Shearings Collapse is Massive Blow to Eastbourne

The announcement this evening of the collapse of Specialist Leisure Group Ltd. is a massive blow to Eastbourne's already vulnerable tourism and hospitality industry. 

The group includes Shearings Travel, Wallace Arnold, Coast and Country Hotels and a number of other brands.

The Bay Hotels subsidiary owned and operated the Burlington Hotel  and the Majestic Hotel on Eastbourne seafront.  Dozens of staff at these hotels will now be made redundant- some of whom have many years service.

We are not aware of any formal union recognition agreements within these hotels, but we know that a number of SLG staff are members of GMB and Unite- and they should contact their union, without delay, for support.

Information from the Receivers can be read here.

We will post more information as it becomes clear.

USDAW responds to speculation about Tesco job cuts

Shopworkers' union USDAW has responded to reports of plans to slash jobs at Tesco, including on bakery, meat and fish counters.

Pauline Foulkes - Usdaw National Officer said:

“Reports and speculation in the media about significant job cuts are distressing for Tesco staff and it is appalling that they should hear about the future of their jobs in this way. Usdaw is seeking an urgent meeting with the company to clarify the situation, to examine the details of what changes they are proposing and what this means for staff. Our priority will be to press Tesco to confirm the details of their proposed changes to stop any further speculation. In the meantime Usdaw’s officials and reps are on hand to support our members and further updates will be provided once we have further information”.

The BBC carried information about the rumoured cuts in an article you can read by clicking here.
The Mail on Sunday carried an article you can read here.

Our solidarity with USDAW and its members at Tesco stores in Eastbourne! 

Stop Cuts to Services for SEN and Disabled Kids!

GMB calls for a campaign against proposed cuts by East Sussex County Council to services to children with severe disabilities and special educational needs. The proposals must be stopped, East Sussex County Council need to act now to save the service and ensure invaluable hardworking staff are retained says GMB Southern.

GMB, the union for workers in East Sussex County Council, are calling for a halt to proposed cuts to children’s services including those with disabilities and special educational needs within East Sussex.

East Sussex County Council are proposing to cut the number of after school and weekend clubs for children with disabilities, special educational needs and behavioural issues. The cuts will mean a further reduction in support available for these children and their families. Proposed cuts of £70-£90m by March 2019 are being looked at in several areas including community care, drop-in activity at children’s centres, services for carers and children with special educational needs.

Karen Cooke, GMB organiser said “If these cuts are implemented it could result in parents and carers being unable to cope and more children going into full time care. This is not only devastating for these children and their families but will cost the public thousands of pounds. This will clearly have a major detrimental effect on them. They have already faced a cut to respite care as the two available facilities which were used are now at capacity with full time residents.

Clearly staff will also be affected as redundancies are anticipated at the end of the current 40 day consultation. GMB are calling for a halt to these proposals with immediate effect. What beggars belief is the parents and children that will be directly affected are not even being consulted with. The proposals must be stopped, ESCC need to act now to save the service and ensure invaluable hardworking staff are retained.”

More information from GMB at https://www.gmb-southern.org.uk/gmb-to-campaign-against-cuts-to-disabled-childrens-services-in-east-sussex/

UPDATE: Pier workers- deafening silence

Stephen Lloyd MP has published a list of Frequently Asked Questions on his website, which you can read here. However, on the issue of the Pier staff, there remains a deafening silence, other than the repeated assurance that they will get help with their benefits. Mr Lloyd assures them:

"What about those who have lost their job on the Pier?   Eastbourne Borough Council have a team of benefit advisors [sic] who should be able to assist. Their address is 1 Grove Road, Eastbourne, BN21 4TG. Additionally, the MP has contacted the Job Centre Plus to ensure that they are fully aware of the situation. Their address is 2 St Annes Road, Eastbourne, BN21 3XX."

So, to those who have lost their livelihood, the MP offers the address of the nearest dole office.

What Stephen Lloyd SHOULD be asking is:-

How many staff were employed in total on the pier, and how many individuals (including seasonal, casuals etc.) were employed by different companies ?

How many of these staff had more than two years service (under reforms that he voted for, only staff with two years service can apply to an Employment Tribunal for a decision on unfair dismissal. So, a staff member with 23 months service has virtually no rights, and Mr Lloyd thinks that's fine.)

Those staff with two years service will be entitled to redundancy money. However, if there are 20 staff in any one company facing redundancy, there should be a paid 30-day consultation period with staff, to ensure that all options are considered fairly. Is this happening ?

