'We expect the government to act responsibly'

Responding to the government’s announcement that it would not press ahead with ‘plan B’ even in the face of sharply rising coronavirus cases, Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said on Thursday (October 21), “The government must not repeat the complacency of last autumn.

“The NHS is already at breaking point and its staff are exhausted,” she added. “The government needs to do everything in its power to protect the NHS from being overwhelmed this autumn and winter and to keep working people safe.

“Dozens of Unite members who worked on the frontline have already lost their lives to this disease and we will not stand for a single worker being put at risk again,” Graham continued. “This union will not hesitate to act to protect our members.

“Unite has already called for mask wearing to be mandatory on public transport and has highlighted the abuse its hospitality members have received trying to enforce voluntary mask wearing,” she went on to say. “We expect the government to act responsibly and to do it today, not tomorrow, next week or next month.”

Unite is dedicated to advancing the jobs, pay and conditions of its members and will fight back against any efforts to diminish workers’ living standards.

By UniteLive team