Commencing at 5:30pm on Thursday 28th January 2010 at The White Eagle Club, Riverway, Stafford

A light buffet & soft drinks will be available from 5:00pm.

Attend to be entered into a free prize draw sponsored by UIA & Britannia.

It is important that all members attend as there will be an election for two senior Branch Officer Posts.

The working parties of the School Support Staff Negotiating Body (SSSNB) are now in full swing. The Core Contract and Working Year Working Group (CCWYWG) , The Role Profile and Job Measurement Working Group (RPJMWG) and the Executive Group are now meeting every few weeks and are getting down to the detail of what a new school pay and conditions framework might look like. The CCWYWG has been working its way through the clauses of a draft contract but is still grappling with the implications of moving to a full year contract for all, rather than retaining a formula approach. This is a complex task as the group is trying to reach a common understanding of what is possible. The employers and unions are both presenting option papers to reinforce their particular positions and it is clear that legal advice will need to be taken on issues such as holiday pay and how it is expressed, whatever the final outcome. The trade union side wants the contract to reflect the all year school employment of support staff and for job evaluation to determine the size and demand of a role over a calendar year. The employers continue to press for a notional salary with a pro-rata formula to arrive at actual pay. Apart from the central issue of working weeks, weekly hours and holidays, there are many other elements of the contract which have to be thrashed out. A training and development clause in the contract has been under discussion and championed by the Training and Development Agency for Schools. There are issues around additional payments, for example, special needs allowance, which is currently treated differently across authorities. Certain groups, like premises staff, have particular contractual variations and the issue of tied accommodation. The group has discussed pension implications, advised by LGPS experts and now sick pay is on the agenda.

The RPJMWG has been scoping out the work which has to take place to create new job families, with role profiles and a system for matching jobs to them. It is clear that a great deal of expert support will be needed and funding it must be agreed.

UNISON’s national schools committee met on 24th September and agreed the importance of keeping members in touch with SSSNB work. A dedicated webpage will go live soon, with more to communicate as the detailed negotiations develop. The new body talks need to be discussed by school members and organisers in regions are planning programmes of school visits and meetings to brief them and listen to other school concerns.

UNISON is the largest union for school staff and we are currently in negotiations with the Department for Children, Schools and Families and the employers at a national level regarding a new national pay and conditions framework for school support staff.

We are working with the Local Government Employers, representatives from foundation and aided schools as well as from the Catholic Education Service and Church of England Board of Education to develop a new set of national terms and conditions for school support staff.

The composition of the school support staff negotiating body is as follows:

The Government has announced that the new negotiating body will be given statutory powers under the forthcoming Education and Skills Bill.

UNISON, TGWU and GMB public service unions, have today (26 October), submitted a 2.5% or £500 pay claim on behalf of some 1.5 million local government workers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The claim covers care assistants, cleaners, teaching assistants, librarians, social workers and refuse collectors among others, who are at the bottom of the public sector pay league.

Heather Wakefield, UNISON’s Head of Local Government, said:

“The 2.5% claim is modest and takes account of the tough economic climate and the predicted inflation rate for next year. We believe this claim is both realistic and affordable.

“Local Government workers are playing a vital role in helping communities through the recession, offering practical support alongside debt and housing advice. I would urge the employers to settle this claim quickly and allow council workers to focus on the job in hand, delivering quality public services.”

Brian Strutton, GMB National Secretary, said:

“GMB is very clear that our 2010 pay claim is affordable and no more than council workers deserve. We are proposing a bottom-loaded increase yielding more for the lowest paid and overall it would add less than 3% to the paybill.

“Our careful research of local authorities finances shows that this level of increase can be sustained. Local Government employees have had low pay rises for years and have been through restructuring after restructuring to make efficiency savings, so this claim is no more than they deserve.

“Given the huge and continuing pay rises and bonuses that those at the top of society are still enjoying, GMB sees no reason why the ordinary workers shouldn’t be treated fairly and we will back our members to the hilt to ensure that they are.”

Peter Allenson, National Officer for Unite the union, said:

“The claim submitted is more than reasonable. Local Government staff provide vital services to the local community.

“They deserve every last penny of this proposed increase and, without it, services will suffer.”