Puddy_Tat
naturally fluffy
This is a slightly edited version of the advice we were given by one of the candidates we nominated, and which I threw up on our site.
Thanks
It probably says that somewhere in the stuff I haven't read in detail yet
This is a slightly edited version of the advice we were given by one of the candidates we nominated, and which I threw up on our site.
am i right in thinking i can vote in all of them despite not being (for example) female?
Ah, wait, I think there aren't any seats specifically for female members, but simply some seats within the different categories are reserved for female (as well as low paid) candidates.<edit: just realised it doesn't address the one seat you explicitly mentioned >
Ahhhh, ok, yeah, sounds like each ballot is personalised (which, thinking about it, probably makes sense ). So essentially if it's on yer ballot, you can vote!Lord Camomile - thanks. I've had a closer look at the ballot paper, and it does say a few times 'you are entitled to vote in ALL elections on this ballot paper regardless of seat type'
I get to vote in -
region - female, reserved and male seats
service group - female, general and male seats
black members' seats - female, male and reserved seats
disabled members' seats - female and general seat
they don't mention young members so i must have told them how old i am.
dunno really - i am not black or disabled, i'm not sure that i have a (moral) right to vote in these categories (on the basis of 'self organisation' which was a thing last time I was in unison.)
Looks like it - in the procedures doc those seats are referred to as "low pay reserved".and what's the 'reserved' seat? is that the same as the 'low paid' you refer to?
Different bits are and aren't.i can see engaging with colleagues getting more difficult with wfh-ing.
On this bit, I'm a little ambivalent.it all seems to be bloody complicated.
Tbf, it hasn't really been accurate to talk about the leadership of the union as a singular entity since 2021, when we got a left-led NEC and the NEC and Gen Sec have been at war with each other ever since. I think the NEC has done some useful stuff in that time, like increasing strike pay from £25 payable from the fourth day to £50 payable from the first day, and it'd be bad news if the old guard manage to recapture it. I think the president of the union being expelled from Labour is a sign of things a-changing too - of course that's partly just down to the increasing authoritarianism and general shitness of Starmer's Labour, but I also reckon that without having this NEC our leaders would probably be so dull that even Starmer wouldn't bother to expel them.Strange. I've always found the tepid leadership of the union detracted from the efforts of activists in workplaces when trying to organise on the ground
I think part of the difference might be that young members are easier to measure, cos the joining form asks for your age but it doesn't ask for your ethnicity or disability status. You can refrain from voting in those seats if you like, but plenty of other white/non-disabled members will be voting in them, so you might as well use your vote for the less shit candidates imo.Lord Camomile - thanks. I've had a closer look at the ballot paper, and it does say a few times 'you are entitled to vote in ALL elections on this ballot paper regardless of seat type'
I get to vote in -
region - female, reserved and male seats
service group - female, general and male seats
black members' seats - female, male and reserved seats
disabled members' seats - female and general seat
they don't mention young members so i must have told them how old i am.
dunno really - i am not black or disabled, i'm not sure that i have a (moral) right to vote in these categories (on the basis of 'self organisation' which was a thing last time I was in unison.)
Yeah, I'm sure I've said before, but I honestly think this was one of the single biggest factors in the success of last year's actions. Simply don't think a lot of members would have taken part without it.I think the NEC has done some useful stuff in that time, like increasing strike pay from £25 payable from the fourth day to £50 payable from the first day
Having said all that, it turns out that if you did get a vote for the young members' seats, you still wouldn't be able to vote for anyone in them, because it turns out that of the two left young members' candidates, apparently one of them is due to stop being young a few days before the term finishes, and the other is taking up a job with the union that means they're becoming an employee not a member and so are ineligible. So now the right-wing candidates for those seats are being elected unopposed, because apparently no-one bothered to ask "are you going to remain a young member throughout the entire term, and do you have any plans to do anything that would make you ineligible to stand?" before choosing the left candidates.
Yeah, I'm genuinely baffled by why it takes them that many weeks to announce the results. Makes US presidential elections look simple and straightforward by comparison.results due 8 june, apparently (i was wondering what was happening)
also got the (local government) pay ballot. on principle, feel i should vote to reject what's below inflation, but not sure there's going to be a better offer anywhere down the line
meh
Wasn't aware Jon had passed away, that's a real shame.If anyone wants to know what the trot groups are saying about the outcomes of the latest NEC elections, here's a selection:
Unison conference 2023: Wake the sleeping giant! | The Communist
Delegates are meeting this week for the Unison national conference. With struggles ongoing in local government, the NHS, and schools, it is vital that Britain’s biggest public sector union rises to the challenge. This requires fighting leadership.socialist.netUnison left holds on in poll
It has been a difficult two years in the Unison public service unionworkersliberty.orgAfter UNISON NEC election results: Continue the fight to change our union! - Socialist Alternative
By Socialist Alternative supporters in UNISON The results for the NEC elections have been released, and there were steps forward for Time for Real Change left grouping, but also losses. It underlines that we need to build TFRC at all levels of our union in order to expand and develop the very...socialistalternative.info
Don't think any non-trot sources have bothered writing an article about it. Sadly Jon Rogers, whose blog used to be a really good source for analysis of Unison stuff, passed away earlier this year.