A VALENTINE’S MESSAGE TO COUNTY COUNCILLORS

Nottinghamshire UNISON is to ballot its members employed by the County Council about industrial action over threatened cuts in jobs, services and redundancy pay. The biggest union in the County Council officially gave the Council notice of an industrial action ballot today (14 th Feb).

UNISON members met at County Hall to hear Branch Officers set out the timetable for the ballot and to sign Valentine Cards to County Councillors . The message on the cards is “Don’t break my heart by voting to cut jobs and services on 23rd Feb”. This is the day on which the County Council meets to set a budget that could lead to hundreds of job cuts and cuts to services vital to the public of Nottinghamshire.

They also signed a 6ft high valentine's card that was then delivered to the office of Cllr Kirkham, Leader of the County Council.

UNISON Branch Secretary, Jill Turner, explained that “UNISON recognises that the Council are facing budgetary pressures arising from a number of issues. However we are fundamentally opposed to the current budget proposals and will be lobbying the Council meeting at 1pm on 23rd Feb”

UNISON wants the County Councillors to think before they vote on 23rd Feb. Jill Turner set out the union’s proposals:

=> That urgent work is undertaken to identify funds to delay the implementation of the current proposals

=> That each proposal is properly assessed for its impact on service users, the wider public, Council staff and the level of additional costs they will create.

=> That work is undertaken to identify alternative reductions which will minimise the impact on services and jobs.

=> That the Council works urgently with unions to honour its contractual obligations with those staff at risk with regard to redundancy compensation

=> That we work together to lobby government for a fair and reasonable settlement
In their response to the public consultation over the budget cuts, UNISON has argued that the Council has not taken sufficient time to study the impact of these reductions on service users. Nor has it thought through the impact of cuts on the proposed restructuring of the County Council. “We are hugely concerned at the lack of joined up thinking around the budget cuts and restructuring. This could lead to a member of staff displaced by the budget cuts being redeployed and then at risk again from the restructuring” explained Ms Turner.