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P.O.A (SCOTLAND) CONFERENCE 2007 The Fishers Hotel in Pitlochry was once again the venue for the Scottish Conference and yet again each branch from Scotland were represented and there was a good deal of debate on many issues ranging from pay, to health and safety and uniform, amongst others. In total there were 62 motions on the agenda, which is less than previous years, however don’t be mislead that this was a lame conference, far from it, this was a conference at which genuine debates took place on genuine issues and, unlike previous years, no individual was able to “highjack” conference for their own personal gain. We were seen as a professional organisation that carried out business in a professional and forthright manner on behalf of the members in Scotland, and delegates at conference should be congratulated for that. In addition to the 62 motions, 3 emergency motions were submitted, two of which were rejected, and the one that was accepted was placed on the agenda and debated. The guest speakers this year were Graeme Smith who is General Secretary of the Scottish Trades Union Congress (S.T.U.C) and Scotland’s Justice Minister Kenny MacAskill (M.S.P). This was the first time both had been afforded the opportunity to attend the Scottish Conference and they both appreciated it. It was especially pleasing to hear from the minister considering his predecessor was never able to find the time due to work commitments, also he spoke to us when his own party’s conference was being held in Aviemore. The Justice Minister also was brave enough to take an impromptu question and answer session. The Conference verbatim report will include the Q & A session. The speeches made by both have been sent to all Local Branch Committees and also been posted on the P.O.A website (www.poa.co.uk), however both speeches are included in this report. SPEECHES Graeme Smith, STUC, General Secretary “Thank you very much for the invitation to attend and address your Conference. I am delighted to be here and I hope that my presence gives you some reassurance, if it is needed, that the STUC and me, as its General Secretary, recognise the importance of all our affiliate unions and are committed to working with you on the issues that matter to the POA in Scotland and your membership. Because of changes in the trade union environment in last 10 years, the role of the STUC is under more scrutiny than ever before, and that is likely to intensify. I welcome that and I’m confident that the STUC is now, perhaps more than ever, responding well to the demands of affiliates. When I was appointed as General Secretary I made clear that our activities and approach will be part of the trade union mainstream. The priorities of our affiliates will be our priorities. The STUC will not be beholden to a smaller number of big unions it will be beholden to all unions. I hope we are demonstrating by the role we are playing and the services we are providing now. The merger of Amicus and T&G to create Unite has led some commentators to question the role of the STUC and I know that there has been a perception amongst some of our smaller unions that the STUC has been reforming in favour of big unions. I have been quite clear on this. I welcome the creation on unite in the way that I welcomed the creation on unison when it was established. We now have a powerful union with considerable membership in the private sector with the resources behind it to more effectively represent its members in an increasingly global and economically uncertain world but as important it has the resources behind it to build private sector union membership from the current unacceptably low level of just 22% of the workforce. I’m not complacent about the future role of the STUC. We must continue to ensure that we remain relevant to all of our member unions through the role we play in Scottish life and in the services we provide. And I believe that we are providing our smaller and specialised unions with lot of support that they value. And are involving them in our work and in our structures, including our Youth, Women’s, Black Workers and Disabled Workers Conferences and Committees. And I hope you welcome the recent dialogue you have had with us about the prison estate in Scotland about overcrowding and alternatives to custody and about your concerns over pay, working conditions and of course securing full trade union rights for prison officers.
The political environment In the time I have this afternoon I want to say something about the current political situation in Scotland and its implications for the trade union movement. It is important to recognise that the SNP Government has made a fairly surefooted start. It is still enjoying a honeymoon period of government, but it has been astute enough to take some populist decisions such as the abolition of the Tay and Forth Bridge tolls; the maintenance of local health services; and to announce the possibility of freezing the council tax, for example. Like you we firmly supported the decision of the new Scottish government to invest in the prison estate to replace the Victorian facilities at Aberdeen and Peterhead and to modernise facilities elsewhere to end the scandal of slopping out. We also like you have welcomed the decision to suspend the current procurement process for the replacement prison at low moss and to have the new prison there run within the public sector. And of course we welcomed the Justice Secretary’s statement that there will be no further private prisons. The creation of the