If you know a few Fujitsu friends or colleagues who aren’t in the union yet but you think might be interested, why not pass this email on to them?
If you’re one of those friends or colleagues, and are interested in finding out more about UNITE in Fujitsu, you can leave your details here:
www.ourunion.org.uk/interested
Of course if you want to get involved in the campaign, please join UNITE.
It’s always a good idea to keep your membership records up to date, so that your union can communicate with you effectively. However, at the moment it is absolutely vital that you do so. Some employers use the anti-union laws to challenge ballots if even a few membership records are incorrect and your reps want to avoid Fujitsu having any grounds for doing so.
Thanks to the members who have already replied to the “UNITE: Membership check ***PLEASE RESPOND***” email sent out late on 3rd June. If you haven’t done so yet, please do so as soon as possible. Not only will this ensure you get your vote correctly in any ballot and reduce the risk of Fujitsu taking your union to court – it will also allow your reps to spend time campaigning on pay and pensions rather than having to contact you individually to check your membership record.
It is vital that we keep membership records up to date throughout the period leading up to any ballot, during the ballot and throughout any industrial action – right up until we win.
In particular, for legal reasons, please ensure you let our membership secretary know:
1. Any change of home address
2. If you expect to be absent from work for a significant time (e.g. maternity leave, long-term sick, sabbatical) during the period when industrial action might take place (probably from September 2009)
3. If you expect to leave the company before or during the period when industrial action might take place (probably from September 2009)
Of course, it would also be useful if you let our membership secretary know about any other changes to your contact details.
“Betrayal” is one of the words most widely used by employees to describe their feelings over the loss of bonus in 2008, the eleventh hour cancellation of the pay rise in 2009 and the threat to close the ICL DB pension plan. The company may preach “straight talking” but senior management seem to attach little importance to keeping their promises to employees.
Colleagues over at IBM have come up with the idea of sending back their recognition awards and certificates as a way of showing their disgust. A certificate doesn’t show the company values your contribution nearly as well as decent pay and pensions.
Fujitsu employees (whether UNITE members or not) are invited to send their recognition award certificates etc to “UNITE the Union, MAN34” (internal mail) or “UNITE the Union, Fujitsu, Central Park, Northampton Road, Manchester, M40 5BP” (external mail). Please attach a note indicating your length of service. Please don’t send in certificate frames, heavy or bulky items.
The idea is that a bundle of certificates can be publicly handed in at the company headquarters in London as part of our pay and pensions campaign. UNITE can highlight the total length of service of the employees who have returned certificates, which would make a great story for the media.
Consultative Ballot – 4 days to go!
Ballot papers will be posted out to UNITE members employed by Fujitsu Services in the UK on Monday 3rd August.
Your reps are urging you to vote YES + YES and return your vote straight away when you receive your ballot paper.
| YES | X |
| YES | X |
A big YES + YES vote is essential if we are to secure the goals agreed by members:
Pay:
1. A fairer pay system
2. More money for employees
Pensions:
3. Defend the ICL DB pension scheme
4. Improve pension provision for those with something worse
Your reps are building up a set of Frequently Asked Questions about the consultative ballot, and these are now available online.
Please send in any further questions you have for the FAQ.
Industrial action is a last resort, but unless the company sees that employees are prepared to stand up for themselves, they will keep coming back for more. We have to say Enough Is Enough!
Many people didn’t believe that union members in Manchester could achieve successful outcomes to the disputes in 2003 and 2006-7 – but they did. Many people didn’t believe that union members at Visteon, Linamar or Lindsay Oil Refinery could win – but they did. If we don’t fight, we are bound to lose. If we do fight, we can win.
Recent company results show that the company can afford to meet our demands. But senior managers think they can make higher profits by giving us worse pay and pensions. We have to give them a reason to change their minds – we have to remind them that it is the employees who deliver the vital services our customers rely on, and who deliver the company’s profits.
With the FT carrying an article headlined “Fujitsu targets record profit in 2011” last week, why should we be tightening our belts?
Lots of Fujitsu staff are joining UNITE at the moment. Your reps have collated and anonymised comments from some of those who’ve joined this year and published them on CafeVIK. They give a very good indication of how people feel and may help you encourage colleagues to join.
The UNITE reps for the Crewe area have set up the opportunity for you to meet face-to-face with us individually to help answer your questions. Reps will be available for you to drop in at any time.
Unite members are preparing for the national consultative ballot on Pay and Pensions and we have had local meetings on the campaign. Do you still have questions?
Are there other issues that you or a group of your colleagues, whether they be members of a union or not, are facing?
Do you know of non-members who may be interested in what being part of Unite does for us all?
Date – Wednesday 5th August
Time - 12.00pm until 1.30pm
Location – CR 0-3, CRE02
CR 0-3 is a conference room on the ground floor at CRE02, behind reception. This message has been sent to members in the Crewe area. Please let any interested non-members you know about this session.
This session has been arranged by your reps, who are: Robert "Wilf" Williams (trained), Bob Anderson, Alan Jenney, Stephen Ryan and Adrian Prince.
