adult education. Training for union reps is part of adult education, which has faced cuts of 50% this year. It is anticipated that all funding may be removed from July 2017, which will require major changes to trade union education. While Unite, other unions and organisations work on strategies to respond, workplaces are encouraged to get as many reps through training as possible before funding is removed. As always, there is a push to increase the participation of young members, women and BAEM members.

Health & Safety:

1. International Workers’ Memorial Day is 28^th April 2016. There are Unite posters, stickers etc on the theme “strong laws, strong enforcement, strong unions” available from offices or the web site. The intention is to highlight the threat to health and safety from government cuts and the Trade Union Bill. Other resources are available from the TUC and Hazards.
2. Stress is the biggest health issue facing workplaces, and Unite will be updating its existing guidance.
3. The TUC health and safety and organising guide is now available in PDF and epub formats via https://www.tuc.org.uk/HandSandOrganising
4. Unite is updating its H&S guide, the 2014 version is online. Susan Murray and Bud Hudspith are keen to hear members’ views on what issues should be in the new edition, the most suitable format, and any other comments.

Political:

1. The Lords are still discussing the Trade Union Bill and the situation with amendments should be clearer around the end of next week. Though there may be progress on electronic balloting, the idea of secure workplace balloting, essential to raising turnout and avoiding a “digital divide”.
2. The Tories are carrying out a triple attack to weaken political opposition. The Trade Union Bill aims to slash funding to the Labour Party, boundary changes will disproportionately eliminate Labour-held seats, and changes to voter registration have disenfranchised millions of people – disproportionately young, poor and in insecure housing.
3. Unite is encouraging people to register to vote, and to opt for a postal vote as this delivers a higher turnout.
4. While media attention is on the Euro-referendum campaign there are election for councils, devolved government etc for the entire country on 5 May. Unite is campaigning for a Labour vote. It is likely that Labour will suffer losses as it did very well the last time this set of council seats came up. There is also concern that UKIP will pick up seats so Unite has produced material highlighting that far from being an anti-establishment party they are cosy with big business and in favour of cuts to public services and workers’ rights. EU citizens living in the UK can vote in all the elections taking place on 5 May.
5. There was frustration that many Labour councillors try to keep quiet about the cuts rather than being open about the impact of the Tory cuts they are passing on and campaigning on the issue. Just 15% of local government funding comes from council tax, compared to 60% from central government, and the rest from business rates and service charges.
6. Some Labour MPs continue to try to undermine Corbyn. One effect of the boundary changes is that later in the parliament all constituencies will need to select their candidate for the next General Election, creating an opportunity for constituencies to choose candidates reflecting their priorities.
7. A GPM&IT remit to the Executive Council supporting Jeremy Corbyn and Momentum had been “left on the table” rather than voted on as it was unlikely to have secured majority support due to “concerns” about some of the people involved in Momentum. The NISC agreed to remove the Momentum bullet point from the remit and resubmit it.
8. Unite is campaigning for a “Remain” vote in the EU referendum in June, along with most other unions. NISC members overwhelmingly supported this position, but were not always confident that members in their workplaces did. Unite will run its own campaign based on jobs and workers’ rights, rather than backing any of the wider campaigns. I asked why, given that both main campaigns and the media were stoking up racism against migrants, who form an important part of Unite’s membership, and that equality is supposed to be at the heart of our union’s agenda, we weren’t making defence of migrants a central issue too. Simon Dubbins explained that Unite has produced materials to arm members for such arguments, but while not ducking the issue, it wasn’t seen as “our issue to raise”, though our approach might have to be revised as the campaign unfolded. Further information and campaign materials are available here.