Those staff without two years service will be entitled to be paid until a decision is reached about their jobs, and then they should be paid their contractual notice.  How many staff are in this position, and what is their notice entitlement ?

How many affected staff were on the notorious zero hours contracts ?  If there are any, the chances are they have stopped being paid already (a bit like White Star line did at the point the Titanic sank) and will continue in unpaid limbo. Are there staff in this situation, and if so, what does Mr Lloyd think about it ?

The additional funding to support the economy will help the small traders on the pier, and quite rightly so. But, again, not a single word about how this funding will be used to alleviate hardship or support the move to alternative employment for Pier staff.  Why no answers ?

 

Are you a member of Pier staff ?  Do you want advice or support about your contractual rights ?  Please let us know via e-mail here.

Stop the coalition sacking 1,500 Disabled workers ! Send a message today.

Unite the Union (and other unions such as GMB representing workers in the Remploy factories, which provide work for mostly disabled workers) are campaigning against the appalling decision by Iain Duncan Smith to shut down 54 Remploy factories and throw 1,518 staff on the dole.

Len McCluskey, Unite General Secretary, writes:

"Dear Friend,

Sacking decent workers makes no sense.

In a shameful move, the Tory Work and Pensions Minister Iain Duncan Smith is trying to shut down 54 British factories and throw 1,518 hardworking people on to benefits. Even worse, these are Remploy factories – so the workers he wants sacked are mostly disabled.

Help us keep British factories open for business and stop this government putting disabled workers on the scrap heap.

 

Click here to send a message to Iain Duncan Smith, asking him to meet with Remploy workers. It won’t take you more than a minute to do – but it’s a minute that could save the jobs of over a thousand disabled people.

 

Shutting down Remploy shows just how heartless and arrogant this government is. In fact, Iain Duncan Smith told a Remploy worker to her face that he wanted to make her unemployed so he could give someone else a “proper job”. 

 

This is unjustified and nasty. As a union official I had responsibility for Remploy’s workers and I know firsthand that they absolutely do “proper jobs”. Remploy is a brilliant testimony to the British manufacturing industry and it provides real work for disabled people in this country – and we should be proud of it. 

 

I know too that Remploy is much more than a workplace to its staff. Steve Collins, a worker in North Staffs factory, told us that his job at Remploy "saved his life", offering him somewhere he can earn a dignified living, after years of bullying in mainstream employment. This is what Remploy means to its workers – and why we can’t just let it be destroyed.

 

Tell Iain Duncan Smith what you think of his decision to throw 1,518 hardworking disabled people on the scrap heap. Ask him now to save British factories and jobs.

 

Closing down our factories and forcing people on to benefits makes no economic sense at a time when more than two million people in this country are out of work.

 

With the full force of our members’ voices, we can put enough pressure on the government to save Remploy. Thank you for standing up for these workers."

 

Save Community Learning at Sussex Uni: Sign the Petition

The UCU branch at the University of Sussex reports:

"Sussex UCU regrets the proposal from the university management to end large parts of continuing education and community engagement activity in the Centre for Community Engagement.

Sign the petition here

The management’s proposal will deprive local adult students, especially older and second chance learners, of opportunities not otherwise available to them and does not reflect the university management’s often-stated commitments to community engagement, widening participation and learning opportunities outside traditional hours and locations.

Continuing education and community engagement have a long and illustrious history at Sussex. Recently CCE has produced novelists, archaeologists, supported community volunteering, put on public events, engaged with efforts to promote sign language in support of deaf communities, and engaged with teachers and young people through Creative Partnerships schemes. It has also provided full-time and visiting students with access to disciplines such as archaeology that are not otherwise covered by mainstream departments.

CCE has led the way at Sussex in terms of widening participation amongst non school leavers, such as: ethnic and minority groups, refugees, disabled people, people from socially deprived areas and deaf communities. This has been achieved during the last 18 years by a range of European funding which continues to the present.

The decision to close all non-ISS courses and the running down of the Centre in recent years puts dedicated and innovative staff at risk of redundancy, that could be avoided, and at a time of rising unemployment. The management’s proposals appear to have the unintended consequence of forcing the cessation of activities which are not loss making, because all non ISS staff are proposed for redundancy.

Sussex UCU will be fully engaged in consultations to protect staff and students and we urge the university to explore financial opportunities such as those mentioned above for supporting CCE, its staff and its valuable and distinctive educational and community provisions. Enquiries to Kate Edwards at ucusussex@sussex.ac.uk "

Sign the petition here