TUC Young Members Meeting - 4th July

The TUC are holding a Young Members meeting on Saturday the 4th July in Manchester.

Buffet is provided

All young members are welcome and if you want to know more please speak to one of the branch reps.

National Gallery rally - 30th May

https://www.facebook.com/events/1579839878956813/

Conference daily reports

Thursday, 21 May

• Stronger workplaces key for PCS in challenging government
• Complaint to TUC about Unison
• Solidarity with US anti-racism campaigners

Wednesday, 20 May

• Fringe meeting: union's voting reform campaign an inspiration
• John McDonnell: industrial action will be necessary to defeat Tories
• Join the fight to end austerity
• PCS life membership awards presented
• Candy Udwin thanks conference for support
• Conference acknowledges inspiring PCS reps
• Conference gives National Gallery members rousing welcome
• Fight benefit sanctions
• Union to act to stop Forestry Commission break-up
• GoCos on way to privatisation

Tuesday, 19 May

• Video: watch Mark Serwotka deliver the PCS annual report
• General election has made direct debit number 1 PCS issue
• Mark Serwotka: we must unite like never before
• Janice Godrich: let's keep fighting
• Fringe meeting: unite to defend human rights
• Union rep time for members under threat
• Help members - find out more about mental health issues

Monday, 18 May

• Fringe meeting: changing PCS in a hostile environment
• Mark Serwotka: members are our lifeblood
• Conference ovation for Candy Udwin
• DWP Garston dispute shows campaigning gets results
• Press release: Unions must show people we can win
• Nightmare for call centre staff
• HMRC branch's big PCS Fighting Fund donation

Branch award at #pcsadc 2015

Breaking News #pcsadc

PCS DWP Wigan branch receive team award for the members efforts in getting DD ready. A massive thank you to all members who have made the switch.

National conference and DWP Wigan branch delegation.

Get DD-ready and Glastonbury tickets could be yours

Sign up to pay your subs by direct debit before Wednesday, 3 June and you could be off to Glastonbury this summer.

All members who have signed up to pay their union subs by direct debit will be automatically entered into a prize draw to win a pair of tickets, worth £500, for the world’s most famous festival, which this year features performances by The Who, Florence and the Machine, Alt-J and hundreds more. 

Civil service departments have either already stopped you paying your union subscription out of your salary through check-off or are actively considering doing so. As a result your PCS membership is under threat. 

We need every member to sign up to direct debit to stay protected at work – it’s quick and easy and you can do it online.

Unless you’re registered to pay your subs by direct debit, once your employer ends check-off your membership will stop and you will no longer be protected.

PCS makes a real difference for you at work. Together we have:
 

• Won equal pay for agency workers
• Stopped privatisation at the Land Registry
• Fended off plans to offshore IT jobs at Hewlett Packard
• Won more than £1 million for fixed-term staff made redundant by the Department for Work and Pensions
• Seen off attempts to privatise security jobs at the Palaces of Westminster
• Secured hundreds of new jobs at the Passport Agency.

Range of benefits
 

As a PCS member you are entitled to a whole range of benefits, including:

• representation at work
• a free legal advice line on any personal or domestic issue
• access to ethical loans through the PCS Credit Union
• cheap car and home insurance
• shopping discounts.

Ask a colleague

If you’ve already signed up you will automatically be entered into the prize draw, but why not ask a work colleague to register for direct debit? The more members in your workplace the stronger the union, making us more able to campaign for better pay, conditions and services.

Act now. It’s a very small price for peace of mind. Register now to pay your PCS subs by direct debit.

People's Assembly demo calls for end to austerity

Tens of thousands of people are expected to join the national People's Assembly demonstration on 20 June to tell the Tory government to end austerity now.

With a Conservative majority government we know exactly what to expect. More nasty, destructive cuts to the things ordinary people care about: the NHS, the welfare state, education and public services.

PCS has agreed to support the demo organised by the People's Assembly a campaign group which opposes privatisation and cuts to:

• public spending and services
• pay, and
• pensions.

