Free lunchtime webinar for UNISON members on 28 Sept, hosted by our members' charity There for You and delivered by The Money Charity. It's all about financial wellbeing and it'll offer accessible info on things like your credit score, dealing with problem debt and staying on top of your finances.

Register now 👇 

https://www.unison.org.uk/events/financial-wellbeing-for-unison-members/

Struggling to make ends meet? Worried about back to school costs. School uniform grants

 

UNISON's very own charity, There for You, has once again set up a fund to help members on low incomes struggling with the cost of school uniforms. Grants of £50 per child are available, up to a maximum of £150 per family. Just one more practical way UNISON is making life better for our members. Applications are to be made via a downloadable form, and are live from today, Thursday 1 July. But act now as this is a limited fund, so once it's gone, it's gone.

Find out more and apply now

Employers will no longer be able to get away with mistreating any employees who take part in union-organised workplace disputes following an important legal decision

 

Employers will no longer be able to mistreat staff who take part in union-organised workplace disputes, following an important legal decision. An employment appeal tribunal heard a case involving a care worker who had been disciplined, suspended and prevented from going into work by her employer, after she took part in a long-running dispute over plans to cut payment for sleep-in shifts. The tribunal found that UK law was not compliant with international human rights law, and has acted to ensure that striking workers are now protected.

Read more

Read the judgment in full

From 17 May, let's celebrate but protect our new freedom

From the 17th May we can start to enjoy even greater freedom and move a step closer to normality. Socialising indoors in groups of up to six people or two households, overnight stays, and limited international travel are just some of the changes.

Thank you to everyone for pulling together to get to this point. Continuing to follow the hands, face, space, fresh air guidelines, along with testing twice a week, will ensure this is a confident step forward.

Click here to read more info from the OCC

Now more than ever, it's important to check-in on your mental health.

We are all dealing with a lot of uncertainty. 

visit Every Mind Matters for tips and advice to look after your mental wellbeing. 

https://www.nhs.uk/oneyou/every-mind-matters/

 

Disabled and LGBT+ members are invited to remotely attend a series of events organised specifically for them – online and live

Like many other organisations, UNISON has had to cancel many of its conferences and meetings as a result of COVID-19.

But the UK’s biggest union has democracy at its heart and still wants its members to be involved.

With this in mind, UNISON’s disabled and LGBT+ members have organised a series of virtual events in place of their usual conferences – online and live.

We will be holding the following events:

Disability Live! – 19 to 24 October.

LGBT+ Live! – 13 to 15 November.

There will be a variety of online sessions that members can participate in during the events.

These events are only open to UNISON members. To attend Disability Live! you must be a disabled member of UNISON. And to attend LGBT+ Live! you must be an LGBT+ member of UNISON. This is in line with UNISON’s commitment to self-organisation for under-represented groups.

In order to make Disability Live! as accessible as possible, please let us know if there are any adjustments you will need to allow you to take part in a virtual event.

To register your interest in attending either event, please email conferences@unison.co.uk as follows:

Subject heading – the event you would like to attend (if both, please send separate emails)

In your email – please provide:

• Your name
• Your membership number
• Your branch name
• Any reasonable adjustments you need to participate

The registration deadlines are:

Disability Live! –  Thursday 8 October at 5pm

LGBT+ Live! – Thursday 5 November at 5pm

Once you’ve been registered for an event, you will be sent an email giving details of the virtual sessions you can attend, so you can register for these individually. You can attend as many or as few as you like.

So get active! Email conferences@unison.co.uk today to register to attend.

We all need to do our bit

Pride is a protest – get ready for our virtual event

Members of UNISON’s national and regional LGBT+ groups have really missed the opportunity to be out and about at Pride events this summer. We’ve missed working with all the branches that support us at these events, and talking to everyone – members and prospective members.

Given this – and to make sure that the UNISON LGBT+ community is seen this summer – we have organised a virtual Pride is a protest event.

This will take place this Saturday 1 August between 2pm and 5pm and will be on the UNISON  Facebook pages.

There’ll be videos reminding us why it is so important for LGBT+ people to be members of a trade union, videos of why Pride is still a protest, and photos of UNISON’s LGBT+ members at Pride events in previous years.

We’ll also be sharing materials that we would have had on our Pride stalls up and down the country.

And we’d like you to share photos of yourselves at Pride, of your branch or regional banner – and if you’d like us to add a video of why Pride is important to you, please send that video, by whatsapp, to 07961 089665.

We are really looking forward to this – and hope that you will be able to join us at some time during the day.

Think you have Covid-19?

If you have symptoms of coronavirus, you need to get tested. 

Book your free test here: nhs.uk/coronavirus 

Equality Survey 2020 COVID-19

Tell us about your experiences during the coronavirus pandemic.   The results will be used to direct our work with government, employers and others in keeping workers safe and fighting for better conditions at work. If you complete the survey and give us your email address, you will be entered into a prize draw to win up to £100 worth of shopping vouchers.

