|
Openreach Attendance
Arrangements
(Updated 21/3/08 12.00)
Agreement has today been reached between the
General Manager West of Scotland (BBA3) and the CWU regarding changes to
the attendance arrangements for both Volume Field and Frames engineers.
These
changes will assist in a addressing the constantly changing business
environment in which Openreach operates as well as recognising the need
for considering work life balance.
The
content of the changes are contained within the understanding previously
communicated to you on 13th February 2008 and will become
effective on the 23rd June 2008.
Members affected by these changes will receive a personal letter
detailing their new attendance pattern effective on 23rd June
2008.
It is important that you fully acquaint yourself with the details
contained in your letter and if necessary raise any concerns or queries
with the Branch.
John Donnelly (Secretary)
(Published 19 March '08)
Resulting
from the decision of the Branch Meeting held on 13 March, namely that
the Branch Officer's be authorised to reach agreement on attendance
patterns within BBA3 subject to them obtaining improvements on the last
set of proposals and after consultation with the Scotland No.1 Branch,
discussions have been ongoing this week with management in an attempt to
secure an agreed way forward on the basis of the Branch policy.
Although
there is nothing tangible to report at this time nonetheless it is
encouraging to state that the possibility of an agreement which meets
the terms of the Branch policy is now within our grasp.
It is
expected that we will be able to report on the definitive agreement by
the end of this week.
Please
continue to monitor this site for any update.
(Published 7 March '08) Following
the last Branch meeting a number of meetings have since been held with
management including discussions involving national representatives from
both the CWU and Openreach to try to find a way through the current
impasse.
The
national involvement came about due to the agreement of both Branches
and BBA3 to escalate the issue to national level for guidance and
clarification on a number of points.
A full
report will be given at the next Branch meeting on Thursday 13 March.
(Published 22/2/08)Following
the Branch meeting on 14th February the decision of the meeting was
relayed to management. A meeting was subsequently held with them on 19th
February to establish if there was any further scope for changes to the
proposals which were not accepted by the members at the meeting of the
14th February.
Disappointingly after a lengthy meeting it became obvious that there was
no further changes acceptable to management which could allow the Union
to consider submitting revised proposals to the membership which took
into account the problems that the earlier proposals posed for our
members.
Therefore,
due to this apparent impasse, it was agreed at the request of management
that we jointly seek escalation of the issue to our respective national
bodies for help in seeking a mutually agreeable resolution. The relevant
documentation requesting escalation were despatched today by both
parties.
It is
worth noting that the escalation process provides for a conclusion in a
very short time frame so any update will be published on this site as
and when we receive it.
(Published 13/2/08 12.00)The text
of the proposed agreement has now been cleared by both parties and is
being published by the CWU and BBA3 from 12 noon to-day.
You can
read the contents of the proposal by clicking
here.
This
document will now form the basis of the report and discussion at the
Branch meeting tomorrow night for members of the Glasgow & Motherwell
Branch.
No
agreement exists until a decision by the Branch to do so is made at the
meeting. It is therefore important for you to attend tomorrows meeting
to hear the report from the Branch Officers and participate in the
discussion and ultimate decision on these proposals.
(Published 12/2/08)At this
time the detail of the proposals which are to be put to our meeting on
Thursday 14 February have still to be finalised between the CWU and
BBA3.
It is
important to recognise that at this stage no agreement exists for
changes to your attendance patterns.
Only if
and when the proposals are accepted by those members in attendance at
the Branch meeting will there be an agreement which can then be
implemented within the proposed changed timescale.
Once the
documentation is finalised it will be posted on this site and
distributed at the Branch meeting.
It is
therefore crucial for members to attend the Branch meeting so they can
receive a full report on the negotiations and subsequent proposals from
the Branch Officers and be able to make an informed decision.
(Published 8/2/08 15:00) Resulting
from the reconvened meeting held on Wednesday 6 Feb with the GM West of
Scotland an acceptable way forward has now been reached which should
avert the industrial dispute that looked to be inevitable earlier in the
week.
Although
the precise details of the new proposals are still to be agreed with the
CWU and are still subject to ratification at our meeting this coming
week a joint
statement has been agreed which positions both parties to the
current situation and how future discussions can now take place.
As soon as
the revised proposals are available they will published on this web site
and will be made available to those in attendance at the Branch meeting.
It is
vitally important that all members affected attend the meeting on 14
February to discuss and decide on the revised proposals.
