Speak up forPublic ServicesThe TUC campaign launches in the Northern Region.

Good work isgood for youHighlighting the beneficial effectsthat working brings.

TacklingRacismThe North East plays host to theHope not Hate Event in Trimdon.

Recipe forlearningHow KP has the right ingredientsfor tasty learning.

unionsnorth

Issue : 23

April 2010

The Magazine of the Northern TUC

There can be no doubt that public servicesare under the cosh. In the wake of a globalrecession caused by the insufficientlyregulated, greed fuelled, morally bankruptworld of corporate finance it is publicspending that is coming under attack - andthat means public sector workers and vitalpublic services are firmly in the firing line.

The reality is that the economic crisis is farfrom over and the real danger is that cuts inpublic services and reductions in public sectorjobs could lead to a 'double-dip' recession,prolonging the damage to the economy andexacerbating the impact on families andcommunities throughout the UK, but perhapsmost dramatically in regions with a heavierdependence on public sector jobs.

The despair is certainly not over for thehundreds of thousands of people who havealready lost their jobs, or who are fearful ofbeing made unemployed, nor for those millionsof young people who cannot find work.

Tackling current and preventing furtherunemployment should be our highest priority.Premature calls to reduce the public sectordeficit are threatening to derail the effectiveattempts to stimulate the economy andaddress unemployment caused by thedownturn.

Kickstarting a national TUC campaign, over110 delegates attended the Northern TUC's“Speaking up for Public Services” event inNewcastle upon Tyne on the 15thMarch. Chaired by Gill Hale, the Panel ofspeakers included high profile General

Secretaries and national figures as well asSenior Regional Union Representatives.

Dave Prentis, General Secretary of Unisoncongratulated the TUC for organising the eventand commended the publication that wasbeing launched ('Speaking up for PublicServices - Making the case for the NorthernRegion').

Dave spoke with real commitment about thesebeing hard times for the working class andworking people. He said: “Over one millionworkers have lost their jobs in the past yearand workers are experiencing pay cuts, cutsto benefits, the loss of their homes and manyface the real possibility of poverty in retirement.40% of young black people and 25% of whitepeople will leave school without a job.

“At a time when frontline services are neededmore than ever, public sector workers arebeing lined up to pay the price for the greedof others. It's time for our unions to be strongand we will not stand by while they attack allthat we hold dear.”

Speaking about the Unison launch of 'A MillionVoices for Public Services' campaign(www.unison.org.uk/million), he said: “Weneed to be clear to politicians of every party

who are thinking about cutting public servicesthat workers cannot be blamed for this crisiswhen banks received £1m in bonuses forrisking our money. Over half of workers inthis region depend on public sector contracts.

“For every £1 a public sector worker earns,70p goes back into the local economy. Thehuman cost of cuts in the public sector islocal people left without services. All publicsector unions need to stand together - wewill not tolerate attacks on our members, theirpay and their jobs.”

Colin Smith of the GMB then called on theLabour Government to honour its duty toprotect public services, declaring that tradeunions are key to preventing the dismantlingof the public sector. Colin acknowledged thatno change is not an option. He said: “Weneed to improve services and manage change,as there will be change. We need to organiseand campaign jointly to recruit members andget them involved in trade unions and ensureany disputes are coordinated and ensure thatall trade unions work together to protectservices and jobs.”

At a time of growing unemployment it isuntenable the Government has taken thedecision to make cuts to educational provisionto the unemployed with a 20% cut to adulteducation budget.

Iain Owens, Regional Secretary of UCU, said:“This especially affects areas likeNorthumberland which has adisproportionately high number of unemployedpeople dependent on further education.

Issue 23 unionsnorth

03

TUC campaignlaunched to make

a case for theNorthern Regionand protect jobs

PublicServices

Speakingup for

Dave Prentis: General Secretary of Unison

Colin Smith: GMB

04

unionsnorth Issue 23

A copy of the TUC publication 'Speaking up for Public Services - Making the case in the Northern Region' can be downloaded from:www.tuc.org.uk/publicsector/tuc-17736-f0.cfm?regional=3

Billy Hayes: General Secretary of the CWU

Iain Owens: Regional Secretary of UCU

Mark Serwotka: General Secretary of PCS

Mick Shaw: President of FBU

“Cuts to higher education will affect all sixuniversities in the region with Cumbria beingthe most at risk. The University of Cumbriahas only existed for two and half years andthere is a real threat that education provisionat the University will cease. UCU are workingjointly with Unison on the 'Our University, OurJobs and Our Community' campaign to protectjobs and education provision in the county.”

Delegates then heard about the nationalpublication produced for the TUC by APSE(The Association of Public Service Excellence)called 'Speaking up for Public Services - thevital role of the public sector in and beyondthe recession' and brings together evidencewhich demonstrates that sustaining publicservices is vital to economic recovery andthe future prosperity of the country.

Cuts in public spending would have a negativeeffect on future competitiveness and wouldimpact on the most vulnerable and needy insociety. Andy Mud, co-author of thepublication, said: “Cuts to public services arenot inevitable, there is a choice. There is aneed for a more progressive tax system. TheUK loses up to an estimated £36bn a yearthrough tax avoidance and evasion.

A restructure is necessary to restore financialstability and to start to address the gapbetween the rich and poor. History showsthat recessions are cyclical and we need tolook at laying down the foundations for thenext economic downturn over the next 10years.”

Following a Q&A session, the Chair introducedBilly Hayes, General Secretary of theCWU. Representing postal workers and thosethat work in communications and financialservices, Billy, said: “Economic policy beingadopted by all major parties seems to indicatesavage cuts to public services, it's just abouthow much and when. We cannot simply relyon ideology, we need a vision of what wewant the future to look like that embracesdemocracy, allows us to have our say andadvocates independence for trade unions.”

Mick Shaw, President of the FBU, voiced hisconcern to delegates that the next 3-5 yearscould be horrific. He said: “Public sectorworkers did not cause the recession. Whileour members face threats to jobs and payfreezes, salaries of Chief Fire Officers andUniversity Vice Chancellors are risingdisproportionately.