Share your experiences

Please sign the £10 billion bailout petition

The government must fund local councils properly to keep communities safe and rebuild the country after the pandemic. Unless ministers fix the council funding shortfall of £10bn, there could be tens of thousands of job losses and catastrophic cuts to local services in England. But in this week's economic statement, the Chancellor failed to offer any support. Join UNISON's urgent call for a £10 billion bailout by signing the petition.

Add your name to the petition

Learning and Organising Services Website

A great resource to find out about all the learning opportunities available to members. You can log in and discover wellbeing, stress management and many more learning opportunities. I cannot list them all here, and it will include everything we are learning about in this session. I usually use the A-Z of learning resources to find what I am looking for.

https://learning.unison.org.uk/

Looking for a way to get started with computers, smartphones and the internet?

Then enrol on the free, user-friendly courses on Learn My Way. Learn My Way is an online learning platform that has helped 2 million people get to grips with IT.

All you need to do to start learning is to register for a free account to save your progress:

•  Log on to: www.learnmyway.com

1. Click Register (top right corner of your screen)
2.  You then fill in four boxes on the next window: 

✚ your name

✚ your address (or phone number if you don’t yet have an email address)

✚ a password for accessing the site

✚ UNISON’s centre number: 8000647.

That’s it! You’re now ready to start. Simply choose the course you want to take and away you go. 

Start learning today at https://www.learnmyway.com

What can I learn?

 You can access any or all of these free online courses using your smartphone, tablet or computer:

✚ Using your computer or device

✚ Online basis

✚ Office programs

✚ More internet skills

✚ Online safety

✚ Finding a job online

✚ Improving your health online

✚ Public services online

✚ You can also undertake initial assessments of your literacy and numeracy skills.

COVID-19 response fund launched

There for You is UNISON’s unique charity, set up to help members in difficulties – and this year, the COVID-19 crisis is making life harder for many of our already-stretched members.

The welfare charity has set up a special fund to respond to calls for help because of the pandemic, with £250,000 set aside for members in need. Our members can only apply for a grant if they know about it so please share as widely as you can.

For full story just click Here or for application form Click Here

UNISON members will never forget

UNISON members from Oxford City Branch of UNISON remember comrades we have lost in Oxford Town Hall

UNISON support over Christmas

UNISONDirect opening times 

Monday to Friday: 6 am-midnight

• Saturday: 10 am-4 pm
• Sunday: Closed

Christmas and New Year opening hours:

Monday 23 December: Normal hours, as above

Christmas Eve: 6am to 3pm

Christmas Day and Boxing Day: Closed

27 to 30 December: Normal hours, as above

New Year’s Eve: 6am to 3pm

New Year’s Day: Closed

Stress Warning Signs

Tips to reduce workplace stress

Universal Credit scams

Citizens Advice Oxford and Oxford City Council are warning Oxford residents against Universal Credit scams that could leave them seriously out of pocket.

If someone asks for your personal details and says they can get you a government grant or a cheap loan for a fee, it's a scam - and you could end up on Universal Credit as a result. For more info, see our joint release with

@OxfordCAB:(link: https://www.oxford.gov.uk/news/article/1132/citizens_advice_oxford_and_oxford_city_council_say_beware_of_universal_credit_scams)

oxford.gov.uk/news/article/1…
#scamaware

UNISON is proud to be unique among unions in having a dedicated charity, There for You, which supports our members when life gets tough

All UNISON members are eligible for complimentary financial reviews which can take place at home, over the phone or at work so don't take the risk without seeking advice from us if you need our help we are just a click away. 

If you are a member and you are experiencing financial difficulties, whatever the circumstances, There for You can offer you support.

To get help and support just click one of the links below or Check our easy to use benefits calculator to find out if you could be entitled to claim additional benefits.

Financial assistance

Universal credit and other benefits

General advice

Debtline support

Credit unions

Welfare reform

Lighthouse Financial Advise

Support There for You

UNISON will never be too big or busy to care and support you when ever you need us all you need to do is ask

There for You give vital assistance to people in need in the form of debt advice, listening and support, financial assistance, breaks and holidays, and personal advice.

Fundraising for Sobell House Hospice Charity

Lewis's Light the Night Oxford page

For over 40 years Sobell House has been providing palliative care in Oxford. Having worked as a Nursing Assistant at Sobell House I have directly experienced the importance of this hospice.

Sobell House provides care to patients at home, at the day centre and in the hospice along with compassionate support for families and loved ones. Sobell House offers many services including art, music and complementary therapies. Having witnessed how having a massage and a glass of wine can really boost the mood of the patients at Sobell House I decided that I wanted to do my part to help allow these services to continue and grow.

Therefore I'll be taking part in Light the Night Oxford, a 10 mile walk at nighttime around the sights of Oxford.

Thanks for taking time to read my story and I hope you'll be able to support me in raising money for one of the best places I've ever worked at.

If you would like to support Lewis's Light the Night Oxford page please CLICK HERE

@oxfordcitybranchofUNISON

UNISON is THE women’s organisation