independent prisons commission to be headed up by Henry McLeish should if it fulfils its remit give you the opportunity to have crucial issues affecting the prison service and your members, including the role of sentencing policy and alternatives to custody. Properly addressed. It would be unfortunate if the very positive direction of new Scottish government in relation to the prison service was to knocked off track by opposition parties “playing to the gallery” on the law and order issue and we will certainly be using any influence we have with the parties to ensure that this is not the case and the debate about the future of the prison service is a positive and constructive one. Despite the Government’s recent announcements about the prison estate, there are big challenges ahead. The prison service continues to suffer from overcrowding and under funding continues to severely limit the ability and of the service and your members to deliver the level of activity, learning and training needed to ensure the best possible rehabilitation of offenders. It seems to me that prison work is all too often under pressure to break even or make a profit, again limiting the scope and effectiveness of the work you are able to undertake. In particular there are far too many women held at Cornton Vale – many of whom should not be in gaol and these women are being incarcerated at enormous expense to the country and, despite the best efforts of your members, are in many cases not receiving the treatment or support they need. I believe we need to find ways of putting fewer people behind bars and that means we need a proper and mature debate on alternatives to custody which will not be without its difficulties, particularly if our political environment becomes overcharged. So, although our new Scottish government has made a relatively surefooted start it has, of course, yet to face a major crisis and its testing times are to come as it seeks to take forward its legislative and non legislative programme and to set a budget. UK GovernmentAnd, of course, Britain has itself a new PM in Gordon Brown. And the approach his government to the SNP Administration, and Scottish devolution, will be critical, with the early signs suggesting a somewhat strained relationship. I hope the recent spat over who should pay for the impact of foot and mouth on Scottish farmers does not indicate that the SNP government will take every opportunity it can to create conflict with Westminster or that Westminster is intent on making unnecessary trouble for the Scottish government. This, I believe would be to neither’s advantage. The public generally don’t like conflict and for the SNP there is a fine line to be drawn between standing up for Scottish interests and looking as if you are simply wanting to pick a fight. So what should we make of Gordon Brown’s government? It seems as if recent events have undermined the view that his approach is to be more substance and less spin. He clearly believes in redistribution but through means testing and his approach to the economy is more in line with the low taxation/low regulation us model rather than the European social model. Although he may be less wedded to the ideology of privatisation than his predecessor he does see a prominent role for the private and voluntary sectors in the provision of public services and is very strong on VFM, targets for job cuts and savings and public sector pay restraint. I know you continue to be concerned about pay and although your bargaining arrangements are distinctly Scottish the UK governments overall approach to public sector pay will inevitably have an impact here if only because of the tightness of the UK spending review. Restraining pay is not the way to improve public services. I know that the prison service is finding it hard to recruit, particularly in the north east, reflecting the reality that for a high pressure, often risky job, the wage levels are not adequate. I hope your employer sees sense in your forthcoming pay negotiations. It looked until a couple of weeks ago that the electoral “bounce” created by Gordon Brown’s election as the Labour Leader may be sufficient to secure Labour a fourth term. While it may well win the next General Election whenever it comes, it is now very possible that Labour will lose a UK General Election at some point in the next six or seven years. That will have considerable consequences for the unions. I have real doubts that Gordon Brown’s appeal to middle England Tories as in his conference speech, by inviting non Labour figures into government and inviting Mrs Thatcher to tea in Downing Street will play particularly well in Scotland. And it doesn’t seem to be playing well in England either. I have to say that the current focus on inheritance tax is profoundly distasteful in a nation struggling to meet its child poverty targets. We need a national debate about taxation in the UK to examine whether overall levels of taxation are sufficient to meet the demands of a mature western democracy instead of what we seem to have – an auction of virtue as to who can cut tax the most to appeal to the small business lobby or middle class voters who seem to want simultaneously lower taxes and better public services. Unfortunately, it seems that the response to this will be for the government to seek more public sector job cuts and savings and public sector pay restraint, with the real prospect of a worsening relationship between government and the civil and public services unions. And given the UK government’s rejection of the European charter of fundamental rights