‘Time for change’

Unite delegate Monica Taylor moved a key motion on public sector workers and council funding on Monday (September 29).

She highlighted how she bore witness to “the impact and legacy of years of Tory cuts and mismanagement”, with “local government funding stripped to the bone”.

This has resulted in hundreds of thousands of jobs lost, pay slashed, libraries closed, youth services gutted, social care on its knees.

“Almost half of Britain’s councils now face effective bankruptcy,” Monica said. “And yet, 15 months after Labour took power, there is still no plan to fix this mess!”

She said it was “clear” that this was not the fault of the many council workers, including care staff, librarians, housing officers, youth workers, school support staff, or bin workers.

Monica said it was vital to understand that Birmingham bin workers and other council workers should not be paying for council debt.

She recounted to conference how those workers have now been on strike for over 6 months against imposed contract changes that mean pay cuts of up to £8,000 – a quarter of their pay.

“This will mean their homes, their mortgages, their rent, cannot be paid,” she explained. “These workers are out there fighting for their family’s very existence and being told by Labour that the council cannot afford to solve this dispute.

“Can you believe that a Labour council, backed by a Labour government, is using Thatcher’s anti-union laws, spending millions on injunctions and agency labour to break a lawful strike?”

Monica went on to slam the Labour government for amending its own legislation that would mean councils in debt can legally fire and rehire their workers.

She called this “simply unacceptable”, to widespread applause from the hall. But she went on to say that the bin workers are standing firm, and have just voted again to strike, with 99 per cent in favour.

Quoting Unite general secretary Sharon Graham, Monica reminded conference, “Unite will not allow these workers to be starved back to work.”

Monica went on to highlight Unite’s key demands, including honouring the deal scoped out at ACAS; prohibiting councils from using debt to attack staff; scrapping every loophole that permits ‘fire and rehire’; and requiring commissioners to protect jobs, not just balance the books.

“Workers have carried communities through a decade of austerity, doing more with less. Now it’s time for change,” she said. “Unite says to this government: fund our councils, end austerity, and give local authority workers the fair pay rise they have earned.”

Urging support for the motion, Monica concluded, “Victory to the Birmingham bin workers.”