By James Turner
Are we really amid a winter of discontent? With more than 140 strikes active in the UK within Unite workplaces alone, including essential services such as ambulance and nursing staff, it’s fair to say we are pretty close to it. But will Jersey follow the same dramatic decline into walkouts and stoppages?
The question, then, should be do you deserve or expect a pay rise in 2023?
There is, of course, no legal right to a pay rise, but ask yourself this – is your employer profiting from your commitment, labour and time away from your family? Should you expect a fair and reasonable pay rise in line with the escalating cost of living measured by RPI (retail price index) – last reported to be 12.7%, the biggest increase since the early 1980s? Of course you should – especially where there is an open and transparent process and reasonable expectation of mutual benefit, with the ability to pay being key.
Your employer should not only be looking at retaining your skill set and efforts established over the years but rewarding you for them. Indeed, this will encourage others to be recruited by such a reasonable employer offering fair pay, terms and conditions of employment.
Having a high turnover of staff is a clear measure of a poor employer. Failing to retain workers they have invested time and money in training to then do it all over again with new recruits – if they can get them – when employees choose to leave for better pay and conditions elsewhere is something we are increasingly seeing across the Island in both public and private sectors.
This is why Unite the Union members in Jersey are seeing that collective bargaining works. They reap the rewards of a union negotiating their pay and conditions on their behalf, and then decide via a democratic balloting process whether to accept or decline any formal pay offer from their employers.
It is well-documented that there are now more job vacancies in Jersey than there are people to fill them. This is only going to get worse if employers do not recognise the fact that they no longer hold the power and must pay a fair wage, and introduce favourable employment terms that assist recruitment and retention. It is without doubt an employee-driven market at the moment.
Furthermore, what is actually being done to retain the talented youth of the Island? Many are reported to be leaving, or wanting to leave Jersey, for pastures greener. How many of the Island’s employers have taken up the apprenticeship support scheme launched last year after Unite the Union pushed for this to be introduced? And why is this initiative not promoted as well as it could be? We raise this with employers regularly and most of them are not even aware it exists. Surely this support should be promoted and made easier to access for local employers.
Pay rises have been a hot topic across the Island’s media recently. And with more ballots occurring across other pay groups within government as you read this, as well as within the private sector regularly, this will no doubt continue. This certainly keeps us at Unite busy this time of year.
The reported civil service award of 7.9% with some conditional improvements, recently agreed by a majority vote of Unite members, has attracted much talk and both positive and negative critique from so-called ‘business leaders’ who formed no part of the talks themselves. I find their input as to why such rises are needed or deserved baffling at times. More than a decade of shortfalls or marginal gains – in reality real-term cuts over that period to standards of living – is more than enough justification as to why reasonable pay rises are needed. In addition, pay rises help to boost the fading economy and ensure people can feed their families and heat their homes. But I am sure the multimillionaires know best.
Some frequently asked questions you might have at this stage:
How does a trade union work?
As the regional officer for Unite the Union in Jersey I work closely with all of our workplace representatives, negotiating across the Island with the many employers with whom we have ‘collective bargaining’ i.e. the right for the trade union to negotiate with the employer on behalf of the collective group, the membership then deciding at collective ballot on such things as pay, terms and conditions.
Can I be part of a trade union?
Yes, anyone can join a union such as Unite. It is unlawful to be treated differently if you do so. As an individual member you have the right to be represented at grievance or disciplinary matters as well as having access to all the local membership benefits Unite the Union offer.
Is the process of establishing ‘collective bargaining’ a simple one?
Yes. Join Unite the Union and organise your fellow workforce (50% or more, less if voluntary recognition by the employer) to also join Unite. Then work closely with myself, our local office staff and our organising department to establish communications and relationships with your employers, gaining what is called ‘recognition’, in simple terms the right to negotiate and bargain on behalf of the collective group.
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James Turner is the regional officer for Unite the Union in Jersey.