Miscellaneous:

1. Keith Keys from the GPM Charitable Trust asked activists to raise awareness of the help that is available to members, for example with mobility aids, home adaptations and respite or convalescent care.
2. The motions submitted for the Unite Policy Conference 2016 have been circulated to secretaries of branches and constitutional committees, which have until 20 May to submit amendments.
3. It was agreed to have a standing item on NISC agendas to monitor and action progress on implementation of the motions passed at the sector conference, and reports can be provided to RISC members.
4. The issue raised from our sector about the implications of automation and the use of robots for workforces across the economy, is now being considered by the Labour Research Department.
5. Following HMRC input, Unite’s lay member expenses policy has changed, and is likely to change again in the near future. Allowance rates have been changed, and all claims for allowances must be supported by at least some receipted evidence of expenditure.
6. The Welsh RISC is now functional and has elected two delegates to the NISC. There remains an issue to be resolved where the Regional Secretary believes four of those elected to the RISC are not eligible because of the constituency arrangements in Wales.
7. The next NISC meetings will be 30 June – 1 July at Esher; and 13-14 October in London. NISC members who cannot attend a meeting were reminded to submit apologies in good time so that substitute delegates can be invited.

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Support the Junior Doctors and Student Nurses

For years the government has been slashing at the NHS, cutting and privatising to boost the profits of the private health vultures (many of whom have unsavoury links to MPs and other decision makers).

Now Cameron and Hunt have decided to take on both junior doctors and student nurses.

The proposed changes to out of hours arrangements for junior doctors wouldn't just mean a pay cut for many, but remove financialy penalties for trusts who jeopardise safety by making them work excessive hours. The proposals have been branded #notsafenotfair. After an impressive strike vote it was great to see so many out on the picket line for the first time this morning.

Meanwhile the government plans to remove bursaries from student nurses, replacing them with student loans. This system is bad enough for any course, but student nurses actually work full time for a large amount of their training. This would mean them actually paying to work.

The striking thing about the situation is how the government is managing to unite health workers. The idea that weekends could run a weekday service without extra resources is ludicrous. And other health workers know that if the Tories beat the junior doctors, they are bound to attack their terms next because junior doctors can't provide a weekday service without all the other hospital departments and functions.

It's worth remembering that "number 10" described Cameron's assault on junior doctors as his "miners' strike". The whole working class paid the price for years for the defeat of the miners. We cannot afford any repeat, least of all when our NHS is at stake. Health workers deserve maximum support and solidarity.

It's a crime that health workers have to strike at all. Before solidarity strikes were outlawed (and unions obeyed these laws) other workers sometimes struck "on behalf of" health workers so that they could continue their vital work. As the Tories push through their Trade Union Bill and try to outlaw most trade unionism, will this kind of action be back on the cards again if workers feel there is no point trying to comply?

This is the appeal from the BMA:

A CALL FROM THE BMA - TO OUR FELLOW WORKERS, TRADE UNIONISTS AND ACTIVISTS: WE NEED YOU!

The current situation:

Junior Doctors across England will be commencing industrial action on Tuesday 12th January. We are opposing this government’s attempt to impose an unsafe new contract on the medical profession. It is our view that the proposed contract represents an existential danger to the NHS as an institution.

You may be aware that the BMA had initially suspended its planned industrial action at the start of December and returned to talks with the Department of Health. That decision was made in good faith. However, over the last few weeks, in the course of negotiations with Government we have encountered only intransigence. It is clear that the government perceives our contract issue as pivotal for its attempt to “reform” the NHS towards a neoliberal, commercialised system.

It is therefore evident to us that we have no choice but to transform our 98% ballot mandate into action.  

The developments of the next few months will have consequences stretching far into the future. This government is wilfully putting at risk our patients' safety, the tolerability of our working lives as NHS workers and the very viability of the NHS as a publicly-funded, publicly-provided service.

Why we need YOU

The coming period will be the ultimate test of the BMA’s resolve as a Union. However, we remain mindful of the fact that the BMA is not an abstract entity operating in isolation from wider political developments. There is no way that we can win this on our own. We need all concerned citizens, activists and trade unionists to stand alongside us in this fight.

Over the last few months we have been in dialogue with many trade unionists throughout the country and we have been enormously grateful for their support both at a local and national level. The public messages of support from our allied health worker colleagues, the firefighters, the teaching unions and the TUC and TUCG unions have galvanised junior doctors.

We are therefore well aware that all eyes are upon us and that the institutions which represent the wider working class stand with us in solidarity.

We are in no doubt that Osborne, Cameron and Hunt will use the proposed doctor’s contract as a tool for achieving the destruction of safe terms and conditions throughout the NHS and throughout the public sector. The Conservative Party is attempting to stretch the NHS into an ostensibly 7-day elective service whilst simultaneously launching the biggest assault on NHS resources in its history. The politics of austerity represents a clear and present danger to the nation’s health.

