CHRISTMAS HOLIDAYS – Neighbourhoods and Adult Services
Wednesday, 25 March 2009CHRISTMAS HOLIDAYS
Shona McFarlane has circulated staff, indicating that 50% of social care workers will be working the Christmas period and that this has been fully discussed with UNISON.
THIS IS NOT TRUE.
At a recent strategic consultative meeting, Christmas holidays were part of the agenda and discussions highlighted that there was a duty of care to cover for vulnerable people in society. Unison reiterated that we are still expecting to work at Christmas according to the 2002 Holiday Agreement.
The discussion included identifying need, having skeleton staff or minimal cover and not expecting workers coming to work over the festive period when it was not necessary. UNISON insisted that this was to be done in conjunction with teams of staff and then organised for the future to guarantee an open and transparent system that was fair and equitable to all.
Our members take our responsibilities to service users extremely seriously and we are professional and dedicated. Otherwise we would not be working in the jobs we do.
We expect the same from Directors. They must provide evidence of the amount of work that will be generated over the Christmas period and then consult with relevant staff in conjunction with UNISON and negotiate a fair and transparent agreement in line with the procedure.
Members are advised to book Christmas leave in the usual way and contact their steward for representation in the event that a request is refused.