“Cuts in services will mean longer waitingtimes for emergency services with the likelyresult of more fire deaths. We need analternative argument and a campaign strategythat takes us beyond the general election.Attacking us is not the answer.”

Finally, Mark Serwotka, General Secretary ofPCS, encouraged Reps to use the TUC’s'Speaking up for Public Services’ in theirbranches and workplaces. He said: “The CivilService employs over 33,000 workers in theregion, workers who play a vital role but areso often forgotten and I am proud to paytribute to those workers today.

“The reality is the main political parties believethe deficit can only be solved by cutting publicservices. There have been 100,000 civilservice job cuts under Labour. We need toagree practical steps to defend services andjobs, have an alternative argument. Leadingup to the election, PCS will be running a highprofile “Make Your Vote Count” campaign. Weneed to stand together as a united labour andtrade union movement and support thethousands of dedicated workers that continueto provide high quality public services.”

Speaking after the conference, Kevin Rowan,Regional Secretary Northern TUC, said:“Public spending cuts would only add toeconomic decline at this stage. Addingredundant public sector workers to the alreadyswollen ranks of the unemployed will imposeadditional pressures on benefit budgets andfurther reduce spending power within theeconomy as a whole. The public sector is animportant lynchpin not just in itself but alsoin terms of the wider economy.

“Not only would public sector workers andpublic services suffer from spending cuts.The business community, in particular theNorth East Chamber of Commerce, hasacknowledged that the wider economy wouldalso take a hit from cuts to public expenditurethrough the inevitable impact on the £125bnspent annually on public sector procurement.“Cuts may help balance the books in themedium term, but the impact on business,employment and essential services wouldincrease economic and social costs veryquickly and would result in serious, long term,structural damage. Now is the time to seepublic services and public spending as partof the solution, not part of the problem.“The public sector has provided a muchneeded safety net against the economic andsocial damage of the recession. It will be anessential part of the route-map out of thedownturn, helping individuals, families andbusinesses recover through directemployment, employability support andcreating the infrastructure for commerce toprosper.”

Now, more than ever, it's time to Speak upfor Public Services.

Most of us, when asked, would agree wewant to live in a good society. Very oftenit is the reason we became trade unionists;to help to improve the lives of others, butunderstanding more about a range ofchallenges is critical to effectivelyrepresenting members’ interests andadvancing progress towards an equalsociety.

With this in mind, the TUC hosted a special“Good Society” conference in conjunctionwith Compass and Freidrich Ebert Stiftungthat included contributions from an array ofdistinguished academics, writers and politicalcommentators to develop a vision for a goodsociety.

Top of delegates’ agenda was the state of theeconomy. Governments around the worldhave funded bank bail outs to the tune ofbillions of pounds. Astonishingly, there is anapparent unwillingness to overhaul aneconomic system that enables banks to takeunmitigated risks, suppress wages and thecost of goods, encourage debt, fuel anunsustainable property and consumerspending boom. This produced the financialcrisis argued Ann Pettifor, Executive Directorof Advocacy International, not the actions ofordinary workers. All too often she claimed,the “little guy is asked to be the fall guy.”

Trade union demands for higher wages areblamed for inflationary pressures in the

economy. This is a false premise. Trade unionsare not responsible for inflation and shouldnot be labelled as such. Neither shouldordinary people be expected to pay over theodds for aspiring to have a good job; owntheir own home; be able to access goodquality public services; live in safecommunities; contribute a fair share in tax,with a reasonable amount of disposableincome to spend that will ultimately benefitthe economy.

Trade unions have long voiced concerns thatongoing decline in manufacturing sectors,coupled with an over reliance on servicesector employment, would undermine theUK’s productivity and economiccompetitiveness. Successive Governments’failure to invest in industrial infrastructure andemployer reluctance to provide workforcetraining has proved short-sighted.

Professor John Tomaney highlighted thatalthough the financial sector was teetering onthe verge of collapse before Governmentstepped in, manufacturing output has beenhit hardest. The financial crisis has shed newlight on the North-South divide and illustratedthe dangers of uneven growth in differentparts of the UK. Comparatively, the North hassuffered higher rates of unemployment sincethe recession began as this part of the countryis more reliant on manufacturing than theSouth, where the financial sector remainsintact.

This gap in economic performance suggeststhe North will take longer to recover fromrecession and underlines the importance ofdeliberate policies to close the wealth gapinstead of concentrating resources in theSouth East, which is relatively affluent.Clearly, how the economy is run partlydetermines the wellbeing of a society andhow wealth is shared among the generalpopulation.

Larry Elliott, Economics Editor for the Guardiandeclared that ordinary citizens should not beexpected to pay the price of corporate failure.

To create a ‘good society:Banks need to be better regulated andrepay their debts. The activities of the financial services industry should be stringently controlled to help peopleeffectively manage personal debt.

The structure of the economy needs toaccommodate a mix of industries andactively promote growth in regions thatare lagging behind.

Governments should commit to makinglong-term investment decisions; building, maintaining and re-using assets that will serve the economy andsociety for future generations.

Property developers must be requiredto cater for the needs of a changing population and acknowledge the marketis failing to meet demand for affordablehousing.

Workers need to exercise collective influence to ensure their pensions andsavings are invested ethically. The financial system should incentivise institutions to make ethical choices.

Issue 23 unionsnorth

05

Making a differenceat the Good Society

Conference

Achievingthe GoodSociety

Ann Pettifor: Executive Director of Advoacy Int.

Larry Elliott: Guardian Economics Editor

06

unionsnorth Issue 23

The distinguished panel of speakers alsoincluded: Poul Rasmussen, President, Partyof European Socialists; Paul Noon, GeneralSecretary of Prospect; Paul Nowak, Head ofOrganising for the TUC and Damian Thomas,Head of Research at the Centre for Partnershipand Performance in Dublin.

Speakers focussed on the key policy andstrategic areas of:

The Welfare StatePublic ServicesClimate ChangeWorkplace Bargaining Agendas

Amidst an atmosphere of uncertainty andinsecurity it is imperative trade unions exercisecollective strength and utilise their politicalleverage to usher in a new era of economicand social change.

