Pam Cole, Policy OfficerPCS

pamela@pcs.org.uk

IER April 2013 - The Public Sector: cuts, privatisation and

employment rights

270,000 members across government and in privatised sector

National and delegated CS recognition National Trade Union Committee National consultation Delegated bargaining Delegated facility arrangements Departmental Trade Union Sides

Ministerial agenda Political lobby – protecting the taxpayer? Cuts - cost (not benefits) Privatisation – divesting responsibility? The wider public sector Austerity perspective – reason or excuse?

BERR: Workplace representatives – a review of their facilities and facility time (2007)

TUC: The facts about facility time for union reps (2011)

NatCenSocial Research report for Unison: The value of trade union facility time – Insight, challenges, solutions (June 2012)

Consultation responses PCS surveys Joint projects Delivering change Resolving grievances Agreements tailored to organisations

Civil Service is not just Whitehall Managers’ needs as well as members’ needs

Long lead in, short consultation Unilateral document, November 2012 Leading questions NTUC discussions – cut short Ministerial announcement Cabinet Office directive Cost limits set Legal constraints - acknowledged ACAS Code – duties and activities

A fundamental rupture of industrial relations

in the Civil Service

Ending or changing existing agreements

Central control or delegated authority?

Union democracy and representation Equality and diversity Collective bargaining machinery Statutory responsibilities Members’ rights Knowledge and expertise Individual reps

Fewer reps? Less diverse union? Lower skills and expertise? Even worse management of change More stress – members, reps, managers and

organisation More grievances – less access to help Lower morale Erosion of workplace rights

Preparation for a hostile environment Organising strategy – Count Me In PCS national campaign Departmental agreements? Tool kit – co-ordinated/tailored Supporting reps Supporting members Legal challenges? Transition plan

Wider attacks On employment rights On trade union rights Rest of public sector

Wider campaigning to protect rights and resist detriments

Working with TUC and IER and others

“I was helped from the moment I set foot in the union room. They are a brilliant support system...My rep was in every meeting ...so I was assured all correct procedures were being adhered to”

“Support from my HR department would have been no substitute for the support I received from my union rep because I would not have felt they were ‘on my side’”

Public and Commercial Services Union