A victory for the Junior Doctors would signify the first real crack in the entire edifice of austerity in the UK.

Please stand with us. And when you need us, ask us. We will stand by you.

Invitation to attend our pickets

On behalf of the entire BMA we thank you all for your incredible support so far. Many of you will have seen the details with regards to the planned action and I will reiterate them below. We invite you to come out and display your visible support for us on the days of action.

·         The action will begin with an emergency care-only model, which would see junior doctors provide the same level of service that happens in their given specialty, hospital or GP practice on Christmas Day. It will then escalate to full walk-outs. The action as proposed is:

Emergency care only — 24 hrs from 8am Tuesday 12 January to 8am Wednesday 13 January

Emergency care only — 48 hrs from 8am Tuesday 26th January to 8am Thursday 28 January

Full withdrawal of labour — from 8am to 5pm Wednesday 10th February

·         The aim is to picket all major hospitals in England on all three days of proposed action. Pickets will be in the vicinity of the main entrances and will start at 8am, continuing until at least 12.30pm. However, many picket sites will continue into the evening, especially at the larger hospitals.

·         Along with the pickets there will be parallel “Meet the Doctors” events at nearby transport stops or public spaces. We will direct you to these events from the picket.

·         Please turn up on the days of action, and give us your support. We will then inform you if other local events are planned on the day. If you are an allied health worker, trade unionist or campaigner please do consider bringing along the banner representing your organisation, your working uniform or similar. We would appreciate it however if banners in explicit endorsement of specific political parties are not displayed and that any selling of campaign literature such as newspapers is relatively discreet.

·         On the days of action, please do debate us, educate us and invite us to address your colleagues in your workplace or trade union branch.

Finally

I would also like to take this opportunity to remind you of another important upcoming date. On Saturday 9th January student nurses, midwives and allied health workers will be marching in opposition to Government plans to scrap the NHS student bursary. The protest will assemble outside St Thomas’s hospital at midday and proceed to Downing St. The BMA will be marching alongside the nursing students and we hope to see you there!

Just as the social democratic consensus in this country began with the inception of the NHS in 1948 so too will the NHS be the site of Britain’s last stand against the all-consuming forces of austerity.

Solidarity is the antidote to the cynicism of those in power. Now is the time to stand together in a common defence of the NHS. If not now, when?

Kind regards

Dr Yannis Gourtsoyannis, Member of BMA Junior Doctors Committee National Executive.

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Report from UNITE sector conference, November 2015

The conferences were organised over three days, with services sectors on Monday, manufacturing sectors on Tuesday, and transport sectors on Wednesday. The Graphical, Paper, Media & IT (GPM&IT) conference was on Tuesday. This report covers the plenary session on Tuesday morning, where the sectors were together, the GPM&IT conference itself and the immigration fringe meeting in the evening.

Plenary

Len McCluskey described how media coverage of UNITE is through the lense of our relationship with Labour, rather than based on our primary role as an industrial organisation. UNITE was launching a new campaign on the themes "work, voice, pay" to give the union a more coherent industrial focus. He talked about the injustice of the Trade Union Bill. Referring to the debates about Trident, he argued that "above all" the union had to defend jobs and conditions.

Assistant General Secretary for manufacturing Tony Burke gave an update on various issues affecting our sectors and claimed that "we will do what it takes to save our steel industry".

Len gave a very long response to my question about whether UNITE would support deselecting Labour MPs who rebelled to support bombing Syria despite the lessons of the last fifteen years. He said that UNITE's strategy of encouraging members to get involved in the Labour Party and try to select working class MPs continues, and was being successful, having already resulted in some first class MPs being elected. He described how Corbyn had appealed to people sick of the idea that "There Is No Alternative". He thought that there was a learning curve in the Labour Party, as they adjusted to the new situation, and that this included Corbyn himself, who had said some things that were "inappropriate". He was having to get used to being a leader rather than a backbencher free to say what he liked. The Parliamentary Labour Party was on a learning curve too. They had to realise that the vast majority of Labour members had rejected the old style of politics. Len argued that he was not in favour of mandatory annual reselection, but he did support accountability. Some MPs are behaving despicably, and they should give the new leader a chance. John McDonnell is working on an industrial strategy - which would be the first in Britain for 40 years. The Labour conference had recently voted to oppose bombing Syria. Len condemned the Paris attacks, which he described as "fascist", but argued that it was important to keep a calm head. Syria was already being bombed daily. UK bombs would not make the difference. Hundreds or thousands are being kille daily. Some MPs want to vote for war merely to embarrass Corbyn. Len said he personally would vote to deselect them. He saw it as encouraging that young people were more engaged in politics thanks to Corbyn.