Thrifty accountancy is not the onlypre-requisite to govern, nor is it a sufficientlygood reason to be elected to office. Electedrepresentatives, whether in the workplace orat the ballot box, seek a higher purpose andbetter standard.

Solving the worst crisis in a generationdemands a new settlement between workers,employers, Government, and the people. Thisis crucial to create the right conditions forsustainable economic growth and theprovision of good quality public services.

Gail Cartmail, Unite Assistant GeneralSecretary, eloquently summarised tradeunions’ vision of a good society: a moreprogressive taxation system; investment inpublic services and infrastructure; anaffordable house building programme; theenforcement of existing employment rightsand greater commitment to equality, anti-discrimination and community cohesion.

It is now up to us to spellout what reforms areneeded to improve thelives of trade unionmembers and theirfamilies in the Northernregion.

Poul Rasmussen:President Party of European Socialists

Paul Noon:General Secretary of Prospect

Paul Nowak:Head of Organising for the TUC

Gail Cartmail: Unite Assistant General Secretary

Damian Thomas: Head of Research at the Centrefor Partnership and Performance in Dublin. 

Issue 23 unionsnorth

07

Trimdon plays host tothis year’s Hope not

Hate event on LabourParty Anniversary

Clare Williams, Chair of the Northern TUCRace Advisory Group welcomed unionactivists and anti-racism campaigners tothe fourth annual Hope not Hate event, heldat Trimdon Labour Club on Saturday 27 andSunday 28 February.

The event coincided with the very date thefledgling Labour Party was founded at ameeting in Memorial Hall, London some 110years ago.

Clare also congratulated Phil Wilson, MP forSedgefield, for organising the event with theTUC and for his strong leadership in mobilisingcommunities across County Durham tocounter the BNP. She said it was a credit to

the work of localtrade union branchesand local anti-racismcoalitions that theBNP has not securedany seats in thisregion; but there isstill work to be done.

During his address, Phil Wilson thankedTrimdon Concert Brass band for playing andthe NUM for bringing so many trade unionbanners to display around the hall, celebratingthe proud history and heritage of the coalmining industry. He said the BNP promotesimple solutions to complicated issues andthe only way to beat them is to deal with localissues, getting back to grass roots and torebuild the Labour Party and get in touch withthe needs of people in our communities.

Keynote speaker Home Secretary AlanJohnson said it was a real pleasure to addresstrade union colleagues on the 110thanniversary of the Labour Party, in a locationwhich has such strong links to the trade unionmovement. He announced he was proud ofthe fact that Labour achieved the first blackMP, first Asian Minister and first black womanminister and that it was great the trade union

movement is involved in the Hope not Hatecampaign.

During the event, two main issues came uptime and time again – immigration and theeconomy. Immigration has beenunquestionably beneficial for this country,culturally and socially, but it is not just a UKissue. There has been a huge explosion inmigration around the world and the UK isranked 15 out of 27 in the foreign populationimmigration statistics in Europe.

Speaker Feargal Sharkey explained that hebelieves music and culture are some of thebest ways to get the anti-racism messageacross. He also discussed moving on 68years from the discussions of the 1900s to

Derry with a population of 100,000 where60% of inhabitants were of one religious belief,did not have a job and did not have the rightto vote. He had joined many civil rightsmarches with his brothers and rememberssheltering under a bridge on yet anothermarch. He is very aware of what intolerance,division, lack of understanding of others’beliefs can do, and in the extreme, thebloodshed this can cause. Northern Irelandhas come a long way since then in part dueto the simple power of dialogue. Music reflectsthe community, its beliefs and goals and theright to be treated as equal in your owncommunity.

The final keynote speaker was FrancesO’Grady, TUC Deputy General Secretary. Inher comments Frances stressed howimportant it was to have the support of localMPs like Phil Wilson and Helen Goodman intaking on the BNP. She said that the tradeunions are in a unique position to use theirorganising skills tocombat and counterthe BNP and all itstands for, especiallyas we are less than70 days away fromlocal elections, wherea key issue will beelectoral turnout.

The unity and collective strength we share astrade unionists will always matter and it isthe politics of hope not hate that shapes allour futures.

Hope not Hate

TUC joins financialinclusion stakeholder

group to ensurefinance is affordable

for those most in need

08

unionsnorth Issue 23

Campaign calls on theGovernment to

help seafarers withtraining andemployment

Maritime unions RMT and Nautilus arelobbying the Government to provide long-awaited support for UK seafarers. The TUCis also supporting the campaign andencouraging all unions to raise awarenessand give their backing.

As an island nation, Britain relies heavily onships and seafarers for the safe and efficient

movement of nearly all imports and exports.

Maritime expertise however is in dangerparticularly with the recent announcement ofmajor redundancies by Maersk, one of thelargest employers and trainers of Britishseafarers.

Over two years ago unions and shipowners

presented the Government with a joint packageof proposals on seafarer training. As they arestill waiting for a decision, a refreshed packagewas tabled earlier this year.

Individuals who want to join in the campaigncan sign the Downing Street E-Petition or senda postcard or e-card to their local MP,supporting the package and raising theirconcerns about the industry’s future.

To get involved visit: www.nautilusint.orgfor more information or contact: Nautilus,RMT or Alice Hood at the TUC on 0207 4671225 Email: ahood@tuc.org.uk

Save ourMaritime Skills

ACT NOW!OR WE ALL SINKACT NOW!OR WE ALL SINK

ACT NOW!OR WE ALL SINK

One of the less visible signs of the economicdownturn and recession has been theincreased cost of unsecured finance

The interest rates charged by credit cardcompanies and banks have continued to risedespite the fall in the Bank of England baserate. Added to this there has been a markedincrease in the efforts of loan sharks and lesscreditable lenders to exploit the poorest andmost vulnerable in society.

As many as two million adults in this regiondon’t have access to affordable loans, bankaccounts or opportunities to save whichmakes them vulnerable to loan sharks. TheTUC has welcomed and is now representedon a financial inclusion stakeholder groupestablished to help those who are unable toaccess financial services.

