A&E Update

Ballot

The request from UNISON Yorkshire Ambulance Branch to ballot members for industrial action has now been agreed at regional level and membership services are currently ensuring that their lists are accurate in order that the correct staff are balloted. As there will be around 1,500 A&E members receiving a vote and we cannot leave ourselves open to a legal challenge this has to be accurate, once again can we ask that staff who have changed address recently call UNISON Direct on 08000 857 857.

The final decision will be made nationally and we are confident that we will get the go ahead, however it will take two to three weeks for it all to happen. This is outside the control of the branch so we would ask you to be patient.

UNISON would like to ensure that all members are aware of why we felt it necessary to ballot, the reasons are as follows;

· Not adhering to the agreed 5 year workforce plan

· Not adhering to agreements made within the Operational Redesign(meal breaks)

· Not adhering to A4C Terms and Conditions especially around Job Evaluation

· Use of Private Ambulances without prior discussion and agreement with UNISON

Band 4 Role

UNISON want to see the return of a band 4 role within the trust but not one that entails staff on band 3 training and doing band 4 work for band 3 money. As you can see from the CEO’s notice on Tuesday, by the end of the first year ECA members will have a Diploma in Clinical Health Care Support (Level 3).

It is UNISON’s view that this would clearly put the role in band 4 yet the trust are saying you would work, using those skills and acquiring even more, for a further two years before you were assimilated onto band 4. This is totally against Agenda for Change which was introduced primarily to ensure equal pay.

It was the trust who walked away from negotiations stating that it was a package, all or nothing. Should the trust be willing, rather than trying to bypass UNISON as they currently appear to be doing, we are still willing to meet to negotiate a ‘true’ A4C band 4 role but without the list of demands that were previously attached.

Meal Breaks

UNISON insists that the trust revert back to the agreed meal break policy, we have numerous emails and texts from members who are going ridiculous lengths of time without the opportunity to eat or drink which is making them feel unwell which could compromise their clinical decisions and as such is a potential danger to members, patients and public. UNISON still believe that there should be the option of two breaks on 12 hour shifts and are still pushing the trust to re-introduce them for those who want them.

End of Shift Overtime

There is a first formal meeting on Monday regarding the ‘end of shift’ overtime grievance this is the first stage in our attempt to seek a legal opinion as to whether it should be contractual. It is still UNISONs stance that we want to reduce the level of end of shift overtime if we can establish that it is contractual and there is therefore a cost to the trust they will do something to address it.