(Published 5/2/08) Yesterday
representatives from both the Glasgow & Motherwell and Scotland No.1
Branches along with National representative, Dave Bowman, attended the
rearranged meeting with Fergie Collier and his management team including
national HR personnel in an attempt to secure an agreed way out of the
seemingly inevitable route towards a serious industrial dispute caused
by the imposition of unagreed changes to attendance patterns of members
working in Volume Field, Frames and PCR.
After
protracted discussions which lasted into early evening the meeting was
adjourned at the request of management to consider the latest position
put to them by the CWU representatives.
Consequently we must advise members that no agreement for any changes
exists at this time.
We are
therefore currently awaiting contact from management to either reconvene
the discussions or to advise us of their decision regarding our
representations.
Due to the
dynamics of the situation it is now our intention to make a full report
to the next scheduled meeting of the Branch on Thursday 14 February. We
are hopeful that this will allow for a full debate to be had
resulting in a decision which will build on the solidarity expressed in
recent meetings.
>>>
|
(Published 25/1/08) As a
direct result of the decisions taken by the membership at our last
Branch Meeting, we have now received a response to our letter dated 14
January to Fergie Collier (BBA3) Openreach General Manager, West of
Scotland Operations inviting representatives of both Branches to a
meeting with him and national HR personnel in a final attempt to resolve
the current situation by agreement. The meeting is scheduled for Friday
1 February and we have also been given the opportunity to have
representatives form our Head Office present.
Although
the date of the 1st February is not ideal in respect to the provisional
timetable that may have had to be implemented if needed to call an
industrial action ballot, the Branch Officers and Committee believe that
it would be beneficial to give BBA3 management another opportunity to
reconsider the changes to attendance patterns that have caused the
current Industrial Relations problem.
If
following this meeting it is considered by our representatives that
there is no prospect of an agreed way forward then a Special
Branch Meeting will be arranged for the week beginning 4th February.
Notice of
this meeting will be published on this site so please continue to check
for any updates.
Anyone who
is encountering difficulties regarding personal and/or domestic issues
throughout this testing period should call the Branch Office for advice
and assistance.
(Published 14/1/08)
At Thursday night's well
attended meeting it was made abundantly clear that the
latest development in this saga, caused by BBA3 management
falsely representing the position of the CWU during the
"without prejudice" discussions by word and in the letter
accompanying the
unagreed
Attendance Pattern preference exercise, has further angered
our members and did nothing but exacerbate the situation.
Whether this was a deliberate act or one of folly we can
only guess.
It was therefore not surprising
that the meeting made clear to the negotiators their
reaction to the report from the CWU negotiators on the
latest "conditional" proposals from management.
The following proposition was subsequently carried
unanimously by the meeting.
“THAT
THE BRANCH NOTE THE POSITION AS REPORTED BY THE NEGOTIATORS
AND RATIFY THE DECISION TO REJECT THE PROPOSALS CONTAINED IN
THE LETTER OF 31ST DECEMBER 2007.
THE BRANCH OFFICERS AND COMMITTEE ARE INSTRUCTED TO
CONTINUE TO TRY AND FIND A RESOLUTION TO THIS PROBLEM. IN
THE MEANTIME, IF CONSIDERED NECESSARY, BEARING IN MIND THE
TIMETABLE FOR CHANGES , THE BRANCH OFFICERS ARE AUTHORISED
TO REGISTER FORMAL DISAGREEMENT WITH BBA3 AND TO SEEK
PERMISSION TO BALLOT FOR INDUSTRIAL ACTION FROM HEAD OFFICE.
THE DECISION TO PROCEED TO BALLOT WILL BE TAKEN AT A BRANCH
OR SPECIAL BRANCH MEETING CALLED FOR THAT PURPOSE.”
In addition it was agreed
that members should not respond to the
unagreed preference exercise
and if necessary advise their
manager that you are "unable to complete due to
attendance patterns not yet agreed with CWU".
Any
Branch member requiring further information or clarification
of the current position then please call the branch office
on 0141 552 1066
Published 10/1/08)
We have today been inundated with queries from members resulting from
letters delivered to them by layer 6 managers indicating that the CWU
have agreed to revised proposals from management and that an agreed 2nd
preference exercise can now take place.
Let us
make the situation crystal clear, the Glasgow & Motherwell Branch along
with our sister Branch, Scotland No.1, have indicated in our letter of
7 January that there is no agreement
or prospect of agreement whilst the worst excesses of the changes which
were detailed in the letter to the CWU and the notice of changes to all
members was issued by BBA3 management in early December.
