What's going on in your workplace?

Employer: A newspaper

Job: Sub

Employment type: Salaried f/t,

Unions: NUJ, I'm in it, just sent off to ACAS for recognition after our MD hilariously said to the rep 'I have had no indication from my journalists that they have a desire to be represented by the NUJ. We have good communications links with all our staff' (We've got well over a 50% takeup).

Issues: Low pay, job cuts, long hours, pissing about with roles and output patterns, conflict between advertising and editorial seriously skewed in favour of advertisers (more so than is usual even for the shit-rags), circulation in free-fall.

Upcoming: Likely to be more job cuts, more stupid management decisions that'll bollox circulation. Reaction muted so far but likely to get a lot more vocal with union recognition/threat to pay etc due to management incompetance.

employer- national educational charity

job- community elearning developer (mix of community work and IT)

employment type: verbal contract- previous 12 month contract ended Dec. 05

issues: I need to give a bit of background here.

I work within the charity, on a specific project that up until Dec 05 was funded by a variety of UK and EU funders who were throwing money at 'regeneration' projects, Manchester was a hotspot for this.

Our salaries were always fronted by the charity, and we are employed by them, and then the funders pay the charity. It's messy and dysfunctional, but it's how it works.

When I joined the charity it was in crisis, some bigwig fucker had creamed off millions and left things in a big mess, as they do. As a result they were almost bankrupt (apparently) but not bankrupt enough to employ some expensive new director who started reorganising, merged regions (the charity operates regional offices all over England), made people redundant- some voluntarily, some not. Many people just got pissed off at increased workloads that became inevitable once colleagues had departed and just left. That was no doubt a part of the reorganisation plan.

Over 50% of the people who I used to work with have left. The region is managed by really nasty piece of work. Ex- trade unionist and generally unpleasant and slimy arse who calls everyone 'colleague' and 'mate'.

There are reasonably serious issues that have never really been dealt with. This week I discovered that not only is my team working without signed contracts, but many other people in the office are as well. No one seems to talk about it and those who I have spoke with don't really seem to care. Almost everyone is unionised.

When people started leaving left right and centre I asked if we could offer support in some way, you know, stand up to management collectively, but most people, who are well-educated and can find work easily, were not interested in any sort conflict and preferred to leave.

So it's been pretty frustrating. When our previous manager left, we dicussed going to the charity management and suggesting that we collectively manage our project. They of course were having none of that and promoted a team member, who had no management skills, to a management position. She resigned 2 months ago. Another team mmember resigned in December. I have just resigned and am disputing the 3 months notice on my verbal contract. I'm disputing it with the hope that they will at least issue contracts to workers currently without contracts to cover their own arses from this reoccuring in the future, because I just happen to be one workers they don't want to let go of. I'm also hoping to clarify exactly what the rights of workers working on verbally agreed contracts are. Been consulting with fellow SolFed'ers who are knowledgable about these sorts of things, to ascertain what my rights are but will also be talking to CAB.

Employer: 6th form college

job: library floor staff

Union: Unison - low rate of membership, I'm going to join but haven't actually sent off the form yet.

Issues: budget deficit, could lead to job losses or restructuring any time within the next 6-18 months.

There's little things happening at my job - we got shown a pay review before they implemented it and asked for 'feedback' (usually people are told after the fact, I've never even seen the Unison rep, let alone talked to him), and it's provoked a lot of feedback so far, and discussions about pay and conditions with my workmates that previously weren't happening to any like as much as they are now.

At least a few of my co-workers are about to join the union I think, due to some major changes coming up in the next few months (although they've also got very limited expectations of what the union can and will do). And my supervisor is about to make a 'new books' display of all the anarchist and social history books I ordered when we had a budget surplus.

It's not much, and although I shoot my mouth of sometimes, I'm hoping to go full time soon, and my probation will be up soon, so I ought to be doing even less than I am really, but it's a very small start and it's encouraging to me. On the other hand, the job I just left there were massive attacks on our hours and intensity of work, but the reaction of most people has been to just leave - some have, some will by the end of the year I think.

Hi

Employer – Self

Job – Technology Analyst / Solutions Adviser

Employment type – Work at home, rolling contract with Research Consultancy

Union/s - None

Issues – You don’t get paid unless you grow the business. I’ll probably give up soon coz I think I can make more doing something else.

Employer – Citizens Advice Bureau

Job – Civil Advisor

Employment type – Voluntary (6 hours every week or so)

Union/s - None

Issues – Unpaid, but it does have its rewards.

I’m not sure if you have a problem. By salaried term-time contract do you mean you get paid during the summer holidays? Wow. I’d be careful about leaving, if I were you, it sounds like you’ve been taken on as part of scheme to find work for the otherwise unemployable. I am joking.

Love

LR

Hi

Honestly Jef, before you go, get a comrade in there to take your place. It must pay pretty poorly for you to want to give it up, what is the salary?

How did you get your job?

Love

LR

it gives them a month to find someone else same as any other time you could leave, and even if you piss them off - you won't see them 'cos you'll be at home!