Have you watched your local public services disappear?

Have you watched your local public services disappear and wondered how this represents progress? It might be that the library is cutting back on its opening hours; or the household waste centre has shut and so has the youth club or there’s no money to refurbish the local sports centre. Neighbours who find it difficult […]

Merthyr Tydfil council bypasses unions and asks staff to agree to pay cuts

Trades unions are disappointed that the chief executive of Merthyr council has bypassed trade unions and sent a message out to almost half of the council’s workers asking them to accept large cuts in pay to plug budget gaps caused by the UK government’s austerity agenda. Intensive talks between the joint trades unions – UNISON, GMB and UNITE – and […]

UNISON highlights double whammy effect of austerity and local government reorganisation in Wales

In response to the release of  Welsh public services minister Leighton Andrews’ consultation, Reforming Local Government: Power to Local People, UNISON Cymru/Wales head of local government Dominic MacAskill said: “There is a general consensus across Wales that council restructuring is both necessary and inevitable. “However, despite the fact that this debate has been ongoing for some […]

UNISON reaches agreement with the Welsh Government on NHS pay

The settlement is an improvement on the previous offer and we welcome achieving the Living Wage for our lowest paid members