UNISON Warrington Local Government branch, which represents teaching assistants and other school support staff including cleaners and caterers, has warned the local authority against pressing ahead with opening schools in early June.

Local care workers have expressed their disappointment that Wigan Council have refused to sign a pledge to protect carers during the ongoing pandemic.

Stockport Council has come under fire for not protecting care workers as UNISON NW has uncovered the shocking treatment of carers who work for Stockport's largest provider of residential care.

UNISON today has issued guidance to all support staff members working in schools across the country over its opposition over the Government's unsafe proposal to increase pupil numbers from the 1st June.

The COVID-19 crisis has highlighted the importance of trade unions and the need for social care workers to have a strong voice at work.

UNISON has uncovered the concerning news that some cleaners, porters, catering assistants and security guards at the NHS Nightingale Hospital in Manchester are receiving less pay from night and weekend shifts than their colleagues who do exactly the same jobs in other NHS hospitals. 

We are so saddened to hear of members dying from COVID-19, including so many who have died in the line of duty, as they try to help others in this unprecedented time.

The purpose of International Workers Memorial Day (IWMD) has never been more prescient in this time of global health crisis.

Care workers - and all the disciplines they cover - are high on UNISON North West's agenda. They are our valued members working across the statutory, community and private sectors.