Make your pledge

So far 45,000 people have pledged to take to the streets on June 20 and are meeting at noon outside the Bank of England in Queen Victoria Street in the City of London. 

We demand an alternative to austerity and to policies that only benefit those at the top

Unions, campaign groups, trades councils and local People's Assembly groups are arranging transport.

Find out more information on the event.

Invite your friends to the Facebook event.

Austerity is damaging mental health

Hundreds of counsellors and psychotherapists have signed a letter underlining the profoundly disturbing psychological and quality-of-life implications of the coalition governments cuts.

In a letter to the Guardian today, counsellors and psychotherapists in the public and private sectors said the past 5 years have seen a radical shift in the kinds of issues generating distress in their clients. They say they have seen "increasing inequality and outright poverty, families forced to move against their wishes, and, perhaps most important, benefits claimants (including disabled and ill people) and those seeking work being subjected to a quite new, intimidatory kind of disciplinary regime".

The experts also highlighted the fact that the "profoundly disturbing psychological and quality-of-life implications of the coalition government’s cuts and policies" have yet to be mentioned in the election campaign.

The letter went on to label 'get to work therapy' as "manifestly not therapy at all" and described the news that Maximus (the US company replacing Atos to do work capability assessments) will also be managing the new national Fit for Work programme, as time for the field’s key professional organisations to wake up to "these malign developments, and unequivocally denounce such so-called 'therapy' as damaging and professionally unethical".

In conclusion, the experts describe the fact that society has been thrown "completely off balance by the emotional toxicity of neoliberal thinking". 

Signatories include Dr Richard House of the Alliance for Counselling and Psychotherapy, Nick Totton of Psychotherapists and Counsellors for Social Responsibility and Linda Burnip of Disabled People Against Cuts.

As part of our general election campaigning we are asking for well-funded public services, delivered by valued public sector staff and for privatisation and offshoring to be opposed. We also support a well-resourced publicly-delivered social security service that provides a decent standard of living, and support the removal of the sanctions regime.

The government claims that the cuts are not affecting public services. But a major survey of PCS workplace representatives and members in departments, agencies and non-departmental public bodies show that the cuts are adversely affecting our members and the important services they provide. 

Find out more about our campaigning in the run-up to the general election on 7 May.

Not a PCS member? Join today for protection at work.

Worst 5 years for living standards in 50 years

New analysis shows that the Tory-led, pro-austerity coalition has presided over the worst 5-year period for living standards in over half a century.

The latest economic figures published today also show that far from experiencing a strong recovery the UK is now experiencing the slowest rate - just 0.3% - of quarterly growth since the end of 2012.

The TUC says 2010-2014 is unique in seeing a drop in real household disposable incomes, which combine wages, benefits, taxes and inflation.

It is the worst 5-year period for living standards for at least half a century (directly comparable records begin in 1960).

RHDI – a yardstick of living standards that takes account of incomes, benefits, taxes and inflation – was 0.6% lower in the half-decade ending in 2014 than in the 5 years ending in 2009, when it rose by 6.9%.

Austerity to blame

The TUC says this provides further evidence that the government’s austerity programme, which began in 2010, is more to blame for the loss of living standards than the financial crisis that preceded it. The government’s deep and rapid cuts killed off the recovery, causing growth to flat-line and wages to remain in decline for years longer than official forecasts.

PCS has consistently campaigned for an alternative to austerity calling for:

• investment in public services
• job creation
• investment in renewable energy and infrastructure
• affordable housing to be built
• an end to privatisation of public services
• the £120 billion annual tax gap to be closed.

All of this would generate revenue – people are billed for electricity, buy tickets to travel on public transport, and pay rent for council housing.

Research by Richard Murphy (of Tax Research) has shown that the state recoups 92% of the cost of creating new public sector jobs – through lower benefit payments and increased tax revenues.

Stay up to date with PCS Wigan branch on the move

Blackberry 10 device - 

If your running the latest Blackberry 10 software you can now download a version of our app from the Amazon App Store, completely free

Android device -

Download our free app from the Google Play Store. Just search "PCS Wigan"

Apple device - 

Add us to your home screen by visiting http://pcswiganblog.blogspot.co.uk then use the add to home screen function

Study links sanctions with foodbank use

An Oxford University study published today concludes the rise in foodbank use is concentrated in communities where more people are experiencing benefit sanctions.

