184 MPs back a legal right to a workplace Learning Committee

Usdaw members meet the new Minister for Lifelong Learning

A Parliamentary Early Day Motion calling for statutory provision for workplace Learning Committees has been signed by 184 MPs. This provision would help ensure that employers work with Union Learning Reps in a similar way in which they work with Health and Safety Reps on a statutory Health and Safety Committee.

The motion was initiated by Brian Jenkins MP for Tamworth and Usdaw member, and is a big boost to Usdaw’s campaign for a statutory right to workplace Learning Committees.

The EDM also congratulates the 100,000 learners who have accessed learning via their Union Learning Reps as well as the Union Learning Reps who made this possible. It also congratulates the Labour Government on the extension of the Union Learning Fund.

The EDM coincided with a visit from Usdaw Union Learning Reps and members to the House of Commons. They met with Bill Rammell, the new Minister of State at the Department of Education and Skills, with responsibility for Lifelong Learning. They also met Brian Jenkins MP, who was responsible for tabling the EDM, and a number of other Labour MPs.

Mick Power, a Union Learning Rep from Sainsbury’s Distribution Centre at Rye Park was one of the visitors to the House of Commons. He said “I was very pleased to have the opportunity to speak to the minister and the other MP’s about Lifelong Learning. What made the visit all the more interesting is that Bill Rammell is my local MP. We are now in the process of arranging for him to visit our site to see the learning initiative for himself so that he can talk to learners who have benefited from the Union Learning Fund”.

The visit was organised to say thank you to the government for their ongoing support of Union Learning Representatives and the Lifelong Learning agenda and to press the case for a right to workplace Learning Committees.

We have learnt that one of the keys to a workplace learning initiative is to set up a mechanism for Union Learning Reps and site management to work together and to resolve problems. Usually this is some type of Learning Committee or Steering Group.

Sometimes these committees also operate a Joint Learning Fund to help make learning more affordable. 

We often negotiate voluntary agreements to set up workplace Learning Committees. A legal right to a workplace Learning Committee would strengthen our negotiating hand with the less co-operative employers, and be a boost to the status of existing Learning Committees.

Usdaw has produced a briefing on 'A Statutory Right to Workplace Learning Committees', which is available in the resources section of the Usdaw Lifelong Learning web site (www.usdaw.org.uk/lifelong_learning/)

You can help the campaign for a statutory right to a workplace Learning Committee by discussing it at your union branch meetings as well as regional and national conferences. You can also help by encouraging MPs to sign the Early Day Motion (Number 159). To check if your MP has signed the motion (Number 159) already go to http://edmi.parliament.uk/edmi/ 

The full EDM (Number 159) states:

That this House congratulates the 100,000 people who accessed learning at work last year via their trade union learning representative, and the union learning representatives who do such a valuable job in assisting them; further congratulates the Labour Government for the extension of the Union Learning Fund which is providing excellent value for money by enabling unions to reach out to those most in need of acquiring skills; and calls on the Government to investigate ways in which union learning representatives can do more to help people with low level skills, particularly in those companies which refuse to work with union learning representatives, by looking to make statutory provision for workplace learning committees to ensure that employers work with union learning representatives in a similar way in which they work with Health and Safety Representatives on statutory Health and Safety Committees.

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Last Modified: Tuesday, 28-Feb-2006 17:17:59 EST