Paul W Fleming, Equity General Secretary,  called the move "short-sighted" and a "disaster for Scottish television", saying the move would have a disproportionately negative impact on Scottish performers - many of whom get their first TV job on River City - and the wider Scottish to production landscape. The £9 million annual budget is excellent value for money given the hours of programming produced throughout the year for a successful show pulling in a regular audience of 500,000 per episode.  The Glasgow-based show is well-loved by Scottish audiences, enjoys strong ratings, and won ‘Best Drama’ at the RTS Scotland 2023 awards. It is the only domestic Scottish soap running on TV and outperforms other TV series by more than 2.5 times. It provides work for dozens of Scottish actors every year. River City is thriving and successful in its current format. There is no way that the BBC can replace the level of investment and job creation that River City provides to the Scottish economy and Scottish culture sector. Any alternative proposals the BBC offers will inevitably hurt Scottish culture workers and and TV production. 

Phoenix, Greenfields, and Hungerford day centres provide invaluable support to some of the most vulnerable adults in society, including adults with learning disabilities, physical disabilities and for those with frailty and dementia. They are oversubscribed and much loved by the community. Closure of these services is short sighted and will place additional pressure and costs on other public services such as homecare, care homes, and the NHS. Dedicated and experienced centre staff will lose their jobs and service users (and their families) will be negatively impacted. The centres are purpose built and were recently refurbished at significant cost to the council. They survived and thrived despite a decade of council cuts and austerity. But today these essential services risk being lost forever.

In some months, pay could vary by as much as £150, severely impacting those who rely on state benefits such as Universal Credit, Tax Credits, and Housing Benefit.  These fluctuations can lead to a reduction in benefit amounts, causing undue financial stress. We urge Sodexo to reconsider MyTime and implement a mechanism that ensures consistent monthly pay for all employees. Stability in pay is crucial for the well-being of the workforce. Sign this petition to demand fair and stable pay!

These nurseries serve some of the most deprived communities in Barnsley. They offer outstanding services and are a vital lifeline for vulnerable children. Parents, children, carers and staff need your help to save this vital provision. Tell Barnsley Council to think again - Sign the Petition, Save Barnsley Nurseries.

On 1 April, a huge portion of Wiltshire's health services (including 2,000 NHS trained staff) will be given away to a billionaire private equity investment firm, Twenty20 Capital.  This unprecedented transfer risks patient care, the breakup and disruption of services and the driving down of health workers pay and conditions.  The local Integrated Care Board, who awarded the contract to private healthcare firm HCRG (owned by billionaire private equity investment firm Twenty20 Capital) in October, did so quickly, quietly and without meeting several of their legal obligations. Please join us urgently in asking the relevant councils to formally request the Secretary of State pause this transfer to enable proper scrutiny and accountability to take place and avoid disruption to the public health service. Organised by: UNISON Southwest and Protect Our NHS

No worker should be expected to tolerate sexual abuse, harassment or bullying of any kind at work. But McDonald’s has been hit by a wave of allegations that hundreds of workers are still facing sexual abuse and harassment, a year after its CEO promised action to protect workers.  Across the UK, 89% of McDonald’s workers are on zero-hours contracts. Zero-hours contracts create a huge imbalance of power in the workplace that leaves workers vulnerable to predatory bosses.  The shocking claims revealed in a new BBC investigation include:  • A 17-year-old being asked for sex in return for more shifts at work by her manager, who was in his 30s.  • That managers would “touch up” other members of staff and send sexually explicit messages to 16-18 year old employees.  • That managers were racist, homophobic and bullied an employee due to their disability.  • That a manager performed a Nazi salute to a Jewish employee.  No-one should ever find themselves in a position like this, having to put up with sexual harassment, racism, homophobia or bullying.  The BBC’s investigation has exposed how sexual harassment and insecure work can go hand in hand.  Zero-hours contracts create a huge imbalance of power in the workplace that leaves workers dependent on their managers for shifts on a week-by-week basis, and vulnerable to predatory bosses. If staff say no to their manager, they face losing future work.  McDonald’s claims that workers are free to move onto guaranteed hours contracts if they want to. But the BBC spoke to 50 workers across the country who say they were not given the choice to switch to minimum guaranteed hours.  McDonald’s is one of the largest employers in the UK. It should be setting the standard on workforce conditions – not leading a race to the bottom. It’s clear that use of zero-hours contracts is enabling abuse of fast-food workers. It’s time for McDonald’s to make a guaranteed hours contract the default for all workers.   Photo: Theasis/Getty Images

As care sector workers employed by HC-One, we know that when our colleagues don’t have paid sick days, they stay sick longer, we are more likely to get sick and we make our residents sick. No Sick Pay means unhealthy workplaces. As the UK's biggest care home group, HC-One should be taking a lead on this vital issue. Support our campaign by signing our virtual Sick Note now. We’re Sick Of Statutory Sick Pay at HC-One!