The group is considering a range of actionsto ensure the provision of affordable credit.The aim is to ensure no one in the north eastshould encounter difficulties understanding,accessing or using legitimate financial

services and products that are appropriate totheir needs. The group will work withstakeholders to identify those areas wherefinancial inclusion or exclusion has a majorimpact on health, education, employment,crime and disorder, housing, equality anddiversity and understand how financialinclusion can positively impact oncommunities.

The first actions include mapping out ofexisting financial inclusion provision, includingthe services of “Five Lamps” operating acrossthe region. Five Lamps offer affordable creditin these areas and have a contract with theDepartment for Work and Pensions to provide1800 loans this year. Five Lamps have alsobeen growing rapidly and had been awardedfunding through the Third Sector CapacityFund to develop a business model to providea vision for a ‘Great North Loan Fund’.

In 2007 the Financial Inclusion Taskforceemployed Experian to map the demand for,and the supply of, affordable credit nationally.This research highlighted a mismatch between

the high levels of demand and the low levelsof supply in the North East. Today, despitebest efforts, the supply of affordable creditis still, at best, patchy with plenty of room forimprovement.

There is much to do in providing affordablefinance and that the current credit union sectorin the region didn’t have the resource to growthe supply of affordable credit to the levelrequired. It was also noted by the group thatthe situation had seen some improvementdue to the growth of Five Lamps’ micro-loanfund. Five Lamps is currently operating inNorth Yorkshire, Teesside, County Durham ,Newcastle and Northumberland. This newly formed stakeholder group, workingwith Five Lamps, provides a significantopportunity to improve the provision ofaffordable credit in the North East and welook forward to positive developments in theweeks and months ahead.

Affordable credit for all

Named after the last World War One

veteran Harry Patch, who died last year,

the Centre is a result of several months

of negotiations, organising and

facilitating between Ian Blades, Branch

Secretary of the POA at Durham; Tim

Allen, Governor; Emma Bowditch, POA

Learning Co-ordinator and Stewart

Herkes, Centre Manager at HMP

Frankland.

Speaking at the opening Tim Allen,

Governor of HMP Durham, commented

that it was  great to be working in

partnership with the POA to enable staff

at HMP Durham to engage in learning

and development. Colin Moses, POA

National Chairman said that it was good

to see HMP Durham had advanced in

such a forward thinking manner since

he initially worked there 24 years ago.

 

The Harry Patch Centre will be offering

a variety of courses for leisure and

qualifications. Learning Surveys will

determine the courses that are provided

and there has already been an excellent

response with over 140 returns from

the staff. POA members are especially

welcome but the centre is open to their

families and friends, the local

community and members of other

unions.

09unionsnorth issue 23

New Learning Centrea fitting tribute

HMP Frankland - Durham

POA Learning

HMP Frankland officiallyopens its POA LearningCentre as a fitting tributeto a World War veteran.

Last year’s Learning Revolution Festival

(LRF) was a chance for the trade unions

and the community to connect - that’s

certainly what happened in a fishing

village in Northumberland.

Conrad Stewart and Jenna Moffatt from

Craster saw an advert in the local paper

for the Learning Revolution Festival

event in Amble which featured an

opportunity to try the bagpipes. 

Learning to play was something that

Conrad in particular had always wanted

to do, so they went along.

In the hands of bagpipe expert and

Prison Officer Steve Christie, Conrad

and Jenna enjoyed the experience so

much they signed up for further tuition

at the Brightsparks POA Learning Centre

at Acklington Prison and have been

attending most weeks ever since.

Learning the bagpipes is not something

which is on offer in many locations so

without Brightsparks and Steve, Conrad

and Jenna might never have had the

chance to take them up.  

Armed with their new hobby, Conrad

and Jenna juggle work and their

children to get in some daily practice

and hope that they can turn into

proficient bagpipe players in the future,

all thanks to the LRF.

HMP Acklington - Bright Sparks

LRF...music to their ears

My task is to speak to as many

colleagues as possible and to promote

the benefits of our new learning centre.

In particular I’m keen to remove the

stigma surrounding maths and English.

 

Last May we held our Learning at Work

Day and invited David Hedgecock from

the City of Sunderland College to talk

about skills for life and asked

employees to register if they were

interested in completing an initial skills

assessment.

 

Angela Eason, who has worked at KP

for several years as a machine

technician, was very sensitive about

the subject of maths and found exams

particularly daunting and distressing.   

This was stopping Angela going for

internal vacancies and was seriously

affecting her confidence. 

Sharing my own experiences gave me

the opportunity to show that learning

as an adult was completely different

and we both registered for an

assessment.

 

The assessment results showed that

Angela would be working towards the

Level 2 qualification and she was

extremely happy and surprised with

the result. She has gone on to brush

up on her maths skills and has gained

her level 2 qualification. She is now

waiting to start on her English and has

also attended a basic and intermediate

digital photography course.

Kath Ward, 50, has worked at KP since

she left school and I’ve known her for

many years as we are both instructors

in the training department. 

After the opening of the learning centre

we were in search of learners who

wished to gain maths and English

qualifications.  As Kath works in the

same department she was aware of

this and mentioned she would like to

study both these subjects, especially

maths.

                          

As a training instructor it is Kath’s role

to teach employees all aspects of the

production role from how to pack boxes

to running complex machinery.  Kath

has always taken her role very seriously

and as a training instructor Kath is full

of confidence but when it came to

maths it was a different story as she

had no confidence at all.

 

Our maths programme however has

changed all that.  Kath put a great deal

of effort and time into her classes,

including spending many hours at

home studying.  She has just sat and

passed her maths test and plans to

move on to the next level.  She has also

completed a basic digital photography

course, and is halfway through the

intermediate course and has completed

the first part of a ULR course so she

can then pass on some of her own

experiences to other learners.

 

I’m delighted that Angela and Kath have

achieved so much and that as part of

my role as a ULR, I’ve been able to make

them feel at ease and give them the

confidence that they could achieve their

goals.  

10 unionsnorth issue 23

Learning

KP has the recipefor successful learning

KP Foods - Teesside

ULR at KP Foods in Teesside,Jean McDermottroe, tells howthe learning centre is helpingcolleagues.

Kath (left) enjoying her maths workshop.