and its less than positive response to the trade union freedom bill we will have to fight hard for any further improvements in employment and trade union rights. Despite what some commentators and politicians say, UK law is amongst the most restrictive in Europe in relation to trade union rights. Trade unions are a vital component of democratic societies and the trade union freedom bill is moderate in its proposals but will offer better protection for striking workers, allow solidarity action in limited circumstances, provide simpler and fairer industrial action balloting and notice procedures and trade union rights for Prison Officers. The right to take industrial action is a democratic right like any other and the laws which govern this right must be equitable in principle and in practice. Prison Officers must have the right to take industrial action. Without that right you face the prospect of conditions being imposed on your members without negotiation, consultation or discussion. This is unacceptable in 21st century Scotland. You have the wholehearted support of the STUC in securing the fundamental right to effectively represent you members who provide a vitally important public service. Having the right to take industrial action, just like other public service workers, doesn’t mean that it can or will be used unconditionally. But on those unwelcome occasions when all other avenues have failed, industrial action must be an available option. That is a fundamental democratic right. The constitution I want to briefly say something about the Scottish Constitutional situation. The SNP Government’s big headline initiative has been the publication of the white paper “choosing Scotland’s future” and the launch of the national conversation. But it has been active in other ways too. It has been actively considering the creation of a separate civil service; it has been seeking to co-ordinate action by the devolved administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, to lobby the Westminster Government over things like devolving power to set differential rates of corporation tax. With a separate Scottish civil service beside an already separate Scottish legal system, prison system and a separate Scottish education system we will have a number of elements of a separate Scottish state And the SNP’s model of local income tax, to be centrally collected, could be seen as the genesis of a separate Scottish tax system. And of course they have rebranded themselves as the Scottish Government. It appears that its approach is to take us to the point that when people are asked to decide on independence, all the various elements of a separate Scotland will be in place so as to make the move to political independence seem less daunting. It seems to me that despite the current opposition in the Scottish parliament, a referendum on independence is very likely maybe not immediately but at some point in the not too distant future. Linking the independence debate with the debate on extending the powers of the parliament has moved all the political parties, the trade unions and others onto this ground and into a debate to which there will have to be a conclusion at some point in time. While I for one would rather be concentrating on other things, Scotland’s constitutional future is not an issue we can ignore. And for the British trade union movement, of which we are part, it is an issue not just for Scotland but for the whole of the UK and for England in particular. The trade union movement has to think very carefully about the constitutional relationships within the UK. Unfortunately, it is not on the radar of most unions at a UK level. To ignore what is happening in Scotland or indeed to be dismissive about the debate on Scotland’s constitutional future would be a big mistake. The issue of regional government in England needs to be revisited in this context as, dare I say, controversial issues such as the west Lothian and Barnet questions. And unions in Scotland have an important role to play in taking this issue up with colleagues in England, something we have already started in discussions with the TUC. ConclusionI would like to conclude by saying something about the STUC’s approach to the new Scottish government and the political situation we face. Well, we are, or course, continuing to engage constructively with government but also with the parliament. The new government wishes to establish a new memorandum of understanding with us, the terms of which we are currently negotiating. We are aware that with a minority SNP Administration and a parliament shaped as it is we certainly can’t take our influence for granted. We have to win the argument and constantly make the case to government that we should not only be listened to, but our concerns addressed and that we should be real partners in addressing Scotland’s economic and social challenges. As well as engaging with the new government, we are seeking to work with all the parties represented in the parliament and with politicians at Westminster and in local government. In January, we will be holding our second Scottish Parliament Trade Union Week to highlight key trade union priorities to our MSPs and there will be an opportunity for the POA to be involved in this if it would be of value. But we need to remember that the Parliaments in Edinburgh and London are not the only focus for action. We will be developing our engagement with other elements of civic society in Scotland. And we will retain a capacity to mobilise union members and the public in support of our policy