According to a Guardian article the study found austerity policies such as cuts to welfare and local services are driving the rapid spread of foodbanks in the UK. The research shows emergency food aid is most concentrated in areas where there are high levels of joblessness and benefit sanctions.

The Conservative-led coalition persistently refused to acknowledge a link between its economic and social security policies and the explosion in foodbanks. But the Oxford study, published in the British Medical Journal, shows demand for food parcels is strongest where poverty is accompanied by restrictions on, and reductions in, social assistance.

As part of our general election campaigning we are asking candidates to support the removal of the sanctions regime.

What we’re asking for and why

We want a welfare state that ensures everyone has a decent standard of living free from poverty, and for our highly-skilled members in the Department for Work and Pensions to be able to use their expertise in supporting people back to work, and help them receive the benefits they deserve.

Here are the key stats showing the impact of government policy on welfare over the last 5 years:
 

• £19 billion - has been cut from the welfare budget each year by the coalition government
• 25,000 - jobs lost in the DWP since 2010
• 1 in 4 - children living in poverty
• £28 billion - worth of cuts affecting disabled people’s benefits and their services
• 18,000 - the number of severely disabled people who rely on the Independent Living Fund which the government is scrapping
• 1.6 million - pensioners live below the poverty line.

Make you vote count

The general election campaign gives PCS activists and members the chance to get our issues in front of candidates and to highlight to members the importance of getting involved in the democratic process.

We are asking candidates to pledge to support well-funded public services, help end the public sector pay freeze and back our campaign for tax justice, if elected MPs on 7 May
 

Key pledges

All branches are being encouraged to get involved in this year’s general election by asking their local candidates to support our 5 key election pledges:

• to end the public sector pay cap as it is unfair, unnecessary and damaging to the economy
• campaign for well-funded public services, publicly accountable and delivered by valued public sector staff – and oppose privatisation and offshoring
• support a well-resourced publicly-delivered social security service that provides a decent standard of living, and support the removal of the sanctions regime
• support investment in HM Revenue and Customs and legislative changes to close the tax gap
• encourage the government to engage in meaningful negotiations with all recognised trade unions, and to restore check-off and facility time for reps.

We will be reporting what our activists have had back from candidates as well as summarising what the party manifestos mean for our members.

A big part of the Make Your Vote Count campaign is to highlight the importance of voting to members. By contacting candidates, feeding back on whether they support us on our issues, we can help make the election more relevant to our members. 

If you live in a safe seat you may wonder whether it is worth contacting candidates. However, making links with candidates standing in an election can help with our political campaigning going forward. An elected representative may not necessarily agree with you on all issues but if a specific one was to come up, say an office closure, that affected local jobs and services it would be an advantage if there was already an existing relationship.

Clearly we want as many candidates as possible to be aware of our national issues and to support our pledges. It’s also important to remember to localise the issues by raising office closures in your area or examples about how people in your workplace have been affected by the low pay and cuts to services.

We have all the resources you need are on our Make Your Vote Count pagesincluding an up-to-date list of candidates and a feedback form to send to your regional secretary once you have heard back from any of your candidates.

Distribution of the Group Journal - Voice

You should be aware that by NEC decision, all group journals will now be distributed electronically. There will be no hard copies sent to members ballot addresses.

The first electronic only copy of the Voice is attached for your distribution to all members in your branch.

In order for this to work, branch secretaries need to have an e-mail distribution list for members. We believe that in most branches, this will already be the case, but if not branch secretaries do need to set this up. Ideally, you should have two separate lists; one of office addresses and one of home addresses.

Whilst this briefing concerns the journal, it is of course best practice that branch secretaries have e-mail distribution lists to disseminate other PCS information to members.

If you need assistance in setting up a distribution list, please contact your regional secretary in the first instance who will liaise with group office as necessary.
 