These cuts will go right through the heart of Corringham & Stanford Le Hope. The schools have been an integral part of these towns for years. These cuts will damage the education children in Thurrock will be able to receive by overloading teachers and cutting the job roles that provide the pastoral support that teenagers especially need! Not to mention the inadequate provision for children with SEND. We are saying no to the cuts, and that our children deserve better! Support our staff by signing this petition and joining us at this time of the Gable Hall & Hassenbrook crisis! SOS! If you are a support staff member in Thurrock, join GMB union today at www.GMB.org.uk/join-GMB

The creative industries generate £28.3bn in turnover and £13.5bn in Gross Value Added, making up nearly 6% of the UK economy [1]. Their success relies on a diverse workforce, which can only be achieved with a social security system which supports  new starters and low earners to build their careers. The MIF reduces diversity and so directly affects who we see on our stages and screens and whose stories are told.  Not Here to Help, a report for Equity by Dr Heidi Ashton, Centre for Culture and Media Policy Studies, The University of Warwick, found that the MIF drives self-employed creatives away from creative work because they cannot afford to stay in it [2], with nearly half of respondents subjected to the MIF saying they had or were considering leaving the industry.    The MIF is a particular barrier to disabled people.In our casework we have seen that those moving to UC from tax credits tend to claim UC for ill-health rather than be subject to the MIF. This is a highly regressive impact of the MIF. Pushing people away from high quality work is at odds with all sustainable employment evidence and the government’s plan to “Get Britain Working”.    Sign this petition to call on the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions to abolish the minimum income floor in Universal Credit.    Petition created by David John, Honorary Treasurer and Audio Artists Councillor at Equity. [1] https://www.artscouncil.org.uk/research-and-data/contribution-art-and-culture-sector-uk-economy. [2] https://www.equity.org.uk/campaigns-policy/policy-work/universal-credit-report. 

Applecart arts is a creative venue, housed by Newham Council in the old registry office, providing performance arts to the local community and jobs to Equity members. They are a cornerstone of the community yet Applecart Arts is facing closure due to cashflow issues. Equity represents many freelancers who find work at Applecart. Such a loss of freelance work is totally counterproductive to what a borough serious about culture is trying to achieve. You cannot have art without the workers who create it!

• Without ticket office staff we will no longer be able to secure the best fare for our journeys. • Unstaffed stations increase the risks of anti-social behaviour, and jeopardise the safety of women and vulnerable passengers. • Closing ticket offices early removes the support many people need, particularly those with disabilities or learning challenges.  • Ticket vending machines are confusing, especially for older passengers, and many people do not have smart phones.  • At a time of climate crisis we need more people to use the railways. Reducing ticket office opening hours will make rail travel less appealing. 

These mass terminations at TGI Friday’s have been devastating for staff who have given years of loyal service.  Restaurants were closed and workers were locked out without any notice by a company who made £190.7m in revenue last year.  Senior management at TGI Friday's including CEO Julie McEwan knew the company was in difficulty for some time, but chose not to carry out meaningful redundancy consultations in good faith.   They chose to let the company sink and let the government insolvency service pick up the tab for £millions in severance packages.  Where was the political outcry?  Staff were terminated without notice or consultation. They were owed wages, holidays, tips, notice pay and redundancy. They were given 57 minutes notice of a call many could not attend to be told their jobs were gone. They weren't even allowed to ask questions.  When P&O sacked 800 workers without any notice in very similar circumstances, there was rightfully a national outcry, from the media, from politicians and from the public. Now, even with a Labour Government, over 1,000 workers are sacked and there have been no questions in parliament, no CEO compelled to appear before a select committee to answer for their behaviour.  We want a meeting with Jonathon Reynolds (Secretary of State for Business & Trade) to discuss how this mass firing without notice can be made illegal once and for all.  Why were these restaurant workers treated like this? Because in the eyes of employers and most politicians, hospitality workers are expendable. They matter less than workers in other industries. But not as far as Unite Hospitality is concerned... Following a national organising campaign which saw hundreds of TGI workers join their union Unite Hospitality, the pressure on the company was such that they were forced to pay-out wages, tips and holiday pay within a week. Something that the company had told the workers would not haoppen a matter of days previously.  But the fight is not over.  Significant numbers of these ex-TGI Friday’s staff have been short-changed on their wages, holiday pay and tips. And despite assurances from administrators Teneo, the workers continue to be locked out of sites & can’t retrieve their belongings. The workers deserve better than this.  We're calling on TGI Friday's CEO, Julie McEwan, to pay up what is fair to workers who have lost their job, for Teneo to open-up sites to allow workers access to their belongings and a meeting with Jonathon Reynolds