priorities, and to influence the political agenda. We face some big challenges and I am confident that if unions continue to work together through the STUC we can confront them with a high degree of confidence. I hope you enjoy the rest of your conference and thank you once again for inviting me to attend.” Mr Kenny MacAskill, Secretary for Justice “Good morning ladies and gentleman and I would like to first of all say how delighted I am to be invited to speak to this conference of the Prison Officers’ Association Scotland. It is particularly pleasing to have this opportunity to talk to those who are working directly with prisoners at the forefront of delivering some of the most important services for offenders. The first thing I would like to say is a big thank you. I am only too conscious of how often staff working in our prisons feel the forgotten service. Because much of the work you do takes place behind high prison walls with a low degree of visibility to the general public, the valuable contribution that prison staff make to making Scotland a safer place, is all too often overlooked. I am pleased to have this opportunity to place on record my personal appreciation and the appreciation and thanks of my colleagues to each and every one of you for the job you do. You do a difficult job in difficult circumstances in working with very people. The prisoners you deal with get very little sympathy from the general community and you have to work hard with them to address their needs to help them turn round their lives and by that route you make a significant contribution to making Scotland a much safer community. I have already mentioned making Scotland a safer place and I am sure it will be no surprise to any of you that one of our key priorities in Government is to work with Parliament , with our communities and with people in the Criminal Justice System to create a safer and stronger Scotland for all of us. We have to do all we can to reduce the incidences of crime but we will never eliminate it and the role that you and your colleagues play in dealing with offenders to help rehabilitate them, to challenge the behaviour that brought them into contact with the Criminal Justice System in the first place, is an invaluable part of that process. We face a number of problems in Scotland as I am sure all of you will be well aware. The actual levels of crime are falling, however, we suffer from relatively high levels of violent crime. People’s sense of their own personal security and safety seems to be much less than the actual recorded level of crime suggests that it ought to be. We cannot forget however, that perceptions are reality and it is our job in Government to do all we can to change some of those perceptions. You and your colleagues are currently dealing with record prison numbers. Many of the people coming into our prisons could be dealt with more effectively elsewhere. What we have to look at as a society is ways in which we can deal robustly with offenders in the community. I was quite taken by a phrase that your new Chief Executive used when he said that “prison ought to be the alternative disposal” rather than there being other community-based alternatives as the alternative. I am all for Scotland leading the world but leading the world in the number of people we send to prison is not an accolade that I would particularly wish upon us. Prisons should not be a place where we deposit all of society’s problems. It should not be a place where we play catch-up for failures earlier in the system. Many of the people coming into our prisons today suffer from what I would call the 3Ds – drink, drugs and deprivation and we have to be imaginative in the ways that we address these underlying contributory factors to offending in Scotland today. I have had the opportunity to speak to a variety of different agencies and bodies involved in the Criminal Justice System from local authorities through CJAs to prison management and the police forces but I think no-one should under-estimate the vital role that people like yourselves play in delivering frontline services have to play in ensuring that we have a Criminal Justice System fit for purpose in the 21st century. As I am sure you will already know the Scottish Government is committed to delivering a world-leading prison service that is run by dedicated public servants. Under this SNP Government the SPS will provide a public prison service. It will not be a management agency for private sector prison provision. We believe that that is the model which will best protect the public and reduce re-offending. Earlier this summer I announced the suspension of the procurement process for the new prison on the site of HMPLow Moss. The private sector will still be invited to bid for the design and construction of the prison but it will be operated by public sector professionals as it should be. Had we gone ahead with HMPBishopbriggs as a private sector contract then we would have had about 24% of our prison population in private hands. This was a situation that neither I nor my colleagues were prepared to accept. You will also know that I have announced that a new publicly run prison for the north east will be built in the Peterhead area to replace the out-of-date facilities at Peterhead and Aberdeen. There is more to this issue than just bricks and mortar or, indeed, staff. We need to take a fresh look at the challenges facing us in dealing with the numbers of offenders in Scottish society today. I don’t believe that Cathy Jamieson, my predecessor, nor indeed the previous Administration’s