Advice to Members (01/03/14)
I have received a number of enquiries from readers in South Lanarkshire - union members who claim that they were given advice by their trade union not to pursue equal pay claims against the council.
Now people are asking me what they should do and all I can do is to say what I would do in their shoes - which is to raise the issue in writing with the union by sending an email to the appropriate union general secretary.
Any letter should set out the facts and circumstances of what advice was given, when and by whom - with as much detail as possible including any written documentation and/or the names of other members who may have been given the same advice.
If it is the case that a trade union has given poor or incorrect advice, then I would expect the trade union concerned to accept that it has a responsibility to put things right - instead of allowing an individual member to suffer the consequences.
Because trade unions are big, powerful, wealthy organisations and if you ask me, it would be terribly unfair for an ordinary union member to lose out as a direct result of following their union's advice.
So get organised, gather your evidence and state your case - if the facts speak for themselves and something has gone wrong, then any trade union worth its salt should be prepared to do the right thing.
Now people are asking me what they should do and all I can do is to say what I would do in their shoes - which is to raise the issue in writing with the union by sending an email to the appropriate union general secretary.
Any letter should set out the facts and circumstances of what advice was given, when and by whom - with as much detail as possible including any written documentation and/or the names of other members who may have been given the same advice.
If it is the case that a trade union has given poor or incorrect advice, then I would expect the trade union concerned to accept that it has a responsibility to put things right - instead of allowing an individual member to suffer the consequences.
Because trade unions are big, powerful, wealthy organisations and if you ask me, it would be terribly unfair for an ordinary union member to lose out as a direct result of following their union's advice.
So get organised, gather your evidence and state your case - if the facts speak for themselves and something has gone wrong, then any trade union worth its salt should be prepared to do the right thing.
