IT’S BUDGET DAY. AND IT DOESN’T LOOK LIKE GOOD NEWS
Chancellor George Osborne will unveil his new budget today, which is expected to hit the vulnerable and public sector workers hard. It’s been rumoured that the Chancellor may move to stop pay progression in the public sector altogether, further slashing the value of your pay whilst cutting budgets to key departments, which will leave vital services squeezed and people unsupported.
We know that cutting the services people rely on in difficult times and attacking the spending power of hard working people isn’t the way to promote growth in our economy. So do millions of others across the country. If we’re going to stop this unfairness though, we need to pull together. We need a strong union that can speak up for the majority, not just a few at the top.
Across our region, activists are taking this message to workplaces as part of our spring recruitment and organising campaign. Check out our website for useful resources to help you build our union in your workplace too.
Fantastic e-campaigning guides for trade unions
Today’s resource is a fantastic set of free web guides for trade unionists developed by Australian trade union media and marketing specialist Alex White. You can download these for free online by joining his e-mail update list (if you want to unsubscribe afterwards and still keep the guides, you can).
Inside Online Campaigning: A Primer for Unions, you will find:
- How to make a world-class campaign website for your union, from start to finish
- Advice on how to deal with critical comments
- Discussion on the pros and cons of different content management systems
- Some of the latest usability research for websites
Inside Social Media for Unions, you will find:
- An explanation of the principles of social media
- Best practice use of Facebook for unions
- Tips and techniques for unions to Twitter
Inside Introduction to Email Campaigning for Unions, you will find:
- Why unions should care about good email campaigning
- Advice on the art of writing better union emails
- Email etiquette and how to avoid bad practices
- Understanding email analytics
Download Alex White’s e-mail, social media, and online campaigning guides for unions
Inflation figures highlight heating or eating dilemma
Click here to read the story and share it on Facebook and Twitter
Get involved and make your voices heard (or ask someone else to)
Today’s challenge is simple – get more involved and join our team of workplace representatives.
Being a UNISON workplace rep is a great way to ensure members’ voices are heard in your workplace, and opens up opportunities for training and development, as well as paid time off to undertake official union duties. It also means you have very strong legal protection to prevent you being treated unfairly as a result of your role.
If you’re already a UNISON representative, why not speak to a colleague who’s shown an interest in the union about getting involved too? The more workplace representatives we have, the stronger we become and the better we can represent the whole workforce – and deliver positive change at work.
Click here to read more about becoming a workplace rep, or if you’d like to register your interest online and discuss the role further, you can do so via the UNISON website.
