North West E-Bulletin
Issue 7 - December 2005
Amicus is organising a mass lobby of
Parliament on 10th January 2006.
The urgency of this campaign is that we must
influence MPs before the publication of the Health White Paper. The
thrust of the lobby is opposition to breaking up the NHS, action to
stop the cuts and creeping privatisation.
We are hoping that as many people as possible
will attend the rally. Transport to the lobby is being organised
from the North West Region. For further details please contact Gary
Owen on 0161 745 7300.
D
efend Council Housing
Lobby
Defend Council Housing, in conjunction with
Amicus, is organising a mass lobby of Parliament on 8th February
2006 in support of the "Fourth Option" in housing.
Amicus supports the principle of the "fourth
option" and a second motion calling for a level playing field
received unanimous support at this year's Labour Party
Conference.
Again transport to the lobby is being
coordinated by the North West regional office. Call Eddie Hulse on
0161 798 8976 for details.
First Bu
s engineers end
their strike
Engineers working at First Bus in Cheshire
have ended their strike after winning an improved pay offer from
the company.
Amicus members at First Bus have been
striking and operating an overtime ban over pay for the last
month.
Amicus Regional Officer, Lawrence
Chapple-Gill, said:
"I have told First Bus that issues
remain at the company and that our union's strike action has seen a
sharp increase in Amicus' membership in the company. I now want
more meetings with management over the coming weeks to help resolve
the outstanding issues at First Bus."
Accredi
tation of Safety
Reps
If you become an Amicus safety rep, written
notification must be given to your employer stating:
The name of the representative(s)
The group of employees represented
Please inform your Regional Office of your
appointment. We will write to your employer for you and give you
credentials in the form of a printed safety rep card. Further
details can be found at
http://www.amicustheunion.org/default.aspx?page=3149.
Amicus urge North West companies to m
ark Workers Memorial Day
Amicus is asking companies to hold a minutes
silence at 12 noon on Workers' Memorial Day, 28th April 2006.
Workers' Memorial Day enables us to
commemorate those who have been killed by their work and to
campaign for health & safety improvements.
North West Regional Secretary, Kevin Coyne,
said:
" We are seeking the help of our
safety reps to talk to their employers to hold a minutes silence at
their workplace in remembrance of the dead and to raise awareness
of health and safety issues in the workplace. We want as many
companies in the region as possible to be involved."
A regional event to mark Workers' Memorial
Day is to be held at the Mechanics Institute, Manchester on Friday
28th April 2006 commencing at 10.00 a.m. Further details of all
North West events will be circulated shortly.
Following the success of a Workers' Memorial
Day event held in Preston City Centre in March this year, involving
union stalls, speeches, a short service of remembrance, a balloon
release and laying out of pairs of shoes to signify UK workers who
lost their lives over the previous year, a Preston & District
Workers' Memorial Day committee has been established.
If you would like to get actively involved in
helping to organise next years event or would like further details
about planned future events please email
graham.king@baesystems.com.
Amicus members can now receive a discount on
entry to the largest dance club in the North West.
The NW24 Branch has successfully negotiated a
reduction of £1.00 on entry to Syndicate in Blackpool. To claim a
discount you must show your Amicus membership card.
We wish you all a Merry Christmas and Happy
New Year.
Kevin Coyne
North West Regional Secretary
Please remember to keep us informed of any
changes to your email addresses so that you keep receiving future
copies of the North West Bulletin. If you know of other colleagues
who may be interested in receiving the bulletin, ask them to
contact us at
northwestbulletin@amicustheunion.org.
Don't forget if you have any North West
events or pieces of news you would like to include in the next
Regional Bulletin please forward drafts to
northwestbulletin@amicustheunion.org.
This bulletin has been produced by Karen Viquerat, if you have any
comments please email
Karen.Viquerat@amicustheunion.org or
telephone on 01704 546 500.