policies, intended to create record prison numbers in the face of falling crime. Yet that is what happened. What we need to do is look at new and fresh ways of addressing the whole issue of penal policy and with that in mind I have announced a commission to look at the purpose of prison chaired by the former First Minister, Henry McLeish. What I have tasked them with doing is to look at the role of prison and to suggest ways forward for all of us in dealing with the significant challenges that we face. Specifically I have asked them to look at how prison is currently used in Scotland and to raise the public profile of this whole issue and to compare the underpinning rationale with current law in practice including the impact for courts, prisons and the Community Justice sentences of the early release provisions of the Custodial Sentences and Weapons (Scotland) Act. I have asked them to make a report and recommendations by 30June 2008. Full membership of the Commission is currently being finalised and will be announced very shortly. The Commission will comprise a wide range of interests including reaching well beyond the Criminal Justice arena. I think the new Scottish Government has made a considerable vote of confidence in you and the work you do. I believe for instance that the skills that prison officers and prison staff use in working with offenders have wider applications and in looking at the whole issue of the way that we deliver these services we might look to a future situation where prison staff working with offenders, may transcend the walls of the establishments that they work within – and extend their activities into the wider community. We believe in the service that you do, we value the service that you do and we have, I think, made very significant investments in the future of the public sector estate. It would be wrong of me however not to mention that as I am sure you are aware from elsewhere, there are still constraints upon the public purse here in Scotland that mean all of us have to work as efficiently and effectively as we can. It also means that there will need to be realism in our expectations of what can be achieved in the present climate in terms of pay and such matters. We need to find new ways of working and develop greater skills. All of us must look with flexibility to the future and work as hard as we can to achieve a public sector which is efficient, effective and delivers the range and quality of services we need to help us create the safer Scotland that we all so strongly desire. Ladies and gentlemen thank you for your very kind attention here today. I am genuinely delighted that I have had this opportunity to speak to you and I would reiterate my thanks to you and to your colleagues for the job that you do on our behalf. I hope you have an enjoyable conference and I wish you every success in the future and I look forward to working with you all in the months and in the years ahead.” Members of our National Executive Committee (N.E.C) were also in attendance and National Chair Colin Moses spoke to Conference on the first day, the Honorary Life members were represented and John Shannon spoke on their behalf. Our friends and colleagues from the S.P.S/T.U.S were represented by Andy Hogg (Secretary of the Trade Union Side) and Steven Hay represented our legal advisors Levy and McRae. Barbara Allison (Director of Human Resources) and Alan Foreman (S.P.S Employee relations) attended on behalf of the Scottish Prison Service. Other invited guests include Joanna Taylor from Lees Lloyd Whitley (P.O.A Lawyers) and Richard Candy from Abbey Legal Protection. Levy and McRae and Abbey Legal Protection each donated £500 which was used to buy prizes for the raffle and other fund raising events. In total the raffle raised £1000 which was donated to Victim Support (Scotland) and a further fund raising event also raised £1000 which was sent to a charitable organisation called Mary’s Meals which helps provide meals for under privileged children throughout the world. (www.sircharity.org for further information) The evening entertainment was provided by an excellent band called Independence and also, the not so excellent Karaoke, it is now evident that the P.O.A, and their representatives, are blessed with awful singers, some of whom think they’re good. A breakdown of the disposal of conference motions can be obtained from each local committee member or alternatively can be viewed on the P.O.A Website. The Malky Still Memorial Award. Colleagues, in remembrance of our former Vice Chair Malky Still, who tragically died in 2003, we have been honouring our elected officials with the annual Malky Still Memorial Award. The recipient this year was Keith Denchfield the branch chair of H.M.P Perth. Keith was nominated by three branches and Phil Fairlie (Acting Chair of the Standing Orders Committee) made the following statement on behalf of the members before presenting Keith with the award “Conference, colleagues not withstanding the circumstances that have led to me presenting the award this year, by that I mean Kenny’s present position, it is always an honour, and an item of our agenda each year which we always look forward to. There is a certain irony in that I get to present the award this year, due to the person who will be receiving it. I always find this moment a fairly emotional one, and it is right that we take the time out each year to recognise and honour one of our own. This year I find particularly emotional, and the reasons for that will become apparent very shortly. This years winner of the Malky Still