North Lanarkshire Update
Here are two previous posts from the blog site on the future of the Home Care service in North Lanarkshire.
Now as I said at the time it strikes me as rather odd that the local Unison branch is giving an assurance on behalf of the Labour-run council because the truth is that the unions are in no position to deliver on these pledges and promises.
The Council is the employer not the unions, although given people's poor experience in the fight for equal pay over the years, I suppose you could be forgiven for having some difficulty in telling the two apart.
Boom, boom! - as Basil Brush would have said.
His Master's Voice (18/06/16)
The trade unions in North Lanarkshire have shown their willingness in recent weeks to act as a mouthpiece for the Council, as this post on the future of the Home Care services demonstrates only too well.
Days later the unions issue a joint press release with North Lanarkshire extolling the virtues of the late-running job evaluation (JE) review, yet the full details of this review have still not been released and the workforce remains firmly in the dark.
Strange days indeed and ordinary union members could be forgiven for asking what they are paying their union dues for, especially when the level of service and support is so poor.
NLC Update (27/05/16)
HOME SUPPORT MEMBERS
"in light of recent concerns over the future of home support, the bench asked the council to clarify its position on privatisation and TUPE transfer of home support workers.
"the council have assured UNISON that there are NO PLANS to privatise and TUPE transfer home support and that Cllr McCulloch's statement earlier this month where he said that privatisation was off the table still stands."
Now I think's it's a good thing that the union has been stirred into action, but why is Unison speaking on the Council's behalf?
Surely a senior figure from North Lanarkshire Council should be seeking these words 'on the record' was it were, otherwise they're not worth the paper they're not written on - as an old friend of mine was fond of saying.
Not only that, a clear statement of the Council's position should be sent to the Joint Integration Board of Lanarkshire's Health and Social Care Partnership so that the record can be set straight at its next meeting.
