CIRC 059: POA PODCASTS

Following POA Conference’s adoption of a report from Mr Pat Cuffe, the POA NEC were directed to improve communications with members.

As a direct result of this conference mandate the POA set up a team to improve the quality and frequency of short videos to inform members of developments and to provide a more immediate response. 

As part of this recommendation from Mr Cuffe the POA recently launched a YouTube channel to maintain an ongoing catalogue of all video and audio productions going forward, and to make those communications more accessible.

If you go to YouTube and search for POATV it takes you to all recent releases.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCiLVvQTDewlc9om9IJuMTiQ

The team were also instructed to look at creating a series of podcasts that would be of interest to POA members and help push the POA message to the wider public audience.

Recording is underway and a launch episode that outlines the need for improved communications is now live.

A dedicated podcast page has been established on the new look POA website and the podcasts will be collated on this page as they are released.

https://www.poauk.org.uk/poa-podcast/

The next podcast episode is the first part of two episodes around the unrealistic and unjust changes to public sector pensions that resulted in Prison Officer retirement age being increased and linked to state retirement age.

The first episode due to land on the 8th of July 21 is called “68 is too late” and features your NEC members discussing the pension issue, we find out how we ended up in the current situation, the unfairness of expecting operational grade staff to work until they are 68 or later, the impact of the fitness test on our members and their ability to remain in work through to 68.

The second episode scheduled for release on 1st August 2021 concentrates on the legal challenges around pension age. It features Ivan Walker specialist pensions solicitor.

Ivan and POA full time officials discuss the slow progress of the McCloud pension Judgement and the Governments response to providing remedy. The episode features discussion around a further legal challenge against Government’s intention to use the cost cap surplus in the McCloud remedy. Ivan shares his specialist legal opinion on a conference mandate to push to make payment plus pensionable.

It is our ambition going forward to release an episode on the first of the month.

In future episodes we will look at the Union’s work for private sector members and how the union is building relations with the private sector employers to improve the working conditions, gain fair outcomes and pay for our private sector colleagues.

We will look at the work of the POA as they supported members and their families through the turbulent times in Northern Ireland.

We will look at the hard work that takes place in the Westminster Parliament through the POA to hold our elected political leaders to account on prison issues ranging from pay, recruitment and retention through to violence and assaults on our hard-working members.

We will look at the partnership working going on north of the border in the devolved Scottish Parliament, we will focus on our members in Northern Ireland and the similar challenges that they face, we will look at the devolved assembly in Wales and how it impacts on prisons.

We visit Stewart McLaughlin at HMP Wandsworth and get a descriptive tour of the HMP Wandsworth museum including some of its darker exhibits.

We discuss POA member benefits with providers ranging from insurance to income tax recovery and various discount schemes that get POA members money off their everyday spending from coffees and holidays, insurance, and motor car purchases. 

We will discuss diversity and inclusion in a modern Trade Union, we will discuss how to get young people active within our Union, we will look at staying safe in the workplace.

We will discuss the POA welfare fund and the criteria to qualify for an award and how to apply.

We will look at the unique key challenges to our members in the Special Hospitals and other health-based members.

We look at widening the Union’s net to encourage other workers within both private and public prisons and those supporting immigration services, to join the POA.

The POA podcast will also be available on Anchor fm, a podcast hosting service, and on Spotify with notifications around new episodes and links also appearing on the unions Facebook and Twitter feeds.

To be the first to know when new content lands please subscribe to or follow the POA Podcast at any of the following:

YouTube- POATV. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCiLVvQTDewlc9om9IJuMTiQ

Spotify. https://open.spotify.com/show/53UfQ51ztMTAOAIEvB1XtX

Anchor fm. https://anchor.fm/poa-podcast

 

 

Yours sincerely

STEVE GILLAN
General Secretary

Representing over 30,000 Prison, Correctional and Secure Psychiatric Workers, the POA is the largest UK Union in this sector, able to trace its roots back more than 100 years.