Unison Equality Lgbt Members Our Public Service Champions

1 Summer 2017 Issue 62 OUR PUBLIC SERVICE CHAMPIONS Public services are at the heart of a healthy, fair and thriving society. After nearly 10 years of cuts, we know how hard it can be to provide good quality, effective public services. In this issue of Out LGBT in UNISON, members talk about their jobs, the difference they make and the challenges they face. UNISON LGBT MEMBERS EQUALITY UNISON LGBT MEMBERS 2 EQUALITY OUR PUBLIC SERVICE CHAMPIONS Our Public Service Champions campaign celebrates the vital jobs UNISON members do and what a difference they make to people’s lives. We need to win over public opinion in favour of proper investment in public services. I’ve been a care worker for over ten years, looking after people in their own homes. It’s a very rewarding job. You come across such a range of people, helping them get back on their feet so they can manage on their own again. There’s also a lot of complex cases such as stroke patients and palliative care. When elderly LGBT people see my rainbow lanyard, I can see how it puts them at their ease. I’m now on full-time release as branch secretary. Being visible in my rainbow lanyard is important for that too. LGBT members can see I’m approachable if they’re worried about anything. We’re facing a lot of issues at the moment. We haven’t had a decent pay rise for about seven years. It’s very hard for our staff as the cost of living keeps rising. And there’s a massive issue over shortages of nursing staff. We have had some wins. They introduced clocking in and out for our lowest paid staff only, no-one else. We ran a major campaign – it’s all about equality Gillian Foley, in the workplace – and the clocking in machines were removed! domiciliary care worker, County Down Northern We all need trade unions and UNISON is by far the best. It’s important for LGBT Ireland officers to be out on the ground and visible, to give LGBT people confidence to come forward and get involved. I work for an NHS Trust on a community crisis response team. My role is preventing hospital admission, where possible. I assess patients and prescribed medication from a set formula. Some patients, carers or families may just need advice or support. We take referrals from GPs, London Ambulance Service, care homes and all community nursing services. I am proud of my job - I have nearly 33 years experience as a nurse. I have only ever worked for the NHS and respect its principles of origin. This job brings me in contact with patients with an urgent need. It’s responsive, problem solving and can be unpredictable. The biggest problem we face is money!!! Many NHS Trusts are in deficit. There are systems that could improve productivity in terms of numbers of patients visited and Jaden Biggs, reducing time spent on report writing. For example in community nursing, ipads can advanced nurse speed up assessments, ordering of equipment, documentation. It costs to invest in practitioner, London digital methods of working. But despite not having the most up to date resources, nothing gets in the way of me doing the best I can. UNISON LGBT MEMBERS UNISON GIVING LGBT MEMBERS A VOICE 3 EQUALITY In my substantive post I managed a range of leisure sites and sports and leisure projects. Over the years these have included a child obesity programme in partnership with public health, an after school programme for disabled children and their parents, and a project to make our services and facilities more dementia friendly. Sports and leisure isn’t just about people who want to play badminton or go swimming. I’m proud to know that what I do makes a difference to people’s lives – their physical and mental health. I’ve been in sports and leisure for over 30 years. About a year ago, I took the chance to go on full-time release for my branch. It’s a challenge and an opportunity! In both my roles – for the council and the branch – the biggest challenge is austerity. Ever decreasing budgets, constant restructuring, the employer clamping down on sickness management. It’s really hard to keep the workforce motivated. We have to Jennifer Black, hope for some stability, when we finally get out of this cycle of cuts. operational manager, sports and leisure, North The bottom line is that people who work in public services want to do a good job – Tyneside they always want to do the best they can for their community. It’s just the ethos of our people. My trading standards team advise businesses about the safety of products. We deal with consumer complaints on all aspects of buying goods and services, whether it’s online, in shops or getting your car serviced. We investigate and if necessary we prosecute. I’m very proud of my job. Every day I make a difference by helping traders comply with consumer laws and helping consumers get a good deal. We want to make sure the good traders thrive and consumers buy goods they know are safe. We stop dodgy practices and rogue traders undercutting others. If it’s unchallenged, vulnerable consumers can be ripped off gradually for what ends up being thousands and thousands of pounds. The main difficulty we face is because of a recruitment freeze due to budget cuts. Anu Prashar, Even though we’re a statutory service, we’re not seen as saving lives. We do the best senior prosecutor, trading we can, but it’s taking its toll. The knock on effect will be felt down the line when standards, London dangerous goods are on sale unchecked. I work for a company providing gas and electricity to the public. I started in a call centre eighteen years ago. I became the branch health and safety officer and that led to my current role as full-time health and safety advisor. Our strategy is to ensure zero harm to our employees, contractors and members of the public. A wrongly wired electricity meter could mean the customer being killed when they turn on their tap. We work to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning. We set up learning for school groups and at public events like the Royal Highland Show. We use pyrotechnics to simulate what happens if a digger hits an overhead cable. We want people to go home safe from work every night and be safe in their homes. The challenge is getting people to change their behaviours. Until they have an accident, they are blithe to everyday dangers. We’ve spent a long time getting people to be aware of safety. The last Tory government were trying to minimise health and William Docherty, safety laws, which encourages the public to adopt the attitude that it’s not important. energy worker, Glasgow We’ll see more accidents and fatalities so it’s vital that we continue to organise for health and safety every day. UNISON LGBT MEMBERS 44 EQUALITY I’m proud of my job - libraries are free and open to everyone. You could be a tramp or a member of parliament, you’ll be treated the same and we don’t ask anything of you. As a librarian, you never stop learning. It’s never boring. It’s about making a connection with a child or young person, working out the best way to draw them in, helping them join the world of book lovers. Libraries don’t censor. They’re unbiased and you won’t find fake news in them! We don’t discriminate and we are a safe environment. If a child wants to read something that isn’t on their family reading list, the family aren’t going to hear about it from us. The main challenge we face is cuts. England got them first and now Wales is following. Staff are under pressure. We are getting less training, morale is low and we Gillian Southby, are feeling devalued. children and young people’s librarian, Vale of Libraries aren’t only about taking books home and having a library ticket. We are a Glamorgan social institution. We’ve adapted and changed over the years, but we’ve always been there and we are free. This is all being undermined. The government is entrenching inequality. It is a human right to be able to read and children who can’t are being failed. I work mainly with older adults, as a best interest assessor. I see people when they are really vulnerable for one reason or another. They need me to listen to their perspective – how they want to live their life. Most people want independence in their own home. They come with lots of anxieties and fears about their health or disability and how to talk to a stranger about what are often very intimate issues. I support them to live the life they choose, helping them get their voice heard and building the team they need around them to live independently. Funding cuts mean it’s increasingly hard to bridge the gaps in these support teams. But we can still make all the difference in transforming people’s lives. Jennie Antonio, adult social worker, Birmingham I’m based in the university students union. I encourage students to volunteer in the community, sorting out placements for them and helping them set up their own projects. I really enjoy it. I see the difference in the individuals I support and mentor in terms of their mental health and other issues.

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