Unite CEC Branch – City of Edinburgh Council trade union

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Vote now to fight against redundancies and privatisation

Have you voted yet?

On Monday we opened a consultative ballot for all our members across the City of Edinburgh Council to see if you would take action over the

loss of the ‘no compulsory redundancy’ pledge
threat of outsourcing and privatisation.

Both of these are potential consequences of the Lib Dem budget that was passed by the Council on 23 February. Read our post on the budget for details.

This is a consultative ballot to check if members would take action. This is not an industrial action ballot, which would lead to action. Read about different ballots.

We need to show that we will not sit back and accept cuts to jobs and services, so vote as soon as you receive your ballot. The ballot closes on 2 April.

How you receive your ballot

Email

If we have an email on file for you, you will receive this by email.

Unite Executive Council Elections

Postal ballots are being sent to all Unite members on Monday 27th March and the election period will end on 25th April. You will receive, along with your ballot paper and pre-paid envelope, a booklet containing a full list of candidates, their statements and branch nominations

All members are urged to vote in this election to decide who runs our union.

There are over 70 seats on our executive committee and you will be able to vote for Territorial reps (Scotland), Sectoral reps (mostly Local Authorities but some can vote in other sectors like construction) and equalities reps (Young members, LGBTQ+, Disabled members, Ethnic Minority members).

A new economic model — Our branch secretary Brian Robertson is standing for the Local Authority seat

Brian is standing for Workers, Public Service and Decency in the economy. We ask you to vote for someone you can talk to and you can hold to account. If you want to learn more about Brian’s views check out his blog.

There is a powerful contingent from Scotland and our Public Sector seeking to ensure our union is effectively run for the good of our members:

Sylvia Stewart (NHS) seeking election as Territorial rep
Eddie Cassidy (Glasgow City Council) seeking election as Territorial rep
Jenny Douglas (Dundee City Council) seeking election as LGBTQ+ rep
Carolanne Watson (Finance) seeking election as Finance and Legal rep
Brian Robertson (City of Edinburgh Council) seeking election as Local Authorities’ rep

If you wish to have more information on this election the members first website has information that may help you decide. Alternatively, you may contact branch rep Marilyn Moore on 07388928540 to ask any questions and discuss the issues important to you.

International Women’s Day 2023

On 8 March we celebrate International Women’s Day, when we highlight the fight for gender equality and advocate for the rights of women in the workplace, in the community and across society as a whole.

Key facts in the Council

69% of workers in the City of Edinburgh Council are women. This is 67% of local government employees and 78% of teachers.

Council budget 2023

What happened, what it means for workers and how we will fight

On Thursday 23 February, Council met to agree the budget for 2023/24. With toxic tribalism the order of the day, councillors voted along party lines and it came down to three rounds of voting to agree a budget, with the Lib Dem budget being agreed. For the Housing Revenue Account, the administration budget motion was carried.

Read on for details of the day, what the budget means to you and how we are fighting back against it.

Watch the budget meeting

Read the key documents:

See the other budget papers.

Demonstration

Through every season the crowd of ragged-trousered philanthropists continued to toil and sweat at their noble and unselfish task of making Edinburgh run…

The day started with a strong demonstration outside the City Chambers, with far greater numbers than in recent years, where Unite, Unison, EIS, NASUWT, the Edinburgh TUC and community, political and activist groups stood together against further cuts.

Stop the cuts—demo on 23 February at the City Chambers

Join us on Thursday from 8:30am to protest the Council Budget

On Thursday, the Council will meet to approve its budget for 2023/24. The proposals look set to make around £18m worth of cuts, including axing Education Welfare Officers and Speech Language Therapists and forcing citizens to use online channels as part of a ‘digital by default’ approach.

Furthermore, the budget only accounts for a 3% pay rise for council workers, at a time where inflation stands at 13.4% with food prices having increased by 17% in the past year and mortgage rates and rent skyrocketing.

Read the budget papers

Merger of Lothian and Falkirk Pension Funds

How does the proposed merge impact pension fund members?

The Lothian Pension Fund (LPF) and Falkirk Pension Fund (FPF) are set to merge. In May 2022, the funds announced that they were exploring the possibility of merging. The local authorities are set to discuss the plans over the next few months, with the proposed merger touted for late 2023 or early 2024.

We asked LPF about the implications of the merger for our members. The full questions and answers are below.

Resist Racism demo in Glasgow on 18 March

UN Anti-racism Day is on 18 March, when anti-racists will rally in George Square in Glasgow as part of co-ordinated international demostration against racism.

Transport

A block of activists are travelling from Edinburgh to Glasgow at 10am on the 18th. If you are interested in joining them you can book your space using Eventbrite.

See the Facebook event for full details and information about transport from elsewhere to Glasgow.

Background

In Britain, we face a crisis-ridden government attempting to use racism to make ordinary people pay for the cost of living crisis. The ‘Rwanda plan’, racist deportations and the hostile environment for refugees and migrants are all about divide and rule and scapegoating. Safe passage now!