Confidence showing Angela (right) takes posing for the press

with maths guru Johnny Ball in her stride

As a full time

Learning Co-

ordinator based at

Barclaycard in

Stockton, I was

invited to an event

at Barclays Bank in

Doxford Park

Sunderland last summer. This included

local providers and Primary Care Trusts

(PCT's) looking to raise awareness

across various learning and health

agendas.

 

The event highlighted the various

issues which affect our colleagues

within the call centre environment and

I was concerned to learn that a recent

government survey predicted that

stress related issues would be the

single biggest cause of sickness within

the workplace by 2020. 

 

It made me realise that we needed to

start addressing this immediately, so I

arranged a meeting with Tom Ross from

the TUC and Elaine Laycock who

represents the Employee Relations

Department within Barclaycard

Stockton. 

 Initially this wasn’t something that

Barclaycard would commit to funding,

but after months of negotiation and

figures which revealed that in Q3 of

last year 43% of all sickness within

Barclaycard Stockton was stress related,

we got the go ahead for a two day

‘Mental Health For All’ workshop.   

 

The workshop was delivered by Emma

Power on behalf of Middlesbrough and

Stockton MIND in December last year.

It was so well received that in a

recent Steering Group meeting the

senior management team

requested two further workshops -

these take place in March and June of

this year.  

The learning journey never ends

11unionsnorth issue 23

Lifelong Learning

Positive Steps to reduce sicknessBarclaycard - Stockton

Sean Green from Barclaycardtalks about tackling stress atwork head-on.

For Peter, this is his latest achievement

in a learning journey that has enabled

him to become a Chartered member of

the Institute of Occupational Safety and

Health.

 

Peter explains: “In the early days I

attended TUC funded Health and Safety

courses then went on to level 3 in

Occupational Health and Safety. Once

appointed full time Regional Safety

Advisor I achieved N.V.Q. level 4, then

level 5 in Management of Health and

Safety. The highest point was the Post

Graduate Award in Managing Health

and Safety and Chartered Membership

of IOSH.

 

“I believe all the changes in health and

safety mean that employers and trade

unions, particularly safety reps, need

to work together to improve the

workplace.”

 

John Scott, UCATT Regional Secretary

said: “Peter’s commitment to health

and safety has gained the respect of

employers and the HSE nationally and

he is now involved in much of UCATT's

national work programme of which

health and safety comes high on the

agenda.”

Congratulations to U.C.A.T.TNorthern Regional SafetyAdvisor Peter Wilson who hasgraduated from BCS Collegein Nottingham with a PostGraduate Award in ManagingHealth and Safety.

12 unionsnorth issue 23

Learning Agreements

TEWV NHS Foundation Trust - South Tyneside Council

Signed and sealed

At the end of 2009, Tees,Esk Wear Valley NHSFoundation Trust and SouthTyneside Council signedLearning Agreements

The Tees, Esk Wear Valley NHSFoundation Trust supports 1.4 million

people living in County Durham, Tees

Valley and North East Yorkshire with a

range of mental health, learning

disability and addictive behaviour

services.  With an annual income of

almost £200m the Trust employs about

5,000 staff working across 200 sites.

 

The Learning Foundations is a joint

trade union/employer Learning for all

Fund project led by the GMB including

Unison, Unite, and RCN. The project

works across the Trust to help raise

skills levels of union members and non

alike at band level 1-4. The Unison

Union Learning Fund project ‘Bridges

to Learning’ works in partnership with

the Learning Foundation project and is

aimed at career pathways in

conjunction with the Open University

and the Workers Education Association.

The Learning Agreement signing also

presented the opportunity to celebrate

the achievements of employees.

 

Stephen Hughes MEP presented award

certificates and said: "This multi union

project's aim is to upskill employees to

enable them to achieve and aspire

thereby making their organisation more

efficient and effective."

 

Tom Brennan, GMB Regional Secretary

said: “Along with unionlearn, the GMB

is delighted to bring an opportunity for

employees to enhance their skills and

add value to the employer in this

process.”

Davey Hall, Unite Regional Secretary

said:  “I genuinely believe that this

partnership agreement  will be

beneficial to all Trust employees and

ultimately provide for the inclusion

of patients and service users.”

South Tyneside Council signed its

agreement with its four main trade

unions to promote workplace learning

among its 7,000 employees. Together

the Council and unions are committed

to lifelong learning and developing a

positive learning culture which will build

upon existing efforts to improve skills

of the workforce.

 

Councillor Ed Malcolm, lead member

for resources, said: “Investing in

learning and development ultimately

leads to customer satisfaction, as

employees who are trained feel valued

and are motivated to provide excellent

service.”

 

Sue Key, Branch Chairman for Unison,

said: “I am delighted we are signing

the Learning Agreement and look

forward to further co-operation in the

future.”

 

John Scott from UCATT, said: “We’re

committed to quality training for the

construction maintenance workers and

we are very pleased to be associated

with the South Tyneside Council

Learning Partnership.”

 

Martin Wright, Regional Learning

Organiser for Unite, added: “This

agreement  gives union members

greater access and encouragement to

continue their personal development.”

To celebrate NationalApprenticeship Week

the TUC’s ownapprentice Alex

Rodgers tells his story

Issue 23 unionsnorth

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Leading by exampleI have just completed an apprenticeshipwith the Northern TUC that I started inNovember 2008 and which led to an NVQLevel 2 in Business Administration.

The apprenticeship programme was deliveredby Access Training, based at Team Valley,Gateshead. The initial apprenticeshipprogramme was due to last 18 months, butthrough guidance and lots of hard work I wasable to complete it in just 10 months.

The apprenticeship itself consisted of six unitsof work (two compulsory and four my choice).These units were all based around the skillsI would need to complete my job. Most ofmy course work was completed on site butoccasionally I did have to go to GatesheadCollege to complete some extra training,including the award of an NVQ Level 3 inNumeracy.

My chance to work for TUC came aboutbecause of the apprenticeship scheme andlearning in the workplace was different toanything I had done before having comestraight from sixth form.

When it’s time to leave sixth form or college,many people believe there is nothing else butto go to university but this is simply not thecase. Apprenticeships allow you to developskills and get paid for it.