In response to a question about the government's attack on funding through FE colleges for education for union reps, Len said that rep training was key, and that the Executive Council's education sub-committee is looking at a strategy with Jim Mowatt.

A delegate from aerospace & shipbuilding asked about the prospects for diversification from Trident, given how the press had reported Len making disparaging comments around Labour Party conference. Len argued that there are tens of thousands of jobs in the defence sector, it would be devastating if they were lost, and it was our job to oppose such devastation. If it was feasible we shoudl engage in debate on diversification to guarantee the same type of jobs and skills. The National Officer, Ian Waddell, is preparing a report highlighting UNITE's own initiatives on diversification. We've never had a government that was interested, which has led to negative and frustrated responses. In 2001 the Labour government scrapped the body looking at diversification, so members in the sector felt nobody was listening. As general secretary, it was his job to defend ALL members' jobs and communities. At the same time we could try to do things differently. There are also issues around climate change, the civil nuclear industry, fracking etc. He would be guided by conference policy. UNITE would talk to anyone about diversification.

In response to a question about the junior doctors' dispute, Len ridiculed the attempts of the right to pretend that it would jeopardise people if there was an incident like the Paris killings. In such circumstances everyone knew where the doctors would be. Of course we should support their fight. UNITE members in the Medical Practitioners Association are involved.

In response to a question about the allegations that some union employees had been involved in blacklisting our own members in construction, Len paid tribute to the work done by our legal department in challenging blacklisting. Employers had now admitted liability and we were pushing for compensation. UNITE is in the lead on the issue. He argued that the allegations, which have been circulating for years, need to be proved - if there was evidence he would act. However, he argued that an internal investigation was impractical.

Len was asked how to respond to companies which wanted to cut costs by moving jobs offshore, threatening good jobs in the UK. He argued that multinational companies have no loyalty and would leave tomorrow if it could make them more money. The pro- free market government sees no issue with this, which is why our political work is important. This kind of thing doesn't happen in Germany. We also had to use our industrial strength. Siemens have an objective of protecting their "core workforce" in Germany, and when they make cuts they move work from the UK to Germany to do that. He asked who is protecting "British workers"? It is better for businesses to have local supply chains, who can fix issues that arise promptly. The UK needs an industrial strategy. He highlighted the case of Ford, for whom the UK is their most profitable market, despite not making a single car here, having moved jobs elsewhere, but they are still allowed access to the UK market. Len was excited to see Corbyn and McDonnell looking at an industrial strategy.

[Comment: I'm getting increasingly concerned about the amount of UNITE material talking about "British workers". Our members come from all over the world and we all need to unite if we are to win. Talk of "British workers" is divisive and weakens us, as it did during the disgraceful period when Derek Simpson followed Gordon Brown in arguing for "British Jobs for British Workers"]

George Hickman, Dave Roseaman, Sheila Rowley and Pasty Turner were elected unopposed to the Standing Orders Committee for 2017. Other elections took place on Monday & Wednesday.

Sharon Graham introduced the outline of the new UNITE industrial strategy, aimed at tackling declining living standards by extending collective bargaining and improving bargaining outcomes. An intensified focus on our core industrial work would also regenerate the union's industrial "brand" against the media representation. UNITE is an industrial organisation, not a political party.

