You might well be wondering what happens now that our strike action is over and we are all back at work.
At a local level very little will happen in the immediate
future.
We originally went on strike because the employers, through
the UCEA of which Don Nutbeam is a board member, only offered 1% and then
refused to negotiate any further, despite the surplus available in the HEI
coffers to fund our request. Sitting at
the negotiating table saying nothing more than ‘No!’ is not negotiation.
Our strike action let the employers know just how strongly
we feel about the poor offer of 1% as a pay rise. Everyone recognises that strike action is
never taken lightly. Each of you thought
long and hard about whether to go out – many of you told us that you finally
decided to go out because you consider 1% to be an unfair offer.
The employer now needs to pick up the ball and do something
with it and that ‘something’ is to return to the table and be willing to
negotiate properly with a larger vocabulary than just ‘No’.
As the director of HR, Janice Donaldson, said to members of
the picket outside building 37, last Thursday, ‘Nothing is resolved without
negotiation’.
So – would employers please return to the negotiations with
a more realistic offer?
For other views of the strike visit WessexScene.co.uk to read 'Why I am striking' from a teaching assistant, or why Professor David Owen, Head of the Politics and International Relations Division at the University thinks that 'Today's strike is only the first step'. Have a look at the slightly lighter side of strike day and read about how 'students learn on day of no learning'.
However, in the meantime campaigning continues:
New living wage rates set
This week is Living Wage Week - and new rates have been announced this morning: £7.65 an hour outside London and £8.80 in London.
UNISON will be at the forefront of campaigning this week to win the living wage - the minimum amount needed for workers to provide a decent life for themselves and their family - and highlighting the economic benefits.
Throughout Living Wage Week, keep an eye on the UNISON website for news of the campaign, and check out our campaign pages (see below).
General secretary's blog
A living wage: allowing workers to provide a decent life for them and their families sounds simple - so what's the problem?
New living wage rates - UNISON reaction
We need good employers to speak up for the advantages of paying a living wage
Living wage could create 58,000 jobs, says leading economist
UNISON study concludes living wage brings a positive boost to the economy
