amicus NEC amicus
Précis
of NEC Meeting held on Saturday 19 October 2002.
This
Is not a Minute, but purely to assist pending the production of the Minutes
1. Obituaries:
The NEC paid its respects to Austin Tunney,
member of the former TASS
NEC who had recently passed away.
2. Occupational Pensions Campaign:
The GS reported on the ongoing campaign to
defend final salary pension
schemes.
Recent announcements by Scottish Widows and
Prudential to end their
schemes
had resulted in
members in both organisations
initiating
preparations to ballot for industrial
action.
It was also noted that in the Prudential
over 300 members had been recruited
both in response to Prudential's decision
to end the scheme and to transfer
call centre employment out of the UK.
3. Equal Pay:
The GS reported on the forthcoming
Amicus-MSF demonstration in
Manchester that was scheduled to take place
on November 24 in respect of
the union's Equal Pay campaign, it had also
been endorsed by the TUC.
It
was noted that
at the current rate
of progress pay
inequality would take
over 40 years to be eradicated.
Recent research findings published in the
last month had in reality shown that
the pay gap between men and women has begun
to widen.
4. European Health & Safety Week, 14-20
October:
The GS reported on the successful week of
activity that had just ended in
relation to the campaign across
Europe to improve Health and
Safety
standards.
The union as part of the
campaign had highlighted the growing concerns
relating to stress at work through the publication of
a survey.
The survey had been reported in the media as part of "Ban Bullying
at Work"
Day and had given renewed urgency to the union's
Parliamentary campaign
for a Dignity at Work Act aimed at outlawing bullying
at work.
The GS had also spoken at an Amicus-MSF Section Conference on
Workplace
related Stress, and a campaign poster had been produced.
5. Life Long Learning Organisers:
It was reported that
the 10 Regional Life Long Learning Organisers who had
recently
been appointed by the union had commenced induction training and
would be
soon be taking up their recruitment responsibilities.
6. Relations with Other Unions:
It was
reported that formal
meetings concerning a
proposed transfer of
engagements on behalf of UNIFI would commence within the next week.
Informal discussions had
commenced with the National Union of Domestic
Appliances and General Operatives (NUDAGO) prior to formal negotiations
taking
place early next year in respect of a possible transfer of engagements
on behalf
of the 2500 members involved.
It was also noted that
discussions would commence between both sections of
Amicus and
the GPMU as to a possible merger.
7. Amicus 2003 Rules Conference:
The NEC agreed a Regulation
to Rule confirming that the Amicus Rules
Conference would take place on the Tuesday 24 June 2003 in Blackpool
immediately following the close of the Amicus MSF Section Annual
Conference which would end on Monday 23 June.
The composition of Regional
and Section delegations to the Rules
Conference was also agreed.
8. NEC By-Elections:
The NEC agreed that following the recent death of Christine Casseldine,
NEC
Member for Wales and the resignation by Dave Knox,
Patternmakers Section
that immediate
arrangements for by-elections in respect of the above should
take place.
It was noted that in
both cases that the Region and Section
concerned had
no other
direct NEC representative and that consequently By-elections in
these
circumstances should proceed.
9.
Political Fund Ballot:
It
was reported that
under Employment legislation
requiring all unions
to
ballot
their members in
respect of retaining
their Political Fund,
that
arrangements were in hand to conduct a
Political Fund ballot of all Amicus
members in 2003, aimed at retaining the Amicus
Political Fund.
10.ICTU:
It was
reported that recent meetings
had taken place in respect of resolving
the dispute involving the AEEU Section.
It
was also reported
that Derek Simpson,
Amicus-AEEU Section, General
Secretary-elect had indicated that he was
prepared to meet with the relevant
parties to agree a final resolution of the
dispute.
11.DTI
Review of Employment Rights Legislation:
It was
reported that the TUC on behalf of all affiliates had made
an outline
submission setting out the areas where the
DTI's Review of current
Employment Rights legislation should focus.
The Review would commence in the New Year.
12. David
Beaumont:[David’s comments added by
www.rogerlyons.com]
It was reported
that Mr Beaumont
had pursued his
case to an Employment
Tribunal on 14 October 2002.[True]
Amicus-MSF made a concession at the Tribunal in
relation to section 65 of
the 1992 Act by reporting the NEC's previous
decision to allow his Appeal
against his expulsion. [Half true, they didn’t make ‘a
concession’, they actually
conceded the whole case, pleading
guilty]
This was accepted by the Tribunal despite Mr
Beaumont contesting the union's
right to do so.
[This is
a lie, I was happy for the union to concede. Moreover the Tribunal did not
accept
that I had won my appeal, I argued my appeal was a sham]
Consequently the Tribunal declared there was no
requirement for a full
investigation of the issues as demanded by Mr Beaumont.
[Another
lie, I did not demand the issues be investigated at this Tribunal as they
were
pleading guilty]
Mr Beaumont's follow up request to the Tribunal
for an order seeking
disclosure by the union on many classes of
documents was also refused.
[True,
worth a try though. Ask yourself why
the union won’t disclose those
documents...One
they have refused to disclose is the Investigation report!]
Mr Beaumont was awarded an element for his costs.
[Half true, actually I was unanimously
awarded all my costs, £1,380.40]
On legal advice, Amicus-MSF has submitted an
application to the Tribunal for
a review of costs.
[True. The likelihood of the union paying up,
without spending much more
money to
try not to, is slim]
[Oops
what did we forget to mention here? What
could it be? Oh yes, the
Tribunal
unanimously ruled that Mr Beaumont had been unjustifiably
disciplined
and that the NEC had broken the law.]
13. Finances:
It
was reported that the
operating surplus for the
union covering the
first 8
months of the year were £1.11 m this was
over £650k above the budget figure
for the same period.
14. General
Secretary Contractual Arrangements:
The NEC agreed that in the light of the
election of the AEEU Section General
Secretary, that the contract of the MSF
Section General Secretary be varied
to revert to the General Secretary's pre-existing contractual agreement.
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