NEWS
FROM UNITE
Unite leads
opposition to EU Services Directive
Unite will launch a major campaign,
to combat EU legislation which threatens to import sub-standard
terms and conditions into the UK.
The campaign will begin with a major
demonstration at the European Parliament on the 14th February when
the European Parliament will be debating and voting on the draft EU
Services Directive.
Unite is opposing the introduction of the
European Services Directive (ESD)which threatens to undercut UK
workers pay and conditions of employment and compromises hard won
health and safety standards.
Unite General Secretary, Derek Simpson, said:
"It would be a total disgrace should a Labour Government even
contemplate supporting this directive in its current form. They
would be a government presiding over the euthanasia of the UK's
best jobs and turning us into a third world economy. The Labour
Party's manifesto clearly committed the Government to not binding
us to a services directive at any cost, but an effective directive,
which provides real benefits to consumers and new opportunities to
British business and one which will protect our employment
standards. The current terms of this directive heralds the starting
gun for the race to the bottom."
Under the terms of the ESD's 'country of
origin principle', which is supported by the UK Government, non-UK
registered European businesses providing services to UK consumers,
will do so without abiding by UK regulations. With regard to health
and safety, the behaviour of the company, the quality and content
of the service, the technical and financial capacity of the
company, the payment of fiscal and social charges etc. will not
apply to non-UK based companies.
The proposed ESD will also have significant
consequences for workers posted to the UK, to perform services on
behalf of service providers. This is because the obligation to
monitor the terms and conditions of employment will transfer from
the UK, to the country where the provider is registered. In effect
this will make it almost impossible to ensure that posted workers
benefit from the same legal employment protections as UK workers.
In addition, the proposed directive will also allow companies
registered outside the UK to circumvent trade union representation
and collective agreements which will inevitably lead to a further
erosion of workers and human rights.
Unite is also calling for temporary agency
workers who are among the most vulnerable workers in the economy to
be totally excluded from the scope of the directive so the UK can
monitor the treatment of these workers. Under the ESD it will be
almost impossible to monitor temporary workers, who could be posted
from Portugal by a company registered in Poland but be working in
the UK.
Derek Simpson's speech to Unite Officers
To read the text of Derek's speech to the
recent Full Time Officers Conference, please click on the following
link:
http://www.Unitetheunion.org/Default.aspx?page=3346Defend council
housing lobby
This lobby will take place on 8th February
campaigning to defend council housing and in support of the "Fourth
Option" in housing. Unite supports the principle of the "fourth
option" and a motion calling for a level playing field received
unanimous support at last year's Labour Party Conference. See the
Unite website for more information.
Unite
sponsors Billy Bragg Tour
Unite is sponsoring Billy Bragg's "Hope Not
Hate" UK'/Irish tour during April, May & June. To see if Billy
is playing a gig near you check out
www.billybragg.co.uk/shows/index.html
GENERAL
NEWS
Publisher Penguin Group has joined forces
with St Bride Library to launch a fundraising scheme to provide the
library with long-term financial support.
The organisation needs to raise £400,000
every year to continue to provide free public access, while
conserving and building its collection of printing presses, books,
typefaces, and trade artefacts.
It launched the Foundation Benefactor scheme
at an event attended by leading figures from the printing,
publishing, design and typography industries.
Don't forget!! My
Unite
My Unite - an area of the Unite website
dedicated to members only. It is tailored to members' own sector of
work and includes latest news from the sector and allows members to
change their own personal details directly. If you want to add your
email address or update details then log onto the link below and
register on
My
Unite. You will be linked directly to the GPM Section of the
Unite web site.
Remember this facility is only available to
Unite members so log onto and register now!
Unite gets regular training feature
in Printing World
Unite GPM Sector Head of Organising, Learning & Skills,
Bernard Rutter will be writing a monthly feature on learning &
skills in Printing World magazine. Printing World editor Andy Cook
met with Bernard recently and was so impressed with the work of the
sector and Unite that he offered Bernie the chance to pen the
column. The regular column will focus on the latest topics
connected with learning & skills in the printing and media
industries as well as advancing Unite views on this important area
of our work.
Unite teams up with the Daily
Mirror on rights at work
In another first Unite has teamed up with the
Daily Mirror to bring topical employment advice to over five
million people. Director of Legal Services Georgina Hirsch now has
a regular feature, "The Rights Stuff" in The Mirror.
Unite fears that a review by MPs of personal
injury settlements may result in fewer workers getting legal
support and receiving less damages than they are currently entitled
to and if adopted, the recommendations could result in legal costs
not being met, even in successful cases, affecting victim's
abilities to pursue personal injury cases. Currently any personal
injury case that awards over £1,000 can recover legal costs from a
defendant who is found liable.
The proposal to raise the legal limit to
£2,500 will mean that around half of all injured people will lose
the right to have their legal costs covered. Unite says the
Committee's proposal reflects its' failure to take evidence from
the TUC or the trade unions and opening itself up to powerful
insurance industry lobby interests.
Unite' Director of Legal Services,
Georgina Hirsch, said: "The government has said it wants better
compensation for the victims of criminal acts, such as the 7th July
bombings, but is cynically preventing others with serious injuries,
including broken bones and scarring from claiming compensation. The
legal costs involved in an average small claims personal injury
claim amount to approximately nine months pay for someone earning
the minimum wage so there is a huge amount at stake here,
especially the poorest people in society.