The idea behind the "work, voice, pay" strategy is to establish core themes that are relevant across all sectors. Every worker can understand what UNITE stands for, and we can establish standards for negotating issues. The themes can be expanded and adapted as appropriate, for example:

• Work: secure, permanent jobs, without zero hours contracts. No compulsory redundancies. Apprenticeships. "Rate for the job" to stop undercutting. Safe environment without discrimination.
• Voice: Union voice for non-recognised workers. Extending the scope of bargaining (e.g. agency workers, job security). National and sectoral bargaining that covers everyone, looking beyond individual workplaces. Negotiations on service/product to shape the future.
• Pay: RPI means a falling share when productivity goes up - focus on ability to pay. Life/work balance. Training. Pensions.

UNITE has begun building a database of workplaces showing the anniversary date for pay deals, agreements etc. Preliminary analysis of our pay deals against data from the Office of National Statistics shows 18 out of 20 sectors have a "UNITE premium" on pay. For example, in the GPM&IT sector (SIC codes 18,62,63) Office of National Statistics data shows pay falling by 1.2%, whereas UNITE agreements in the sector averaged a 2.2% increase. The second phase will be to add unorganised workplaces to the database. Sharon wants to know what fields would be useful to add to the database.

The information about the strategy and database will be disseminated and discussed at NISCs and RISCs. Sectors can develop plans for coordinated bargaining including industrial principles and standards, aligning anniversary dates, or targetting particular companies or sub-sectors. "Best in sector" agreements and clauses can be identified". Combines and networks can be established across sites, companies and sectors. Activists will be able to access the database of collective agreements as well as various templates and model agreements.

GPM&IT conference

Tony Burke introduced a new report "A digital new world" which has been produced by some members in the IT & Comms part of the sector along with the research department and Mike Eatwell, an officer in London & Eastern. It includes information about the profile and importance of the industry and discussed future trends and their possible implications for the employment and the whole economy. In due course this should be available on the UNITE web site.

Ian Tonks presented his report, covering developments in firms across the sector.

Richard Wileman was elected as the delegate to the 2016 TUC conference, with Raja Hussain as the substitute.
Aleksandra Tomczak (Ola) was elected as the delegate to the 2017 TUC conference, with Ged Dempsey the substitute.

There were international speakers from the USW in North America and the UNI, the international union federation.

Alan Tate, the head of UNI Global's ICTS (Information & Communication Technology Services) sector explained that packaging and IT are seen as the parts of the sector with most potential. The UNI strategy is to focus on key multinational corporations in the services side of ICTS.

Nicola Konstantinou from UNI Europa Graphical described how they had been organising round European Works Councils, then building trade union alliances for the companies, approaching management for global agreements on basic rights.

Leeann Foster and Alex Perkins from the USW described their efforts to protect members in US papermaking from what they saw as unfair competition. They had been bringing cases under WTO rules about "unfair subsidies" resulting in selling products below fair market value, which they described as "dumping". They are only allowed to bring cases if they have a company's support, and there is no governmental assistance. Multinationals tend to be reluctant to get involved in such issues. They had won some cases against China, Portugal, Brazil, Australia and Indonesia. While the USW is against trade deals such as TPP and TTIP, they are pushing for "three strikes and you are out" banning companies from the US market if they violate market rules three times.

[Comment: The strategy seemed to be to try to persuade US employers to join the union in a fight against foreign employers seen as unfairly undercutting them. This doesn't seem to me a likely strategy to develop the international solidarity needed to beat the companies dominating world markets and defend jobs.]

Conference heard a report on the disgraceful events at Tullis Russell papermakers in Fife. Despite being employee-owned, the directors had managed to put the company into administration, land and assets sold without the owners' knowledge or any warning. Over 400 workers had lost their jobs and had not been paid £18m they were owed. One family lost £90K as three people worked there. The CEO had walked off with a £500K bonus. As neither HMRC or banks were owed money, there was no proper investigation and no illegality has been proved. The Scottish government and local councils had been supportive with funding retraining, and 85% of the workers now had jobs in other industries. However, the impact locally had been devastating with shops closing etc. A few reps can't get work and fear they have been blacklisted. If this can happen in an employee owned company it shows how inadequate UK corporate law is.

Howard Beckett from the legal department talked about the need to see legal work as part of industrial strategy, rather than as a member benefit or something that is used when an industrial strategy has failed. He highlighted several examples where an aggressive legal stance had been important for industrial campaigns, and argued that was why the government was attacking unions' ability to use the law. When we choose to fight outside the law, we want to be able demonstrate how we tried to stay within it and that the issue is significant enough that members will take the action required to win.