With most of the work in an apprenticeshipbeing practical you get a feel of what actualwork is like and face real life situations -experience you simply can’t get sitting in auniversity classroom. In today’s economicclimate apprenticeships could also be a vitalway to continue learning.

As university fees soar, young people oftenfind themselves in debt even before their firstreal pay packet, this is clearly no way for asustainable future for the student and thecountry.

This apprenticeship opportunity has helpedme gain an understanding of the trade unionmovement; a sector I would like to stayinvolved with for the rest of my career. Sincefinishing my NVQ I am now in the new roleof Northern TUC Organising Apprentice.

Britain has a long tradition withapprenticeships’ in the workplace anda recent study by the TUC showed thatthere are now over 200 differentapprenticeships available, sotheoretically the choice has never beengreater.

Trade unions have always had a stronglink to apprenticeships and they workhard to make sure their terms andconditions are respected in the workplaceand that they are given the relevant timeoff to continue their study and also to:

Ensure apprentice’s welfaree.g. - health and safety, minimum wage, entitlements and other rights.Work with providers to promote quality in apprenticeships, e.g. IAGand structured effective trainingCreate a training and learning culturefor everyone.Promote apprenticeships as an investment for the future.Promote equality and diversity suchas parity of pay and equal opportunities.Encourage both employer and apprentice commitment to full-timeemployment following apprenticeship

This all forms part of the trade unionethos towards Lifelong Learning.National Apprenticeship Week took placefrom 1st to 5th February 2010.

Keepingup thegood work

Kendra Walker is a BFAWU (Bakers Union)ULR at Warburtons Bakery, leading a smallteam of ULR’s across the company’s sitesat Stockton on Tees and Newburn.

Kendra also co-ordinates a union led LearningProject funded by the Northern RegionTUC/Unionlearn Learning for all Fund.

When the project at Warburtons began in July2009 one of its main objectives was to engagestaff who required Skills for Life support.

The Six Book Challenge has proved to be oneof the most effective tools in engaging learnersrequiring literacy support and to date 54employees have completed the challenge.

Diane Moore, a single parent, was persuadedby Kendra Walker to try the Challenge. Diane’sinitial reaction was ‘I’ve never read a book inmy life; I just don’t see the point’.

With some trepidation and a lot of anxietyDiane, supported by the ULR’s, began theChallenge and realised that she needed toaddress her literacy skills so she enrolled ona literacy course delivered by StocktonRiverside College.

Now, several months later, Diane hassuccessfully completed the Six BookChallenge saying:

Armed with her new found love of books,Diane and her young family have joined theirlocal library and reading is her new hobby.Without the ULR’s at Warburtons and the SixBook Challenge, Diane and many others wouldbe missing out on the joy of reading.

Simply hooked on Books Warburton Six BookChallenge turnsnon-readers into

bookworms

“I’m amazed at myself. Beforethis I could not see the pointin reading a book at all.”

Sharing ways tosupport learners

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unionsnorth Issue 23

 Best practice and new

approaches on theagenda for unionlearning experts

The Regional Supporting Learners (IAG)Event which took place in February at TheAssembly Rooms in Newcastle focussed onthe latest developments taking place to‘support learners’ and the new AdultAdvancement and Careers Service.

Almost 60 people attended this very importantevent which brought together ULRs, unionreps and union learning organisers fromacross the North East and Cumbria. As thetitle suggests, this was about the way unionsand ULRs support their learners with additionalsupport from unionlearn, regionally andnationally.

Delegates at the event got to attend twoworkshops which concentrated on Nextsteps’Extranet’ for North East IAG practitioners andPromoting Equality through IAG.

There was also a great opportunity to look ata demonstration of the new unionlearn web-based Climbing Frame and to sign up to thenew climbing frame trials.

With the present economic climate beingcovered across all media channels, it wastimely for delegates to become involved in anactivity around supporting learners in aneconomic downturn.

This was facilitated by Ken Gyles, unionlearn’srecovery and recession development worker.

Another topic on the learning agenda is higherskills. An activity based around ‘what doemployers and learners need to know?’ wasfacilitated by Julie Robinson, unionlearn projectworker and Lesley Houghton, project supportconsultant.

The feedback from delegates was very good,with comments on the quality activities andthe content of the workshops at the event.

Over 240 delegates attended theNewcastleGateshead Hilton in January fora groundbreaking conference on wellbeingin the workplace hosted jointly by the TUCand NHS.

Speaking about the Workplace Health andWellbeing project Tom Ross from the TUCand Chair of the event said it is one of themost exciting and positive pieces of work hehas been involved in as whether it's theemployer, trade union or indeed the NHS,everybody who participates wins.

Kevin Rowan, TUC Regional Secretary saidthe centrality of workplace health in theregional health strategy was an importantstep in encouraging trade unions andemployers to work together to tackle healthand wellbeing at work. All the evidence andexperience shows that if we manage to makeimprovements to health and wellbeing in theworkplace this has immediate effects onworkers as well as making improvements toproductivity and business costs.

Trade union representatives are demonstratingthat by working well with supportive employersand the professional help of PCT workplacehealth advisors, they can make a truly dramaticdifference to the health, wellbeing and qualityof life of their members. This continues to bean area of trade union work that attractsmassive enthusiasm from trade union repsand has a fantastic and sustainable benefitfor workers. It is a feather in the cap of tradeunions in this region that we are leading the

way in this area of work. Our challenge is tosupport more reps and get it firmly on theagenda in more workplaces benefiting moremembers in the region.

Professor Stephen Singleton, RegionalDirector, Public Health North East said thatas a region the North East has adisproportionately high rate of lung cancerwhich is a legacy of our asbestos past butthat the smoking rate is falling faster herethan in any other region in the country.

He continued to say that The Better Health,Fairer Health Strategy sets out a clear visionto take us from where we are now to wherewe want to be and that the process oftransformation has begun and the North Eastis leading the way.

Dame Carol Black, National Director for Healthand Work and author of the National Reviewof the Health of Britain's Working Age

Population also spoke at the conference. Shediscussed the need to maximise the numberof good working years for each of us as it’sgood for our mental and physical health. Shealso presented the Better Health at WorkAwards to 70 organisations in the region aspart of the event.