"These proposals would be a Charter for bad employers and careless
landlords to disregard health and safety. It is vital that the
principle remains that those who take a personal injury case and
win should be entitled to have their legal expenses paid. We need a
system that penalises negligent employers, not those pursuing
legitimate claims."
MPs condemn
government plan on corporate killing
Unite has welcomed a report from the Home Affairs and Work and
Pensions Committees which criticises the government's planned new
legislation on corporate manslaughter.
Derek Simpson, Unite' General Secretary,
said: "This report provides even more evidence, if it is needed,
that the liability of individuals for companies' health a safety is
imperative in raising standards. We urge the Government to accept
this report and bring an amended Corporate Manslaughter Bill before
Parliament as soon as possible.
"We also want a parallel move in the Scottish
Parliament, so that Unite members have the protection of similar
corporate killing laws wherever they work. Unless individual
managers feel the real heat of the law against them, we do not
think company behaviour on health and safety will change. The
Government now has the chance to turn up the heat, and we urge them
to do it."
Worried about your
hearing?
Take this simple 5 minute test. Leading
charity, RNID, and the TUC are teaming up to ask workers and their
managers to Break the Sound Barrier and take the charity's new
telephone hearing check by calling 0845 600 55 55.
Check regularly for updates on various events
around the country. As last year, we will have resources available,
including lapel stickers, posters and ribbons. Details of how to
get this will be found here soon.
TUC launches
apprenticeship health and safety leaflet
The TUC has produced a health and safety
leaflet for union safety representatives about the role of the
modern apprenticeship. Over a quarter of a million young people are
involved in apprenticeship schemes in workplaces throughout the
country.
Unite members in corrugated packaging
accept revised pay deal
Unite members working in the corrugated
packaging industry and working under the Confederation of Paper
Industries (CPI) Corrugated Agreement have voted in favour of an
improved offer.
Unite members to
be balloted on paper pay deal
Unite' 5,000 members employed in the
papermaking industry are to be balloted on a new pay deal agreed
with the Confederation of Paper Industries (CPI).
JohnstonPress buys Scotsman
The Scotsman newspaper has been bought by
Johnston Press for £160m. Included in the deal are Scotland on
Sunday and the Edinburgh Evening News as well as its namesake
daily. Profit before tax for the Scotsman Publications was £7.7m on
a turnover of £63.5m at the end of last year.
Unite anger at
Northcliffe sale
Unite has expressed anger over the Daily
Mail's proposed sale of Northcliffe Newspapers and its failure to
consult with trade unions and employees.
Unite in talks with Welsh Assembly on the future of
the newspaper industry in Wales
Unite expresses concerns over increasing
centralisation of the newspaper industry to the detriment of
Wales.
Following these concerns, Unite has been
invited to address the Welsh Assembly Culture, Welsh Language and
Sport Committee in a debate on the future of the newspaper media
industry in Wales.
John Dickinson Stationery job
losses
Unite has condemned plans to make 45
redundancies at stationery company, John Dickinson at Washington,
Tyne and Wear. Unite is also opposing plans by the company to
attack our member's terms and conditions of employment.
Demonstration against proposed job
cuts (France)
Around 500 French paperworkers have
demonstrated against proposals to cut up to 1,000 jobs by paper
companies in the Calais region. Filpac-CGT, the union that
represents workers in the paper, book and communication industries,
said its members took to the streets on 17 December in protest at
the intended job cuts. Up to 1,000 jobs may be lost, with Stora
Enso, International Paper (IP), Cascades and Smurfit-Kappa all
announcing job cuts and mill closures in the Nord/Pas-de-Calais
area of northern France.
New printing
power(Poland)
Poland is becoming a powerful player in the
printing industry and has recently become a member of the European
Union (EU). The investments made in Poland in 2004 totalled EUR62m,
23% more than the year before.
The two largest paper sheet companies are
Perfekt and Drukpol both based in Warszawa with 130 employees each.
The best printers get paid approximately EUR2,000 per month, but
their assistants only earn EUR300 per month. In most printing works
they are expected to work 40 hours per week with three shifts to
keep production running for 24 hours.
The last year has been challenging with
periods of bankruptcies and an overheated economy, however this
situation looks more positive now and many companies are exploring
possibilities of exporting. Drukpol argues that their prices are
25- 30% cheaper in packaging and publicity prints than Germany,
Scandinavia and the UK.
Jerseychanges employment
laws
Workers employed on Jersey should have a
better idea of their terms and conditions after a tightening of
some parts of the island's Employment Law. Unite has members on the
island including members employed on the Jersey Post (working under
a house agreement) and in commercial printing (working under the
Jersey Printing Association agreement) as well as other sectors,
notably in the finance sector.
Employment law on the Channel Islands is
different from the rest of the UK. An amendment to legislation
which provides that days off could be averaged over a fortnight now
states that employers and employees should agree such terms in
writing. Those staff on short-term contracts can also be protected
from unfair dismissal by working at least 13 weeks. When the law
was introduced in July, it included the right to a minimum wage.
All employees were also given the right to at least two weeks'
holiday pay.
