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.

The local trade union movement, including Leicester and District Trades Council, stands behind Tom. An injury to one is an injury to all. But Tom’s case has much more far-reaching implications for the labour movement. Tom’s suspension is also a direct attack on the rights of other UNISON members, who have been denied access to their elected representative in the middle of an industrial dispute. On March 18th 2026, UNISON members at Ash Field Academy completed an industrial action ballot over Tom’s suspension and the attack this represents on their rights. A massive majority of 87% voted for strikes on a turnout of 57%. Ash Field Academy is one of UNISON Leicester City’s most densely organised workplaces, and members there have a track record of winning – in 2023, Ash Field UNISON members won pay increases of between 18 and 25% after 43 days of strikes. If employers get away with victimising union stewards simply for doing their job effectively - especially in the middle of ongoing industrial disputes - this sets a dangerous precedent for our movement as a whole.

 Scotland stands at a crossroads. Our creative industries contribute over £5 billion to our economy and are the heartbeat of our national identity, yet the workers behind this success are being pushed to a breaking point. Following the 2026 Scottish Parliament elections, we call on the next Scottish Government to move beyond "slogans" and immediately implement the 16 recommendations of the Culture Fair Work Taskforce and the findings of the Independent Review of Creative Scotland  The implementation of recommendations from the Independent Review of Creative Scotland (November 2025) and the Culture Fair Work Taskforce Report (December 2025) represent a defining moment for Scotland’s cultural identity and economic resilience.  The Creative Industries are crucially important to Scotland’s economy and wellbeing, the reports make clear that Scotland’s creative industries must change if we are to protect and enhance the lives and livelihoods of the workers within them.  We cannot claim to value "Scottish Culture" while the people who create it lack sick pay, maternity leave, and financial security. We call on all parties contesting the 2026 election to commit to the full, funded implementation of these reports in the first 100 days of the new Parliament 

Critical Care NHS workers striking after Greater Manchester’s Northern Care Alliance cuts pay   NHS staff working at Salford Royal, Royal Oldham and Fairfield Hospital, Bury are in dispute with Northern Care Alliance Foundation Trust after the trust decided to cut their pay when they undertake overtime to cover staff shortages. The Trust fails to pay overtime in line with their terms and conditions of employment, NHS Agenda for Change.    NCA have engaged an alternative private employer, ’NHS Professionals’, to cover shifts which means staff that assist the Trust in covering staff shortages are now seeing a significant drop in pay as well as being able to avoid employer pension contributions. NHS Professionals last year posted pre tax profits of a staggering £11.4M.     Critical Care units across the Trust which cover Salford, Oldham, Rochdale and Bury are heavily reliant on covering shifts to meet safe staffing requirements or critically ill patients.  The specialist nature of the care required in critical care means most shifts are picked up by staff already working on the unit.     UNISON members are calling on the Trust to be given the right to choose whether to work the shift as Overtime or NHSP Bank rates. This choice would allow staff to be paid the correct pay for the crucial duties they are undertaking and no less for additional work they carry out whilst also being able to contribute to their pension. The worrying reliance on a private entity in the NHS is forcing UNISON members into financial hardship. A UNISON member said "I'm a highly trained and skilled clinical professional and I literally keep people alive. NCA has reduced my pay by £10 an hour for our extra hours rates that we rely on and I'm now struggling to make ends meet at home”.  After over a year of trying to resolve this issue with the Trust UNISON members have now voted 98% in favour of strike action. 

Removing this essential service will create new barriers to learning, participation, and employment at the college, undermining the ability of many to continue their courses or sustain their roles. We call on Milton Keynes College to halt the closure plans and work with staff, students, UNISON, and the wider community to find a fair, sustainable alternative that protects access to childcare.   UNISON will keep in touch as the campaign develops

Northern Trains is becoming part of a publicly owned Great British Railways, which is good news for passengers and rail workers.  But many rail workers are being left out of Great British Railways because they are outsourced to private companies.  Outsourcing companies cut costs to boost profits, resulting in worse pay and conditions for staff and a worse service for passengers. Northern Trains currently outsources station staff, cleaners and security guards to Carlisle, ISS and Amulet.  Carlisle is owned by the Tory donor and tax exile Lord Ashcroft and its treatment of staff is typical of the worst of outsourcing firms. ·         Imposing low pay: RMT members at Carlisle have been in a long-running dispute because the company won’t negotiate their pay, choosing to impose the minimum possible pay rates it can get away with. Our members have been forced to take industrial action in the form of strikes and refusing to scan tickets to try to get a negotiated pay rise.  ·         Bullying staff for taking legal strike action: Since the dispute began, Carlisle managers have tried to bully and intimidate our members into submission. Carlisle keep many of our members on zero hours contracts and threaten to cut their shifts or their holiday if our members take legal strike action.  ·         Passing the buck: Carlisle and Northern keep passing the buck between them, each blaming the other for the dispute, while hoping our members will be starved into giving up.  This treatment brings shame on Northern Trains.

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. Every ‘regulation’ 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.

Workers have called for formal union recognition so staff can negotiate pay, terms and working conditions collectively with Second Step management. While meetings have been productive, recognition has yet to be granted, leaving workers without a meaningful, organised voice in decisions that directly affect their livelihoods and the quality of services provided. We call on Second Step to recognise our union formally, commit to fair and inflation-reflective pay, and address the widening pay gap between Second Step roles and equivalent NHS and AWP positions. Fair pay and fair representation are essential not only for staff, but for the stability and future of the services our communities rely on. When workers are respected, services are stronger. We would like to highlight Kelvin Blake's conflicting position; on one hand, he is a councillor representing constituents who are struggling to buy food and access housing as their pay is not meeting the rate of inflation, and on the other hand he is the Chair of the Board of Second Step and his silence is deafening. As a Labour councillor his government have bought in the Employment Rights Bill – which among other things provides improved facility time for union reps and lifts many constraints on union activity – and yet Kelvin is silent about the industrial action happening in his constituency. This silence is palpable as Union reps struggle to engage with Second Step leadership in meaningful negotiations. We say to Kelvin: many of us are your constituents and we are asking you to make a statement in support of our campaign. This would be particularly impactful in your position as Chair of the Board. Stand with Second Step workers and support fair pay, fair conditions and union recognition. Sign to show your solidarity with our campaign and to support our message to Kelvin.  

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.

These care homes have been run down and neglected over many years, but they are fantastic buildings, staffed by carers with decades of experience and they are the beloved homes to their residents and an important part of their communities.  UNISON Derbyshire does not believe care should be privatised or marketed and we call for these homes to remain in the public sector.  The homes at risk are: Briar Close, Borrowash Castle Court, Swadlincote The Grange, Eckington Lacemaker Court, Long Eaton The Leys, Ashbourne New Bassett House, Shirebrook Rowthorne, Swanwick Thomas Colledge House, Bolsover.

For almost 50 young workers, in such a demanding industry and facing the bleakest outlook they’ve faced in years, to take decisive strike action in this way is profoundly brave and unprecedented. Support them in their effort to improve their workplace in order to make it workable and liveable while we all struggle through the depths of an affordability crisis.