December 2021 WB&DTUC delegate minutes

2021 Minutes 0

Wolverhampton, Bilston & District Trades Union Council Delegate Minutes

Thursday 16th December 2021

  1. Present: Sisters C.Simm PCS(in chair), Whyte UNISON City, Welch UCU, Taylor UNITE, Aujla UCU, McGarrity UNITE, Ring and speaker J.Bains IWA Brothers Martin MU, Kelleher & Marris Unite WM6150, Deacon & B.Simm UNISON City, Juss GMBx13, Rahimi Unite, Childs CWU, Stoll UNISON, Cardy UNISON, R.Bains, Singh, Mohammed & another cde IWA Apologies Sis D.Weaver UNITE WM/5203, Hyatt UNITE Community Bro Vaughan UNISON Staffs, Grant UCU, Oakley Unite WM6150
  2. Minutes of last Delegate Meeting (November) agreed; Matters Arising 4) National Stress conference Bro Juss reported reps need to look after ourselves seek support from FTOs re overwork of representing members; branches also need to check up on shop stewards and encourage shop stewards committees
  3. EC Report, correspondence of note
  1. branch affiliations /nominations 2022 resent– responses from Musicians’ Union, UNISON City of Wolverhampton, UNITE WM6150
  2. No speaker yet for AGM
  3. replacement PA loudspeaker identified QTX Mixcab15 @ £290, plus speaker stand, seems loudest available and can used with additional speaker – consult MU delegate, then send letter to UNISON requesting help with cost
  4. HnH re Britain First’s despicable attacks on RNLI volunteers, sign petition https://act.hopenothate.org.uk/page/95441/petition
  5. recording of ACORN meeting Bro Kelleher edited and upload to YouTube https://youtu.be/1fMIjegLfmY – sent to branches –
  6. Institute of Employment Rights renewal treasurer on holiday until new year
  7. Mendip TUC talk on history of Somerset coal miners https://youtu.be/ZmQq-6iDDfs
  1. Reports and discussion:
  • delegate reports:
  • GMB -Bro Juss resumed working from home. Many people do not get full sick pay so getting covid will cost them and put people at risk if financially forced back to work early as a result. Inflation outstripping wages.
  • PCS – Sis Simm reported DWP refusal to allow working from home. Hot-desking still taking place in Wolverhampton.
  • UCU – more branches to ballot after Xmas for strike action, but not Wolverhampton due to low previous turnout.
  • UNISON – national ballot for industrial action on pay due January. Sandwell UNISON won a re-ballot for further strike action over Leisure trust strike. Wolverhampton City UNISON held first successful hybrid meeting using council equipment prior to possibly investing in own
  • Secretary report – written report online, Midlands TUC report – Bro Kelleher
  1. TUC Pensioners Network – Bro Deacon reported that their online meetings were becoming a talking shop with it hard to target work and responsibility left to Midlands TUC staff.
  2. Wolverhampton Palestine Solidarity encouraging writing re Local Gov Pension Scheme Divestment – have put links on website. Michael Lynk the UN Special Rapporteur to the Occupied territories wrote last month to all chairs of local government pension funds including the West Midlands Pension Fund Cllr Jaspal. Wolverhampton Pension Committee met earlier this week and had received Michael Lynks letter. Several Cllrs. reported that they had had more contact from members concerned about Palestinian Human Rights abuses. Cllr Phil Davis (Birmingham) said that there had been no real progress in engagement with companies in breach of and there was a need for a criteria of monitoring progress. He went on to say that as investments were relative small divestment may be something the committee might have to consider. Cllr Davies’s comments signals that the consensus that opposes divestment is beginning to break and indicates a small bit of movement in favour of divestment.
  3. any other business none
  4. at 8pm Joginder Bains, National Secretary of the Indian Workers’ Association spoke on the historic victory of the Indian Farmers 2021 after nine general strikes in a year by farmers and workers uniting in the biggest strikes in world history and 731 protestor deaths. Protests took part all over India where 60% of workers are involved in agriculture and women played a key role. Farmers bypassed mainstream media and produced their own. Families of those protesters who died are to be compensated and imprisoned protesters to be released. Workers joined forces from all over India, breaking religious, class and caste barriers. The BJP/RSS attacks on farmers backfired on them resulting in election losses which are likely to continue. The the Farm Laws Repeal Bill which was passed on 29 November. See https://wolvestuc.org.uk/indian-farmers-victory/