Howard highlighted three recent ballots which had topped the proposed thresholds in the Trade Union Bill (Rolls Royce, GKN, and Syngenta chemicals). In each case it had been important to work out a proper strategy to win in advance. At Rolls Royce, only 60% of members were affected by the pensions issue. Normally that would make it hard to get a big yes vote. Reps had carefully chosen one key site to ballot, and workers at the other sites pledged to contribute financially to make up their wages. The site returned an 80% turnout and a 96% yes vote. After UNITE explained its action plans to the employer, including plans to move action to other sites after an initial 12 weeks, an agreement was reached without any action being needed. GKN had followed a similar strategy. Howard urged sectors to consider what strategies would fit in their industries and identify key powerful groups.

Employers often seek injunctions when protests take place at the same time as industrial disputes. Sometimes they even claim protests are secondary picketing. Where protests take place without any individuals, organisation or structure (e.g. committee, Facebook page) organising them, it is much harder for employers to blame them on the union or to find any other "target" for an injunction. Protests with speakers are harder to ban because they can also benefit from the right to freedom of speech.

Howard is keen to get feedback on the new Unite Legal Services web site, to which examples of the many cases we win for members in each sector are being added.

The new "low pay rate" of subs (currently just £2 a week) for those earning below the Living Wage or less than £15,000 a year, hasn't had much publicity. To pay for this the standard subs rate had risen significantly in 2015, but there will be no rise in 2016.

Legal officers are being appointed and trained in the regions to improve legal support to officers and reps and help ensure legal issues are considered early in campaign planning.

Mark Metcalf highlighted the books being published by UNITE, book of the month recommendations and rebel road (lists of plaques, museums, statues, pubs etc commemorating labour movement heroes) which are all on the learning section of the UNITE web site.

Industrial strategy


Sharon Graham was unable to attend the GPM&IT conference to discuss the outline she presented at the plenary, so this agenda item was not discussed fully. The National Officer undertook to circulate to all delegates the exercise that Sharon had intended to do, and encouraged us all to canvass views so that it could be discussed at the next NISC meeting. It was agreed to invite Sharon to that meeting.

Motions

The following motions were agreed:

1 Industrial Strategy for the Sector (from the National Industrial Sector Committee)

Conference welcomes the outstanding election of Jeremy Corbyn as the new Labour Leader with 59.5% of the vote on a platform of anti-austerity, and a bold new vision of a fair and just society for working people.

We congratulate Unite Executive Council for the decision to endorse Jeremy Corbyn and to recommend support for him by Unite members. We also congratulate the work of the Unite Political Department for the tremendous effort they put in to sign up more than 100,000 Unite affiliated supporters, more than half of the total number of affiliated supporters signed up by all affiliated unions. There is no doubt that Unite's Political Strategy to engage with and win back the Labour Party for working class values has been hugely important in achieving this success.

We therefore call upon the NISC to work with the Unite EC to:

• lobby the Labour Party and Jeremy Corbyn to develop an industrial strategy that seeks to support the GPM&IT sector in the UK
• lobby the Labour Party to adopt a policy towards National Sector bargaining
• Lobby support for our Sector fight on procurement and public authorities use of GPM&IT recognised companies

2 Organising Strategy (from the National Industrial Sector Committee)

This conference recognises that large sections of the industries in the GPMIT sector are un-unionised or under-unionised, and that this weakens the bargaining position of every worker in the sector. Organising is therefore a high priority if we are to help workers in our sector to build more power to defend and improve their lives.

This conference congratulates the NISC on the creation of an organising strategy subcommittee in July 2014. To support their work we call on our National Officer, research department, RISC members, workplace reps, branch officers and officers with GPMIT in their allocations to work on mapping the sector so that we build a more accurate, complete and up to date picture of GPMIT workplaces. The mapping should identify, for each workplace, factors including:

1. Address
2. Number of workers by employer (including agency, subcontractors etc)
3. Number of members by employer
4. Details of all reps and branch officers
5. Details of recognition, I&C and EWC agreements
6. Other workplaces of the same employer
7. Unite branch
8. Officer
9. Any other unions present
10. Any union structures linking Unite at this workplace with other unions or other workplaces in the same employer
11. Subsector (appropriate categories to be defined)

Communication is at the heart of organising. We call on all RISCs to email out a short bulletin following each meeting to all GPMIT reps in their sector, with a copy to the National Officer for consideration of the NISC. This can help engage more activists with our RISCs and involve them in the mapping and organising.