  Voice March 2015

Parky's Promise - £100 donation

PCS Wigan Branch made a donation to Parky's Promise of £100, which was money raised for the AGM raffle.

Parky's Promise

Founded in March 2014

Parky's Promise 'To raise 10k for charity in 12 months' - Target Date - March 2015.

My name is Christine Parkinson.

I was diagnosed with breast cancer in March 2013 and during the last year I have undergone 2 operations followed by chemotherapy and radiotherapy. I am still undergoing some treatment. This treatment would not be available without funding.

I have made a promise to 'raise 10k for charity in 12 months.'

I have three chosen charities, 'Cancer Research UK', 'Wigan & Leigh Hospice' and the ''Three Wishes Foundation.'

Thanks for visiting Parky's Promise facebook page. Please dig deep and support my 'promise' - it's quick, easy and totally secure.

Cancer Research UK

 

Three Wishes

 

Wigan & Leigh Hospice

The Switch to DD begins - The campaign goes on

Important information for branches and members.

PCS will begin the first stage of the process of switching DWP members to Direct Debit this week. The first impact of this will be that the reports available to branches on commix imembership will change. Members who have completed a switch to DD will now will appear in the DD column only and not the Check Off/DD (co dd) column.

Deadline 12 April

The deadline for switching DWP members to DD with uninterrupted membership is now 12 April (though we will have till noon on 13 April to make last minute changes). This slightly earlier date is to make sure we meet all deadlines at Unity bank.

Letters to members

Members will soon begin to receive letters in the post confirming their DD payment dates, the account PCS will make deductions from, the amounts and a reminder of the terms of the PCS DD guarantee. If they see any errors in these letters please ask them to contact the PCS HQ membership department using the phone number or email that is in their letter. A sample copy of the letter can be found in the Document Library.

Every member needs a valid ballot address or email

Any member without a valid ballot address will not be written to. Any member with a ballot address that is their work address should be mindful that post may be wrongly opened. If members wish to change their ballot address they can do so by emailing or phoning the DWP Leeds group office , any regional office or PCS HQ membership department.

Branches should take all possible steps to contact members with invalid ballot address and get them updated.

It is important to note that under DD regulations we may only make deductions regularly if we are able to correspond with individuals. If PCS are not able to contact a member for at a ballot address or an email address for 12 months we must stop making deductions. If we are forced to stop taking DD payments PCS will have to lapse members. Having up to date contact information for every member now becomes much more important.

Make sure every member is asked to switch to DD now

Today we have gone over 70% of our DWP members DD ready. There is a massive amount of activity planned for the next couple of weeks as the teams of PCS reps, regional organisers, PCS full time officers and staff visit branches to help and support them getting members DD ready in over 40 DWP sites. Let us know if you need help.

All branches are asked to make sure that talking to members between now and 12 April and asking them to get DD ready is your number 1 priority over the next 2 weeks. Some members have repeatedly said I will switch to DD when check off stops. Now is the time to go back to them and get them DD ready.

What happens after 12 April

The normal PCS rules will apply and members that have not switched to DD by 12 April will still be PCS members and will remain so throughout the normal 3 month lapsing process. A final lapsing letter is sent out after 3 consecutive missed payments in accordance with supplementary rule 3.6 of the PCS national rules, which in this case will be around the middle of July.

Continuing to ask members to stick with the union and pay by dd during this period between 12 April and mid July will be a very important part of our campaign.

In other departments this period has seen a significant increase in the number of members committing to stay with the union and pay by DD. For example in the Home Office when DD ended about 65% of members where DD ready but by the lapsing date that had improved to nearly 80%.

Recruitment of non members

Alongside our work to get members DD ready branches should also be using this as an opportunity to ask non members to join the union. A DWP specific membership application form can be found here. If you want copies please contact leeds@pcs.org.uk 

After the lapsing of any members not switched to DD in mid July the focus of our organising work will move into being a recruitment campaign designed to win all DWP staff to PCS membership. The GEC is already beginning to discuss this next stage with your DWP regional organisers and will be producing recruitment materials.

