 |
Join | Update Your Details | Contact | Feedback | Site Map |  |
|
|
|||
|
|
 |
 |
|
|||||||
|
|
|
||||||
|
|
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
 Home
Vote YES to keep a strong political voice07 October 2004
Improving the working lives of its members has always been Usdaw’s main priority, it still is. Activists and officials are constantly striving to make sure members get as much pay, holidays and other benefits as possible. But some issues are beyond the scope of an individual workplace or a single company, but have a direct impact on the lives of our members. Health and safety, tax policy, minimum legal rights on pay/maternity leave/holidays, access to education, public transport, crime, pensions, trading hours, and the NHS, to name but a few. For these reasons Usdaw has always had a separate Political Fund so it can represent its members in the political arena. For more than 100 years the union has argued and lobbied at local, regional and national level for changes in government policy. Usdaw has not always been successful, but without this involvement union members would have missed out on important rights. The union’s participation in the political process has long been recognised as a vital part of the democratic structures of the UK. Members will receive a special mailing about the Political Fund Ballot with a 16 page magazine – Your Voice detailing everything you need to know about the union’s Fund and all of the achievements. It’s a crucial time for the union and Usdaw is pulling out all the stops to persuade members to vote YES. General Secretary John Hannett is confident, but not complacent, that union members will vote Yes to keep the Fund. “The political fund has been a massive part of the union’s history and will play an even bigger part in its future,” he said. “With a YES vote we can continue to lobby government, regardless of which Party is in power, we can run campaigns which make a real difference to our members’ and their families’ lives, and we can ensure we keep Usdaw at the forefront of the political agenda for many years to come.”
What you need to know- By law the union has to ask its members every ten years if they want Usdaw to continue with its Political Fund. - The Political Fund allows the union to campaign on issues which have a political content. - In the past this has seen Usdaw successfully campaign for better maternity and paternity rights, equal pay, and the introduction of the national minimum wage. - More recently this has allowed us to run campaigns like Freedom From Fear, like Christmas Day (and New Year’s Day in Scotland), Legal Rights for Learning Reps, and improved rights for parents and carers. - The Fund also helped to pay for leaflets, booklets and other information material which tells members of their rights. - Members contribute a small part (10p a week) of their subs to the fund. - In the last ballot in 1994 an overwhelming majority of those who participated voted to keep the Fund. - The ballot papers will be sent out on 18 October to members at their home address and these must be returned before 12 November. - The ballot is run by an independent company – The Electoral Reform Services. Notes to Editors: • Usdaw (the Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers) is the UK’s fifth biggest trade union, with over 338,000 members. Most Usdaw members work in the retail sector, but the union also has many members in transport, distribution, food manufacturing, chemicals and other trades. • Your Voice magazine can be downloaded at the end of this text (PDF format). • More information and news releases are available at our online Newsroom. • Journalists can subscribe to receive Usdaw news releases via our online e-news service. Download File:  Printer Friendly Page  Email to a Friend
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Join | Update Your Details | Contact | Feedback | Site Map | Privacy | Site Survey |
|
© 2003 (USDAW) Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers |
 |