Final speaker James Ramsbotham, ChiefExecutive of the North East Chamber ofCommerce summed up the essence of theevent by saying that something very excitingis happening in the North East with more andmore employers getting involved in the healthand wellbeing agenda, working in partnershipwith organisations such as the TUC and theNHS.

To find out more and how you can getinvolved in the Better Health at Work schemecontact Tom Ross on 0191 232 3175 oremail: tross@tuc.org.uk.

TUC and NHS joinforces to show how

working togetherbrings workplace

health and wellbeing

Good Work isGood for You!

Issue 23 unionsnorth

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unionsnorth Issue 23

Gateshead Councilbecomes the first localauthority to sign up to

the Work WiseConcordat

Signing the Concordat (L to R) Sarah Stewart, WWNE Project Director, Simon Roberson, WWNE Chair, Jeff Dean, Director ofCorporate Services, Gateshead Council, Mike Barker, Strategic Director, Legal and Corporate Services, Gateshed Council

Leaders in smarterworkingGateshead Council has become the firstlocal authority in the country workingtowards the new Work Wise Standard.

As a mark of excellence, Work Wisedemonstrates understanding and use ofsmarter working techniques as a strategicplanning tool, staff involvement in definingfuture strategies and vision in planning for thefuture.

The Council has a workforce of some 10,000people spanning 1,200 types of job and thedecision to sign the Concordat follows onfrom winning the Work Wise sponsored

Smarter Working Practices Award foremployers with over 50 staff at the recentEquality North East Awards.

Sarah Stewart, Project Director, Work WiseNorth East, said: “We are extremely pleasedto welcome Gateshead Council as an activemember of the campaign at a time when thebenefits of smarter working are really startingto add up.”

Jeff Dean, Director of Corporate Services,Gateshead Council, said: “The adoption ofsmarter working practices has already led toa greater focus on output instead of just thenumber of hours worked. This shift hashelped to attract and retain a more diverseworkforce and a greater number of women,people with disabilities and those from blackand ethnic minority backgrounds. I wouldencourage all local authorities to embrace thethinking behind the Work Wise campaign.”

Paul Greenwood is a Unite BranchSecretary, ULR, Health and Safety repand Equality rep at Veriplast Durham.In 2007 he started a journey which wasto inspire and delight not only him butothers.

Paul signed up to take advantage of theunionlearn IAG NVQ courses, his firstexperience of a level 3 NVQ and hisfirst real learning experience sinceleaving school with 9 CSEs. This wasto signal the opening of the learningflood gates and the start of his veryimpressive journey which is even moreremarkable as Paul is battling seriousdebilitating health problems.

Now a dab hand at learning he wantedto help others so completed a LayTutors course which will enable him todeliver and support trade union coursesthroughout the Country.

His passion for learning is infectiousand he has inspired many people toembark on their own journey includinghis wife Jacqui who’s now become aULR.

Inspiredlearning

January 2010 saw Cumbria County Councilproudly pick up its Go (Get On localgovernment) Award which was presentedwith distinction and in recognition of theCouncil’s commitment to improve Skills forLife in the workforce.

As part of the external assessment for theaward, eight areas were looked at includingworking in partnership which scored thehighest mark across all eight categories withnine out of ten. The role the ULR’s played inworking together was singled out as crucialin the Council’s success.

It took the trade unions around three years ofwork to get a Learning Agreement put in placeto cover the Council’s 18,000 strongworkforce and it has been hailed as the turningpoint on which Skills for Life training anddevelopment fell into place.

Amanda Towers, Skills Manager at CumbriaCounty Council's Adult Education Service,said: "The success we've had in Cumbria inour Skills for Life programme has alreadyreaped benefits through achieving a distinctionin the GO Award and also getting the IDeANational Excellence Award.

“It has been a real pleasure to work with bothGMB and Unison to integrate Skills for Lifeacross the Council. The scheme not onlybuilds the skills and confidence of ouremployees, it also gives us a clear directionand commitment as an organisationand improves partnership working.

“We share a common aim: wanting adults tohave the opportunity to develop their skillsand progress in life and work. We now hopeto go onwards and upwards to achieve theSkills Award.”

Unionlearn funding has enabled the GMB toemploy two Learning Organisers in Cumbriawho, work directly with employers in the areaincluding Cumbria County Council.

Gill Baillie, one of the Learning Organisers atthe GMB, said: “The fruits of this successare down to the good learning agreementwhich was put in place and the commitmentto Skills for Life by Cumbria County Council.

“In these times of economic uncertainty andadded pressure on public services, workingtogether and a commitment to upskill theworkforce could not come at a more crucialtime.”

Tony Nisbet is the other Learning and SkillsOrganiser at the GMB. He’s been in his rolefor eight years and has been working withCumbria County Council for the last six years.He said: “It was critical to get the right strategy

in place. Although the Learning Agreementtook time to pull together and get agreed ithas proved to be a winning strategy.

“We’re delighted for Cumbria County Counciland equally pleased this award will lead onto other training and development initiativeswithin the authority as they now hope to usethe foundations of this Go Award as a baseto work towards achieving the Skills Awardwhich helps staff achieve wider skills, not justSkills for Life.

“This template and its success has alsoresulted in all the local authorities in Cumbriasigning a skills pledge which we’re equallydelighted about.”

Go on Cumbria!

Cumbria CountyCouncil achieves its

Go Award with a littlehelp from ULRs 

Issue 23 unionsnorth

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The TUC EducationDepartment at City

of SunderlandCollege goes from

strength to strength

The WEA (Workers’ Educational Association)in Cumbria has been working in partnershipwith TUC Education and unionlearn for anumber of years providing quality tradeunion education to a whole range ofunionised workplace reps.

Working across the county, there are threemain tutors delivering the programme includingSteve Hunter who runs the entire programmeat the Trades Hall in Workington, BernardAtkinson who delivers on a part time basisin south Cumbria and Chris Thackrah (Co-ordinator) who has been delivering coursesin and around the Furness area for elevenyears.

From the Workington training room WEA offerscourses for workplace reps, health and safetyreps as well as union learning reps. In thesouth of the county it offers the same butalso the Diploma in Occupational Health andSafety.