Let’s keep building a strong union

The work done by reps and branches in the DWP has been fantastic. The ending of check off is a political attack on PCS by the government. They hate us because our union has campaigned against austerity and we are a block on cuts in jobs and services. The government hope that ending check off will cut our members and cut our income. The work you do between now and 12 April and then up to mid July to get members to pay by DD and to recruit non members will prove them wrong and mean that PCS is not only stronger but independent of the employer. 

Wigan Branch currently stand at over 94% of members switched.

If your one of the remaining few yet to, please come and speak to us - make sure you don't loose your union rights.

Work Services Directorate Update

PCS met with WSD national management on 2nd March.

Staffing Levels

Management did not have finalised headcount allocations for 2015 -2016 yet but were able to share indicative figures with us that suggested once the staff had left on the Voluntary Exit Scheme (VES), headcount would be approximately “on target” to be just under 27,000 nationally by the end of year.

PCS continued to express concern about the impact on service delivery and workloads following the 3000 staff exits in June. In most areas PCS members working in Jobcentres are reporting that they are already struggling to deliver the service they believe they are meant to with staffing at current levels. The push on daily or weekly signing, along with the Universal Credit training requirement and roll out means that whilst unemployment may be decreasing, the pressure on staff to deliver more work with less support is increasing.

The GEC believes that the (Zeus) allocation model does not work, as currently there are necessary activities being delivered that are not accounted for in the model. We will be meeting the analysts soon to make this case.

However, the primary driver behind reduced staff allocations is the year on year “efficiency savings” which has seen DWP staffing reduce by nearly 30,000 overall since 2010. Whilst future plans for work services or DWP policy won’t be determined till after May, the GEC believes that fighting for better staffing levels for a decent publicly resourced employment service remains a key element of the Group campaign to be taken forward.

AOs

The majority of those leaving on the VES are in the AO grade, leaving doubts on how work currently and previously carried out by AOs will be delivered. We reiterated our position that there are, and should still be, roles for AOs in Jobcentres even after the introduction of Universal Credit. WSD management agreed to consult with PCS on the development of the future operating model, which may see more standardisation of processes within jobcentres again. The GEC will continue to resist any compulsory moves and compulsory redundancies that could arise from these changes, though none are expected in the immediate future.

Job Evaluation and Grading

Management are keen to press on with the Job Evaluation and Grading (JEGs) exercise for the Assisted Service Coach and anager roles (ASC, ASM) as indicated in the previous bulletin DWP/BB/204/14. This will be done with PCS involvement in the JEG process.

Hardship Claims

It was reported in the previous bulletin that management had agreed our position that Hardship Interviews should be conducted in a screened area or by telephone. However, management’s current view is that only adverse decisions that need to be communicated in this way, not the interview/data gather, although the Hardship Officer still has the discretion to use screens as a precaution. The Operational Excellence Directorate (OED) is reviewing Hardship Payments guidance; management agreed to a separate discussion with PCS so we can raise our concerns and ensure we have an understanding on how this work is conducted safely.

35 Hour Weekly Jobsearch

Following a Freedom of Information request which referenced a PCS circular, management confirmed our view that 35 hour weekly job search is not a legal requirement within the JSA Claimant Commitment. It is therefore unreasonable for members to be penalised through performance improvement plans or marked down on their performance at the end of the year for not including 35 hour job search as part of the JSA claimant commitment.

Work Experience / Movement to Work

PCS made it clear to management that in many areas there is inappropriate work being carried out by people on Movement to Work (MtW). In particular some of the MtW participants in Jobcentres have been working with claimants unsupervised and with very little or no Keeping Safe training. This is unacceptable because this is work that should be rightly done by paid DWP workers and that it puts both Work Experience and DWP workers at risk. WSD management confirmed that in order to work alone with the public, the keeping safe part 2 must be completed which MtW will not have done. The “Assisted Service Front of House principles” also states the public must be supervised by DWP employees whilst using jobcentre computers. The GEC is currently awaiting for the DWP guidance to be updated following issues raised by DTUS, a full briefing will then be issued to branches.