Award is someone who has been in the service for some 20 years now. He has always been a member of this union, and has always been a keen supporter of what this union stands for. However, back in 1998 he needed a fair bit of persuasion to put himself forward as Branch chairman, because, in his words he didn’t have what it takes to carry out the role. I know how much persuasion he took, because I was the one who had to persuade him. Experience since has shown…… Not for the first time… I was right, and he was wrong!! The reason I was so sure of his capability to carry out the role was based on my own personal experience of him as a branch member, and the contributions and assistance I always got from him when I was branch chair. I am sure most of you are starting to be aware of who I am talking about by now, and I am equally sure most of you are aware of his present circumstances. Just prior to taking up post as a national official I had no committee to speak of at local level, and it is much to this persons credit that he took up the role of chairman in the same situation. Bearing in mind that he had no experience at that time, it is to his eternal credit that he came forward and took on the role, and from there built up his committee, incidentally largely made up of people who are present in the hall today. The reason I had such faith in this person being up to the job was due to the numerous dealings I had with him as a member, and the manner in which he went about the role of chairman, when he first took it on. Never shy about making his point when he felt strongly about something, but never done in a way that was anything other than constructive, considered and well thought out. He was always very supportive of myself as branch chairman, and that has remained the same ever since I came on to the National committee. He was someone who you could always rely on to go to, for an honest opinion, and often as not a suggestion of a way forward through a perceived brick wall, at a time when no one else could see it. Since taking over the role of chairman himself, he has continued in that same way with his members and has developed a deep respect amongst the staff he has served over the years. Typical of his nature, he has never been aware of how much respect he has, and the regard he is held in… until his recent illness gave staff the opportunity to demonstrate that to him. He and his family have been overwhelmed by the support and good wishes passed to him, and even surprised at times by who those good wishes are from. This award in fact, is an example of that, having received a record number of nominations for the award. There are very many staff who owe him a debt of gratitude for his assistance over the years and many managers who have a deep respect for the manner in which he has conducted himself in his role. Never the most vocal or likely to go in for grandstanding on an issue, and certainly never one to feel the need to thump tables to make his point, but equally, never one to shy away from having himself heard and arguing his corner on behalf of his members. He, like many others in this union, has spent many hours of his own time in the company of members, offering assistance and support to them in times of need. I know how personally he has taken their cases, and how much he personally becomes involved, not because he has to, but because he cares. I think the response of staff towards him at this present time, is an indication that his care and concern has not gone unnoticed. Conference, colleagues it is always a pleasure for us to award this trophy, but it is a particular pleasure for me this year in that I get to award it to not just to a colleague, but to someone I have known for 18 years now, and who I regard as a good friend……. As I am sure most of you are ware by now, this years winner of the Malky Still memorial award … is Keith Denchfield of Perth.” PAY OFFER 2007 Colleagues, at the time of writing the outcome of the pay deal for 2007 has still to be decided. Hopefully by the time this edition of the Gatelodge is produced the pay deal for the main staff has been resolved. The current position is that an offer was made which consisted of-;
The offer was put to ballot and for various reasons the P.O.A(S), and our sister unions (P.C.S and Prospect), recommended rejection of the offer. The ballot was held over a three week period between 21st September to 12th October and the result was a resounding rejection by the members. The result being-; Number of votes cast = 1813 Votes for = 196 Votes against = 1617 In total the percentage who voted was 76%, of which 89% rejected the offer. The members of P.C.S and Prospect also rejected the offer. As a result of the ballot both sides followed the V.I.R.A process which meant going to conciliation. In the end two conciliation meetings were held and it was decided to take the dispute to arbitration and a question was agreed for the arbiter to answer. The date for arbitration has been set for 30th November and a decision would be expected within two weeks of the meeting taking place. It is worth remembering that the decision of the arbiter is binding on both sides. NURSES PAY OFFER 2007/08 On the 8th November an agreement was reached between the S.P.S and the P.O.A.S and R.C.N ( the recognised trade unions to represent nursing grades) and the offer was to be put to the nursing members, with a recommendation to accept. In simple terms the pay offer consists of-;
At the time of writing this offer was still to go to ballot.
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