At this
time the Branch advise all members affected not to respond to the
unagreed preference exercise and
wait until the members meeting tonight to consider how they would wish
to respond after the report from the Branch Officers.
(Published 3/1/08) -
The Branch
Officers last met
with BBA3 management on Monday 24
December in an attempt to conclude an agreed resolution to the current
difficulties arising out of the issuing of unagreed notices to
change Attendance Patterns within BBA3 for Volume, Frames & PCR
engineers. This meeting was the 5th such meeting that representatives from the Glasgow & Motherwell and Scotland
No.1 Branches had held since the imposition of the notice of changes
contained in letters to members dated 3 December.
Although
we had reluctantly entered into these discussions, despite the refusal
by BBA3 management to withdraw the notices to change, we did so on the
basis that we were prepared to attempt to explore with management on a
"without prejudice basis" other opportunities to address the perceived
operational requirements that formed the basis of management's actions.
Despite
early positive indications of movement primarily arising from
suggestions from the Union representatives management have not taken up
these opportunities to fundamentally shift from the excessive elements
of their perceived requirements.
It is
therefore disappointing to report to members that despite the best of
efforts and intentions of the Union's representatives at these meetings
it is obvious that management have been unwilling or unable to
reciprocate.
No further
meetings with management are planned at this time but any correspondence
received will be fully reported at the next Branch Meeting on Thursday
10 January.
The
current Branch policy created at the meeting of 13 December is
reproduced below for information.
It
is vitally important that all members affected attend the 10 January
meeting to decide the next course of action.
"That the Branch endorses the
actions of the Branch Officers in rejecting the formal proposals set out
in the letter of 20th November.
The Branch further instructs
the Branch Officers to continue negotiations in an attempt to resolve
the matter.
Any outcome of these
negotiations to be put to a Branch or Special meeting.
If negotiations do not
satisfactorily alter the proposals of 20th November then a Branch or
Special meeting will be called to decide what further course of action
should be taken"
Any further updates to
this situation will be published on this site with a comprehensive
report given at the next Branch meeting.
|
Branch Meetings - The next
scheduled meeting
will take place on Thursday 8th May 2008 at 7.00pm in the T&GWU
Offices, Bath Street, Glasgow. For Branch Meeting Agenda click
here
Serious Pole Incident 18/1/08
Members will now doubt have heard of the
recent incident whereby an engineer working on pole testing duties fell
from a pole in Kilsyth and had to be air-lifted to the Southern General
Hospital in Glasgow with suspected spinal injuries.
Although we cannot make specific comment on
the circumstances of the incident we can inform members that the
engineer happily did not sustain any serious injuries and was released
from hospital over the following weekend.
It is worth pointing out that the HSC were
on site and have made certain comments to the company in relation to the
Working at Heights Regulations and Lone Workers.
Without knowing the specifics we are unable
to advise at this time but suffice to say that the safety lanyard did
prevent a fall which could could have resulted in serious injury.
The lesson is that at no time should anyone
climb a pole without following the correct procedures.
Branch Recreation
Check out the latest
competition or event details as well as free giveaways. Cartoons/
funny pictures now posted. A games Section has been added with advice
not to play on company owned equipment during working hours.
Safety
Contact John Donnelly at
the office for assistance in safety related matters. Click the Safety
tab above or heading for a list of safety guides and bulletins.
Internet Abuse, Laptop Computer Misuse
KNOW YOUR
LIMITATIONS. Check your employers website (informe for BT members)
for current company policy. See the Unions policy on defending
inappropriate use
click here.
Around 50% of
cases involving this type of misconduct result in dismissal.
Please
do not let yourself fall into the disciplinary stages.
Click here to see the managers brief for dealing with internet abuse.
Retired Members Section
August
2007
newsletter from the Retired Members Committee and meeting dates.
Contributions
Please
send in old photographs or job related stories. We also would like
feedback to further improve our contact with members.
Retirement age and how it might
affect you...... Click here...
Ready to retire? Contact
the branch to transfer your membership for reduced rate
If you think the
website does not serve you as a member or is missing important
information, then please email the editor below with your preferences or
call the branch office.
Microsite
Our section of the CWU site which can be found
by clicking the CWU Badge at the top of the page.
WEBLOG
Keep tracks on our CWU General Secretary
Billy Hayes check his WEBLOG at
www.billyhayes.co.uk
|