Conditionality and Sanctions

PCS Group Vice President Helen Flanagan and PCS General Secretary Mark Serwotka gave evidence to the recent Parliamentary Select Committee on sanctions. A full briefing on conditionality and sanctions will be issued after the Committee’s report is published.

We are aware that pressure is still put on our members working in Jobcentres to refer claimants to decision makers for sanctions and that end of year performance markings can be affected by the numbers referred for decisions. DWP Management and government ministers have been keen to state publicly that there are no targets for sanctions. If there are no targets for sanctions then it is not appropriate for PCS members to be told they have not referred enough claimants to a decision maker on a purely numerical basis.

Advice for members and branches

Branches need to raise issues with local management and use escalation routes where appropriate if it is not possible to reach a resolution locally. Issues that may have national consequences need to be communicated to national negotiators via leeds@pcs.org.uk

Union Busting at the heart of government

Conservative ministers have launched a campaign of union-busting at the very heart of government, the UK civil service. Their actions show how the Tories will attack union rights across the whole public sector if they form a government after the election. But their actions also give the green light to employers to go on the offensive against unions across the UK. 

Our movement represents millions of voters and their families and communities. We all need strong unions and need to put our rights at the centre of the 2015 general election. 

Please support our campaign – write to your MP and ask them to commit to support trade union rights in under this and the next government.
 

Action for branches to take:
 

• You can take part in the campaign by writing to your MP. Please sign the e-action.
• Circulate this information to all members (see attached letter to MP Annex A and model motion Annex B]
• Circulate the attached letter to union branches, trades councils and campaign groups (accompanied with letter to MP Annex A and model motion Annex B)
• Put the model motion to your own branch
• We will be circulating further campaign materials for use over the coming months

Sign members up to pay their subscriptions by direct debit

Led by Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude, government departments have cut facility time by 60%, and are trying to end “check-off”, the decade’s old method through which employers collect union subscriptions direct from a member’s salary. These actions are an attempt to undermine the organisation, membership and finances of the civil service unions and in particular the largest union, PCS.

In HM Revenue and Customs a leaked management memo showed that there were plans to marginalise PCS and deal only with more compliant unions. This is clearly part of an agenda to weaken unions in order to put through more cuts more easily. Recently the Home Office served an injunction on PCS, on grounds of national security, to prevent the union publicising the effects of government cuts in the UK Border Agency.

Taken together these actions are an attempt to union-bust at the heart of government, and in particular to undermine PCS, a union which has consistently opposed cuts to jobs, pay and pensions, and resisted privatisation.

Dispute unfair 'Must improve' ratings

Performance ratings must not be changed or forced simply to fit the distribution guide.

Balanced consideration of performance

Your end-of-year rating must always be based on a balanced consideration of your personal performance over the reporting period. DWP People Performance Procedure supports performance improvement but this cannot be achieved by misuse of ‘Must improve’ ratings.

The ‘Achieved’ rating encompasses the widest span of performance and may include performance that is verging on needing improvement or exceeding in some areas or is generally satisfactory (Procedure 9.6).

Ratings must meet equality standards

Newness to the role, Disability, Part-time Working are examples of circumstances which may legitimately influence the level at which objectives should be set and failure to do so may result in an unfair end-of-year rating. Where there has been a failure to make adjustments for such circumstances the end of year rating may need to be adjusted to ensure that the rating is fair and reasonable. DWP provides guidance in the guide for ‘How to: Set Performance Expectations Consistently at the Start of the Year’. PCS guidance is provided in PCS Briefing DWP/MB/005/15 Managers must focus on equality not quotas. A new People Performance Advice Q Q28 (Can a work objective be agreed retrospectively?) also confirms that a manager cannot unilaterally set a retrospective work objective but it is possible to do so in agreement with the employee.

Must improve ratings must be justified

The terms for the Must Improve rating under People Performance Procedure 9.7 are:

9.7 The Must Improve rating includes employees whose performance requires improvement and those employees who are being managed under formal unsatisfactory performance procedures. This rating may also be appropriate for others whose performance has required improvement during the reporting period, where this is a proportionate response. Mid-year and end-of-year ratings will always be based on a balanced consideration of the employee’s personal performance over the entire period and decisions must be transparent, fair and reasonable.