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unionsnorth Issue 23

From North East toNorth West

what’s on offer tounion learners

Spotlight on trade unioneducation services

Trade union representatives are continuingto benefit from the friendly, relaxed andprofessional learning environment on offerat the City of Sunderland College wherethere is a full range of courses available tothem.

The core course programme includes UnionRepresentative Stage 1, Stepping Up, Diplomain Employment Law, Health & Safety Stage1, Next Steps for Safety Reps, Diploma inOccupational Health & Safety, Union LearningRep Part 1 and Union Learning Rep Part 2.

The college also offers a range of shortcourses each term and last term itsuccessfully delivered the Equality for ULR’scourse which helps develop the ULR’sknowledge and understanding of equalityissues for disadvantaged groups of workers.

Next term this course will be advertisedalongside a range of other short coursesaimed at providing ULR’s with progressionroutes following the completion of the Part 1and Part 2 courses. Also on offer for the firsttime will be the Environmental Issues in theWorkplace course which is designed for

members and reps who have an interest inthe subject and are looking to raise awarenessof the issue in their workplace.

In addition to the range of courses on offer,the college works in partnership with individualtrade unions to facilitate bespoke trainingprogrammes.

If you require further information about thecourses or would like to reserve a placeplease contact Garry Hunter, TUC Co-ordinator by telephone on 0191 5116707 oremail: garry.hunter@citysun.ac.uk

Workington WEA’s Forthcoming Courses 2010

Union Representatives Stage 1 12 Wednesdays from 21 AprilUnion Representatives Stage 1 5 Thursdays from 22 AprilUnion Representatives Stage 2 5 Thursdays from 10 JuneHealth & Safety Stage 1 12 Tuesdays from 20 AprilNext Steps for Safety Reps 12 Wednesdays from 21 April

Barrow

Union Representatives Stage 1 12 Wednesdays from 21 AprilStepping Up Formerly Knownas Union Reps Stage 2 12 Thursdays from 22 AprilHealth & Safety Stage 1 12 Tuesdays from 20 AprilNext Steps for Safety Reps 12 Wednesdays from 21 April

If you would like any more information on any of these courses please contact:Steve Hunter, Tutor on 07917133866, email:shunter@wea.org.uk orChris Thackrah, Co ordinator on 07815841347 email: cthackrah@wea.org.uk

TUC Education......on course in Sunderland

Issue 22 unionsnorth

On Monday February 1st the TUC launchedits new ‘Join a Union’ telephone line.

The service will provide callers withinformation on the appropriate trade union forthem to join based on where they work, thejob they do and if a trade union is alreadyrecognised by their employer.

Over 70 per cent of non-union members think

trade unions are a good thing with a significantnumber of them saying they haven’t joined aunion because they haven’t had theopportunity or no-one has asked them. Manyworkers are not aware of how to join a tradeunion or indeed which union to join. Callerswill be sent a letter with details of therecommended union and the union will alsobe notified and given the caller’s details.

The number for the ‘Join a Union’ line remainsthe same as for the ‘Know Your Rights’ line:0870 600 4882. The greeting will continueto sign post callers with 'Know Your Rights'enquiries to the appropriate helplines andwebsites.

Line opening hours will be Monday to Friday:8am to 9pm and Saturday: 9am to 5pm.

www.unionlearn.org.uk/northern • www.tuc.org.uk/northern

Copyright in this publication is held by the TUC unless otherwise stated. For further copies of this item contact Northern TUC on 0191 232 3175 or via Emailnorthern@tuc.org.uk. This text may also be made available, on request, in accessible formats such as braille, audio tape and large print, at no extra cost.

Contacts:

Northern TUCCommercial Union House5th Floor, 39 Pilgrim Street,Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 6QE

Telephone 0191 232 3175or email northern@tuc.org.uk

eventsFor more information

on events or issuesplease contact the

Northern TUC

Kevin RowanNorthern TUC Regional Secretarykrowan@tuc.org.uk

Ian WestRegional Education Officeriwest@tuc.org.uk

Beth FarhatUnion Development Co-ordinatorbfarhat@tuc.org.uk

Dave StorrieRegional Development Workerdstorrie@tuc.org.uk

Linda HughesRegional Development Workerlhughes@tuc.org.uk

Jo Gonzalez-ChamberlainDevelopment Worker,Learning for All Fundjgonzalez-chamberlain@tuc.org.uk

Julia Watsonu-net Performance and Support Officerjwatson@tuc.org.uk

Tom RossPolicy Project Workertross@tuc.org.uk

Melanie LowdenSecretary/Office Managermlowden@tuc.org.uk

Ben SellersVulnerable Workers Project Workerbsellers@tuc.org.uk

Anne AitkenheadUnionlearn Project Assistantaaitkenhead@tuc.org.uk

David NicholsonProject Workerdnicholson@tuc.org.uk

Pat WinterProject Workerpwinter@tuc.org.uk

Julie RobinsonHigher Level Skills Project Workerjrobinson@tuc.org.uk

Mike TanseyProject Workermtansey@tuc.org.uk

Joe McGuiganProject Workerjmcguigan@tuc.org.uk

Ken GylesSkills (Recession & Recovery)Development Workerkgyles@tuc.org.uk

Graeme RushtonProject Worker, Cumbriagrushton@tuc.org.uk

Join a Unionopens forbusiness

Executive CommitteeTUC Regional Office13

April 2010 Calendar

Cumbria ForumBarrow in Furness16

Workers Memorial DayMemorial Hall, Wallsend28

ELSFSt James’ Park, Newcastle upon Tyne30

H & S Working PartyTUC Regional Office13

May 2010 Calendar

Regional Disability EventSt James’ Park, Newcastle upon Tyne14

National TUC Disability Conference19/20 May - Venue TBC19

Engage - The Older Workers'Project Event Venue TBC18

June 2010 Calendar

Northern Pensions ConferenceNorthumbria University 25/26 June25

LGBT Conference 01/02 JulyCongress House Offices, London01

July 2010 Calendar

Executive CommitteeTUC Regional Office07

Northern TUC Annual ConferenceHilton Hotel, Gateshead 22/23 May22

May 2010 Continued