This matters because the proposed closure isn't about the work ending, it's about an office closing. The jobs still need doing, but experienced staff could be forced out of the DWP or asked to travel much further for work. In an area with limited opportunities for similar jobs, that would be a real blow to workers, their families and the local economy.

This dispute exemplifies the failings of outsourcing government work for profit. Cutting hours and/or staff is not in the interests of the workers delivering these important services, nor is it in the interests of the public sector workers to whom they deliver these services These cuts only benefit Sodexo.  PCS believes that outsourcing is a failed experiment, and this dispute is further evidence of that.

Civil servants deserve a pension service they can trust. Sign this petition to demand action now.

In the new Employment Rights Act, the government committed to offering workers: • an automatic right to a contract that reflects their regular hours, • notice of their shifts, • and compensation for cancelled shifts. The consultation suggests a maximum number of contracted hours you can have to be entitled to these new rights.  Protections could be limited to people currently working very low hours each week.  Instead, unions are calling for these rights to cover all of us.  Failing to get this right could create a race to the bottom, with employers offering contracts at the new legal minimum, simply raising the floor slightly above zero hours.  Rent, bills, food, and childcare don’t disappear if your hours get cancelled. However many hours you work, you need certainty to plan your life. Together, let's fight back against bad employers and deliver the secure contracts we deserve. Add your name today.

Cleaners on Barnet’s council cleaning contract—employed by Norse Group—are among the lowest-paid workers delivering public services in one of the richest cities in the world. They keep our council buildings and schools clean, safe and running, yet they can be left waiting around 10–12 days after the end of the pay period to receive wages they have already earned. They are paid every four weeks, but the pay arrives nearly two weeks after the work period ends. For workers living week to week, that delay creates real hardship: rent, bills, food and travel costs don’t wait. It also creates a clear two-tier situation where outsourced staff can be treated differently from directly employed council staff. On top of that, many contractors delay implementing the new London Living Wage rate until 1 April even though it is announced in October—leaving low-paid workers waiting months for an uplift that is meant to reflect the real cost of living. Barnet Council should set fair standards for any contractor that wants to provide services in Barnet: pay workers on time and pay the Living Wage when it is announced. If outsourcing cannot deliver basic fairness and accountability, then cleaning should be brought back in-house at the earliest opportunity.

Outsourcing companies frequently compete to win public contracts by reducing costs: it's a race to the bottom on the pay, terms, and conditions for their workers. This has a knock-on effect for services: for instance, hospital infections have increased under outsourced cleaning services. In its Make Work Pay plan the government committed to: 1. Bring about the biggest wave of insourcing of public services in a generation. 2. Introduce a strengthened two-tier workforce code to reduce differences in the wages of workers doing similar jobs. 3. Undertake procurement reform to drive up employment standards across the economy. As a package, these policies will have a significant positive impact on the employment terms and conditions of the workers delivering our public services – and everyone who relies on them. They will also deliver greater value for taxpayers by reducing inefficiencies, removing private profit, and increasing accountability. Minister Ward has committed to driving forward an ambitious agenda towards insourcing and, where the outsourcing of public services is deemed to be in the public interest, ensuring decent work for outsourced workers. Union access, recognition, and collective bargaining are often missing in outsourced services, leading to further attacks on working conditions. The proposed new Procurement Bill will be crucial to addressing these gaps and delivering decent work across our public services. To succeed for workers and service users, this agenda needs widespread public support. Please sign the official record of support for insourcing today.

Reform UK have pledged to introduce a Great Repeal Bill to remove the Employment Rights Act 2025 and the Renters’ Rights Act 2025. Unions, workers, and renters have long campaigned for these essential new rights. Reform are threatening to snatch them away. They have also pledged to repeal the Equality Act 2010, the law that stops you from being discriminated against at work. With these plans, Reform wants to rig the system in favour of their corporate backers. The ‘regulations’ they hate are hard fought for rights that give working people a voice and protect us at work. Axing workers’ and renters’ rights won’t cut our bills or increase our pay. It would slash standards and make us all worse off. Our message to Reform - and to every parliamentarian - is simple: commit now to opposing the Great Repeal Bill.

These proposed cuts mean people losing their livelihoods in a higher education sector already facing a jobs crisis, where alternative employment is scarce and careers built over many years can be destroyed overnight. For students, the consequences are overcrowded classes, delayed feedback, reduced support, and mounting pressure on remaining staff. The closure of Southend would also be a devastating loss for students, local communities, and access to higher education in the region. All of this undermines the value of an Essex degree, and damages the university’s reputation. Essex is a public institution with a public mission. Its future should not be decided without accountability, evidence, or meaningful negotiation. We call on University of Essex senior management and Council to: • Stop compulsory redundancies at all campuses • Halt the closure of the Southend campus • Return to meaningful negotiations with staff and their unions   The more people who sign this petition, the clearer it becomes that Essex staff are not standing alone — and that management must come back to the table.

Wirral Evolutions requires high qualifications of staff to protect the quality, safety, and sustainability of support for vulnerable people now and in the future. Fair, equal pay ensures skilled professionals are valued, retained, and able to deliver the high-quality service that clients depend on.

UCU members have been standing up against the continual cutting and restructuring of the last several years which has significantly damaged the University’s international standing, the quality of education of our students, and staff’s collective mental health. The pace of change is both unnecessary for achieving management’s stated goals of making the University financially stable and unsustainable. Staff cannot be expected to continue to carry out ever-increasing workloads.  It is also important because aggressive union-busting tactics such as what Sheffield’s management are proposing threaten all workers' ability to stand up to unjustified cuts and unjust management actions, now and in the future. An attack on one is an attack on all.  Please sign our petition and, if you can, contribute £5 (or more if you can!) to our fighting fund to help us ensure our members are supported through the holiday season and the months ahead.

Dumfries and Galloway is consulting the public on a range of proposals. In the past 16 years, the Council has cut £13 million from its budget and is now seeking to cut a further £35 million in the next three years. Most of these cuts are aimed at the Education Department. Proposals include consultation on the closure of 58 nursery, primary and secondary schools, axing the instrumental music service, and cuts to essential education workers. Years of under-resourcing have already created workload, pupil equity, violence and aggression issues that are unsustainable in schools. Over 40% of learners now have some form of additional support need. The introduction of the presumption of mainstreaming and the failure to appropriately resource this in schools has led to an increase in violence and aggression against teachers and between pupils. If realised, the recent budget cuts would have ramifications for the quality of education in Dumfries and Galloway and will hit some of the poorest children, the hardest. We are seriously concerned about the potential for the widening of the poverty-related attainment gap in Dumfries and Galloway.

Britain’s buses are old, inaccessible and unsafe. Except in London. Why? London buses have two or three sets of doors to make getting on and off really quick, safe, and accessible for everyone. If you’re a disabled user or parent with a buggy, getting on the bus, and finding space to sit, can often be impossible.  We believe buses can be made more accessible with these changes: • two sets of doors for boarding/alighting • Separate dedicated places for wheelchair users and parents with buggies • Eye level displays for wheelchair users and bell buttons within easy access • Seats at bus stops to provide a rest space for passengers who struggle to stand • Automatic boarding ramps and back up manual ramps if not working • Reinstating bus conductors • A permanent board of representative passengers and user groups to co-design all aspects of bus design and the bus reform process with the Mayor London buses aren’t this bad, and neither are buses across the rest of the world. Why are we stuck with such poor quality buses? If London can do it, it’s time we got the first class buses we deserve.