Must improve ratings must be proportionate

The use of the Must Improve rating as a ‘proportionate response’ means that the rating is not predetermined where improvement has been informally required during the reporting period. It should not be an unfair, disproportionate response to a relatively minor or isolated issue or given for petty/trivial issues.

Managers must not apply quotas

DWP People Performance has a procedural requirement that ratings must be consistent with known performance expectations (Procedure 12.1). DWP procedures for rating performance do not require managers to meet the guided distribution ranges but do insist that ratings will not be changed or forced simply to fit the distribution (Procedure 9.3). Managers must not co-operate with any local misuse of the guided distribution as ‘box mark quotas’. Managers must comply with DWP policy not to do so.

Dispute unfair ratings

It is best practice to try to resolve disagreements informally but you have a right to raise a formal grievance and appeal under the normal Grievance and Appeal Procedures should you want to challenge any unacceptable decision. People Performance Procedure 13.2 confirms the grievance process:

13.2. Employees are expected wherever possible to progress their issue using Employee Action or Manager Action in the Grievance procedures. Managers are required to engage constructively with employees to ensure the Employee Action and Manager Action procedures are meaningful and effective. Should the issue remain unresolved and, upon further reflection, the employee believes it is reasonable to do so, employees may have their grievance dealt with under the Management Investigation procedure

Timescale for raising a formal grievance

A complaint for investigation under the formal process of Management Investigation should be raised within 30 working days of the disputed decision. Where informal action, using Employee Action or Manager Action, does not resolve the issue care should be taken to put a formal complaint within 30 working days of the date of the original decision.

PCS support and representation

You have a right to a grievance and appeal hearing and the right to be accompanied by a PCS Representative. Contact your local PCS Representative for advice, support and representation. 

#BelieveInHer - A campaign to empower women of Wigan

#BelieveInHer

A campaign to empower women of Wigan

The campaign aims to:

•  Raise awareness of the issue of gender inequality and encourage people to take action
•  Create a platform to highlight role models in the community, males that are taking a stand against gender inequality
•  Inspire schools, colleges and other organisations to use this campaign to help address gender inequality issues

Women should be equal in our homes, our societies, our governments, and in our workplaces.

Act now!

Believe in her is supporting a change for gender equality. We want to encourage men and women to join the conversation; and bring down the boundaries and limitations that gender inequality puts up.

Join our efforts and be a part of the conversation!

Sign up to the pledge to take action against the discrimination facing women and girls.

#BelieveInHer commitment

Gender equality is not only a women’s issue, it affects everyone, men included.

It affects the young who’ll shape our future and the men who have hopes that their daughters will grow up in a world where they are safe and treated as equals.

It affects the men that want to show a sensitive side as much as it does the women who want to be strong.

For the campaign to succeed it needs your commitment.

Sign up to pledge and then share the message with your family, friends and colleagues.

http://www.wigan.gov.uk/Council/Projects/Believe-in-her.aspx

News from the North West

PCS DWP North West Region                                             

The DWP North West Regional Committee is made up of reps from all the branches in the North West.

Improvements Negotiated in Contact Centres

Contact Centre TU reps from all North West branches said that members had had enough of management ignoring the Contact Centre Agreement and introducing local arrangements which were unacceptable.  

Regional TU representatives met with North West CCS Group management on 27th January and secured agreement in the following areas:

Access to leave – it was agreed that site managers should not be imposing restrictions on the discretion of line managers to authorise leave, and that the leave should be authorised in line with national instructions.  National restrictions on access to leave, including network days, need to be dealt with by national TU representatives.

Performance – it was agreed that line managers should be approaching the use of after call work, break times and medical appointment credits in a reasonable manner.

Agency workers – it was confirmed that there were no plans to recruit more agency workers in the North West.  All staff employed by agencies had been given the opportunity to apply for FTA posts with DWP with a view to permanency.

