Standing together across Prospect’s public services sector
Prospect deputy general secretary Garry Graham and Geoff Fletcher, president of our public services sector, says members will continue to support and protect each other in the face of further government attacks.
Now is the time for us to stand together across our membership in the civil service and wider public sector. The past months have seen an acceleration of the attacks from the UK government on their own staff.
For many the announcement that ministers intend to reduce staffing numbers by one in five was the last straw. This is an arbitrary figure, plucked out of the air, with no evidence behind it and no admission by the government as to what government should stop doing. The fact, despite repeated requests from Prospect and other unions, that no minister has been prepared to meet with unions is a clear signal of the disdain the government has for its own staff.
The rapid declaration, after the job loss announcement, that the government intends to “consult” with the unions on plans to slash redundancy terms (in value by about a third) in order to “reach agreement” beggars’ belief. No organisation either public or private could announce savage job losses and then seek to reduce the redundancy terms of staff, claiming to be in good faith and still expect to reach agreement.
Prospect, working with other unions, have made it clear that we oppose the head count reduction plans and will not agree to any detrimental changes to severance terms- and will use every industrial and legal route to protect and defend members. Members should be under no illusions that if we do not make a stand on this issue- the government will see that as a green light for further attacks.
At the same time, we are in detailed negotiations across a number of areas. Most recent figures show that pay increases across the economy are lagging behind inflation- but in the public sector the figures are even worse- with increases lagging at 1.8% – which is one third of the increases in the private sector. Whilst in some areas more positive discussions are taking place on pay- in the majority of areas many employers are simply applying the bare minimum allowed by the Cabinet Office Pay Remit Guidance.
We have issued clear guidance to branches that where final offers are received- members should be balloted, and where the recommendation is to reject we should test members appetite for action. Branches should be holding members meetings in anticipation and building support. Speakers are available from Prospect- so we build support across branches and no branch feels isolated and alone.
Where there is support for action- we would aim to ballot on a coordinated basis- to maximise impact and support.
The challenges we face have never been greater. The ideological and economic attacks on our members are unprecedented and the statements made by the candidates who aspire to be PM indicate those attacks will only accelerate if left unchallenged. This is the time to make a stand and to build for action- whilst it has always been our instinct as a union to negotiate as hard as possible- there comes a time when enough is enough and we need to demonstrate our strength by standing together.
So, if you have colleagues who are not union members- please encourage them to join Prospect. If you are not active in your branch- please get in touch and ask how you can help. Encourage your branch to hold member meetings and take part- your views are important. Where we are balloting on pay- make sure that you vote.
Our view is that across the sector we need a coordinated response to the government on pay, on head count reduction and on threats to redundancy terms. Thank you for being a Prospect member and please take an active part in our work of defending, protecting, supporting and seeking to enhance the working lives of our members and the important work they do.