RISCs should use the mapping decide which of the following organising categories best fits each workplace in their region:

1. Substantial single workplaces with recognition – “100%”
2. Workplaces in employers with membership but no recognition – “green field”
3. Workplaces in multi-site companies/groups where we have recognition in parts – “extend horizontally”
4. Unionised workplaces in other industries with ITC outsourced on site to an employer with >20 employees – “client site”
5. The rest – “nurture”

The NISC’s organising strategy subcommittee should develop proposals for organising and servicing each of these categories more effectively for consideration by the NISC and RISCs. These may include recommendations on officer allocation, branch structure and use of lay companions to allow resources to be focussed on building power for members to win more.

The NISC should provide a report to RISCs after each meeting on progress with the organising strategy.

[Comment: The mapping described in this motion clearly overlaps with that Sharon Graham was talking about for developing an industrial strategy, as well as with motion 3. In the discussion, it was clarified that the reports from NISC to RISCs are not intended to be full minutes or reports, but prompt updates on progress with the organising strategy. Similarly, the RISC updates to reps would focus on key points for information or action.]

3 100% Organising (from East Midlands)

Conference applauds the commitment of the Union to organising and the work of the organising department in growing our Union, which is key for the movement to survive. As activists we understand the need to look at new industries and to organise the non-unionised sectors of the economy, but this cannot be at the cost of losing traditionally well unionised industries.

This Conference calls for a membership audit of all national and international employers within the Sector; this could be achieved with the aid of the Research Department, and lead Regaional Officers. The information would be used to develop an organising strategy for the Sector, involving activists within recognised sites of the targeted companies to strive to 100% membership across the sites.

5 Collective Bargaining with the Sector (from East Midlands)

Over the last ten years we have witnessed the loss of our major National Agreement, the BPIF, which covered the majority of the printing industry. The Agreement was not only responsible for negotiating annual pay increases but more importantly it set out the minimum terms and conditions for employment within the industry.

As a result of this sector representatives have nothing to refer to when trying to negotiate rates of pay for new technology or changes in working practices within their workplaces. This vacuum has led to a decline in rates of pay and terms and conditions within the Sector.

Conference believe that the Union needs to address these issues or face a race to the bottom as companies play our members off against each other on terms and conditions of members working in this sector.

Conference calls upon the EC to publish a Unite Guide for activists working within the Sector, based on both past and present National Agreements held within the Sector. The Guide will be a useful tool in organising and as a means to try and ensure we maintian minimum terms and conditions within the Sector and protect the interests of our members.

6 Collective Bargaining Strategy (from South East)

Conference instructs Unite the union to facilitate, through the National Officer, group meetings of all the major companies in the sector, the aim being to coordinate a national collective strategy in group and sub-sector level.

7 Printing Industry National Bargaining (from South West)

For those GPM members not currently covered by a House Agreement or a National Agreement this conference demands that future wage negotiations revert to being carried out on a national basis or every effort made to re-establish national bargaining with the appropriate employers' organisation.

8 The March of the Robots (from London & Eastern)

World-wide sales of robots rose 23% in 2014 while prices fell by 14% meaning sophisticated automated systems can be purchased at £100,000 and some robots as low as £20,000.

In those manufacturing sectors that are most readily automated such as cars, other transport, computers, electronic and electrical equipment about 85% of tasks can be performed by robots.

It is expected that other sectors such as food preparation and manufacture, chemicals, metals, energy (drones are already replacing human riggers at oil sites), transport (driverless cars and trucks are being tested in California) and construction (remote controlled diggers are being tested in Sweden and 3D Printing in the Netherlands) will follow suit.

The US financial sector around Wall St employed 150,000 five years ago and that has now shrunk by a third due to technology.