Fixed term appointment staff – our position on the need to retain FTA staff, and offer them full time permanent postings was acknowledged.  It was agreed that this needed to be dealt with urgently by national TU.

Flexibility – it was agreed that better planning was needed to maximise the number of staff who wished to work until 18:00 hours, in order to minimise the number of staff who did not wish to do so.

AA staff on former transformation sites – it was agreed that the majority of AA staff in NW CCS, who were declared surplus last year, are no longer under the threat of redundancy, and that work needed to be undertaken to secure permanent postings for the remaining few.

CEF definitions – it was agreed that the revised definitions needed to be reviewed, in order to ensure that a claimant’s dissatisfaction with a decision outcome was not classed as poor service on the part of the agent.

Part time preferences – it was agreed that all staff should be receiving 80% schedule preferences, irrespective of the number of days per week worked.

 

 

Victory for the Birchwood Apprentices

After a campaign by the union locally in Birchwood and national escalation the Department has withdrawn all compulsory moves. The staff will be able to choose their permanent workplace and remain on the Apprenticeship.

Chris Marks PCS DWP North West Regional Organiser said “thanks to these members for sticking to their guns and refusing to accept the move despite huge management pressure to do so. This is their victory.”

The branch and the DWP Group will be releasing more comprehensive updates shortly.

The union makes us strong.

Loss of the podiums is a pain the back …

 

During the Summer 2014 podiums were removed from all JC’s across the country.  This was despite compelling arguments to retain them on many sites, including the fact that they were a control measure agreed with PCS to bring an end to the screens dispute.  

 

In the North West, health and safety reps raised disputes with local management at each site where they felt the removal would be detrimental, giving reason why the podium should stay in situ.  The main reasons were that the podiums protected the personal space of the staff,  the podium was a focal point for all visitors to the JC and due to the positioning of the podium customers could not attack staff from behind.  Unfortunately these reasons were all rejected and it was clear that there was an instruction to remove all podiums regardless of how many logical arguments there were in favour of keeping them.

 

Since the loss of a focal point, staff on some sites report how confused our customers are when attending the office. On many sites other unsuitable furniture such as low sideboards are being used. These cost the dept well over a £1000 to purchase.  This furniture is not fit for purpose, it does not have lockable draws unlike a podium, to store items such as appointment list, it does not act as focal point and is too low to act as desk. In fact some ASM’s report that bending over this sideboard, to use it as a desk is causing back pain.  If that is happening to you please let your local Health and Safety rep know and they will help you to complete an accident report (AR1) and if you are absent due to this pain please also complete an injury leave application.  

We have now reached the ridiculous situation where management accept some staff are having serious problems and that what they need is a piece of furniture high enough to stop them having to bend over repeatedly – a bit like a podium in fact.

Cheshire Branch has submitted a motion to PCS Conference instructing the union to put pressure on  management to re-instate the podiums as they are an essential health and safety control measure on some sites and were removed to fit a ‘vision’ of how jobcentres should look without proper regard being given to the safety of staff.  

Garston Contact Centre

The fight to keep open Garston Contact Centre in Liverpool has finally come to an end with the last staff moving out on 30th January.

Although the site did not stay open, much has in fact been gained. When the closure was announce in at the end of January last year the only offers of relocation on offer from management was Birkenhead CMG and Bootle Call Centres.

This was totally unacceptable for many staff many of whom had been transferred to Garston following earlier closures, especially of Liverpool Contact Centre and Huyton Benefit Centre only 3 years ago.

The cost of the closure at around £750.000 dwarfs the £100,000 alternative compromise proposals put to management by PCS would have cost.

Before the campaign all staff would have gone to Birkenhead or Bootle, but because of the resistance only 82 of the original 164 members balloted have moved to Bootle. Compulsory moves to Birkenhead were taken out of the equation all together and 66 posts found in alternative locations for staff with the worst mobility, health and caring responsibilities. In addition to this DWP has for the first time agreed to extend the payment of excess fares to five years from the usual three.

Direct Debit

 

Only 6 weeks to go.

 

Get yours done today