Many work roles previously thought invulnerable to automation are now at a growing risk because the enhanced capacity of such systems have meant many job functions can be codified and with hugely advanced sensor systems they threaten hundreds of different service industry jobs.

This is happening now because processors that run computerised systems double in capacity every eighteen months. This has led to Cloud Computing that has freed a growing number of employers from the vast expenditure of owning their own large computer systems. That in turn has assisted the collection of Big Data using advanced mobile technology and the Internet of Things whereby machines communicate with each other generating even more data (50 billion devices connected by 2020). Technology observers from Massachusetts Institute of Technology to Oxford University have predicted between 35% and 47% of current employment roles are at high risk of automation.

The UK Tory Government has not been slow to see the advantages of such developments and alongside spending millions on R&D they have set up strategic bodies with academics and employers but notably no trade union representatives.

We call ont eh GPM&IT NISC to seek the support of the Executive to establish a working party of one senior lay rep per industrial sector to monitor these developments that threaten our members' (and future members') employment prospects.

The UK economy map highlighting work that is stategically important and future proofed needs revisiting in light of these innovations to ensure our organising efforts are flexible. Technology affects all sectors in some way or another.

Unite must lead the way on thhis by creating policies that result in technology helping to create a better society and environment and is not just used as the ultimate cheap labour resource to only create redundancies.

9 Agency Workers (from London & Eastern)

Conference calls upon our NISC to formulate a strategy to deal with the growth of agency workers within the sector. Conference would like to see a positive programme in place where workplace reps and regional officers are encouraged to firstly map the companies where agency workers exist and to proactively recruit and organise them, with the sole purpose of extending collective bargaining within the sector.

Agencies such as Aktrion and Ambtions Personnel are now the majority of the workforce in many of our companies, and their rates of pay, terms and conditions are usually set at the legal minimums. Using the statutory recognition legislation and the CAC we need to ensure that we provide a collective bargaining famework to remove this two tier workforce.

Our members need to understand that to ignore agency workers in their companies not only undermines our influence and power but put their own pay, terms and conditions and permanent roles at risk.

10 Holiday Pay (North East, Yorkshire & Humber)

Conference welcomes the campaigning work of Unite the union on holiday pay. This vital issue affects many employees across the Sector.

Immigration fringe

In the evening I attended a very useful meeting about the Immigration Bill 2015-16, which aims to create a "hostile environment for migrants" by laying "trip-wires" throughout society. The speaker was Don Flynn from the Migrants' Rights Network, who also handed out the TUC briefing on the bill.

The bill aims to increase requirements on employers, landlords, financial institutions and public servants to frequently check the immigration status of people they are dealing with. Employers and landlords can face hefty fines if they fail to do so. Immigration officials will be able to raid businesses and shut them down for 48 hours if they can't produce paperwork to show how they have checked their workers' immigration status.

The bill isn't just about people who the law says have no right to live or work in the UK, it also applies to the terms under which they are allowed to do so. The bill creates a new criminal offence of "working without permission". For example, if someone lets a room in their house to an overseas student, and they work 21 hours one week instead of 20 hours, the student could face up to 12 months in prison and deportation, while the landlord could face a hefty fine. The effect of these restrictions will be to increase harassment of anyone who looks or sounds as if they might not be British. Employers and landlords will feel under pressure to discriminate rather than taking the risk of falling foul of the law, making it even harder for workers from ethnic minorities to get jobs and housing. This will be made worse by requiring a high standard of English for jobs in the public sector - even where the role requires no dealing with the public.

Wages for anyone "working without permission" will be treated as "proceeds of crime", meaning someone who falls foul of the law has no right to their wages.

An excellent discussion covered many points. Immigration law has already been used by employers to break up workplace organisation and intimidate workers, as for the SOAS cleaners. Employers rely on migrant labour, and will increasingly do so as the UK population ages, but want workers feeling vulnerable and insecure.

The immigration bill will have a negative impact on many members, as well as on organisation. Reps need to be ready to support members affected. Don ended by pointing out that the bill relied on implementation to be oppressive, and there were many ways in which workers might fail to implement it, particularly when cuts force them to choose which aspects of their roles to neglect.

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