CRE02 Unite members committed to undertake local campaign activities to support the national Pay and Pension strategy at the meeting held on Thursday 23rd July and this mail is the first. Please encourage interested non-members to take part as well.
One of the items that arose at the recent union meeting held in CR0-2 last Thursday is the ongoing company misconception that employees understand, and are accepting, the current pay freeze and DB pension closure proposal.
Wilf Williams referred to UKCF meetings whereby the HR representative indicated that they had no reason to believe that employees are unhappy with the pay freeze and 2% bonus as they have no evidence to suggest the same.
Further to this, our Unite National Officer, Peter Skyte, has been in correspondence with the company with a view to pursuing discussions around our pay and pensions proposals.
The response from the company:
Read on ...
"...the pay decision, though not welcomed, was understood by the majority of our employees."
"I do not, therefore, see that any discussion with you along the lines that you propose would help move us forward."
We do understand that the company wants to increase profits at our expense, and does that second response sound like a company that is actively engaged in serious consultation?
So, in the event that you wish to express your disgust at the way Fujitsu continues to treat it's "valued" staff by cutting T&Cs, implementing last-minute pay freezes and attacking pensions then why not write to senior management or HR?
Why not copy in one of your reps in order that we can gauge the responses.
Please find attached a template for your use containing placeholders for your own comments and signature along with some salient points.
FJS PAY FREEZE & DB PENSION CLOSURE
You may also wish to refer HR to the "No Fujitsu Pay Freeze 2009" petition at http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/FJpay2009/index.html. And if you haven't already added your name to the list of 1500+ disgruntled employees then please do so.
At least that way they may have a truer picture of the mood of employees.
From the CRE02 Unite Reps
If you know a few Fujitsu friends or colleagues who aren’t in the union yet but you think might be interested, why not pass this email on to them?
If you’re one of those friends or colleagues, and are interested in finding out more about UNITE in Fujitsu, you can leave your details here: www.ourunion.org.uk/interested
Of course if you want to get involved in the campaign, please join UNITE.
It’s always a good idea to keep your membership records up to date, so that your union can communicate with you effectively. However, at the moment it is absolutely vital that you do so. Some employers use the anti-union laws to challenge ballots if even a few membership records are incorrect and your reps want to avoid Fujitsu having any grounds for doing so.
Thanks to the members who have already replied to the “UNITE: Membership check ***PLEASE RESPOND***” email sent out late on 3rd June. If you haven’t done so yet, please do so as soon as possible. Not only will this ensure you get your vote correctly in any ballot and reduce the risk of Fujitsu taking your union to court – it will also allow your reps to spend time campaigning on pay and pensions rather than having to contact you individually to check your membership record.
It is vital that we keep membership records up to date throughout the period leading up to any ballot, during the ballot and throughout any industrial action – right up until we win.
In particular, for legal reasons, please ensure you let our membership secretary know:
Of course, it would also be useful if you let our membership secretary know about any other changes to your contact details.
Crewe
Unite at Fujitsu Crewe held another open meeting on 23rd July, this time on site at CRE02. It was well attended again, even with the site being quiet at the start of the holiday period. The minutes of the last meeting were accepted.
Members heard a report on the dismissal of Malcolm ---- and await news of his appeal.
Members talked about our pay, pensions and the increase in Compromise Agreements offered to colleagues. Also, the significance of similar consultation and union campaigns in other companies was discussed. Feedback was strong – employees are still surprised that the company do not understand the strength of feeling that enough is enough.
The organising through the national Combine Committee and the upcoming consultative ballot was bolstered by members volunteering to help as part of a local campaign team when suggestions of practical local action came from the floor. Members took away more “UNITE for Fair Pay” lanyards.
The following motion was carried unanimously:
“that members in the Crewe area undertake local campaign activities to support the national Pay and Pensions strategy, guided by the Combine members for the North-West area.”
A further lunchtime meeting will be set for about four weeks’ time. It will again be held at the CRE02 site.
When’s Yours?
With our “Enough Is Enough” campaign around pay and pensions gathering pace, it is important that you have the opportunity to meet up with your reps and other members to discuss the situation – wherever you are based.
Meetings have recently taken place at sites in London, Staines and Wakefield, with more being planned for Newcastle and London.
If there’s not a meeting scheduled for your area, why not contact one of your local reps / contacts (see list below) to discuss setting one up?
If there’s no rep or contact where you are, why not volunteer?
Consultative Ballot – 7 days to go!
As reported in our newsletter on 17th July, Peter Skyte, the UNITE National Officer for the IT & Communications sector, wrote the Fujitsu offering negotiations on pay and pensions. Ella Bennett, the new HR Director for Fujitsu UK & Ireland, has replied, rejecting discussions.
Ella’s letter includes a statement about the pay freeze:
“the pay decision, though not welcomed, was understood by the majority of our employees”
Unless she means that we understood that it was yet another attempt to boost profits at the expense of employees, this is a clear demonstration of just how out of touch our senior management are.
If the company are unwilling to respond to the strength of our argument, staff have to choose between accepting attack after attack or saying Enough Is Enough and using the argument of our strength.
In the light of this, your elected “combine-21” committee has decided to open the consultative ballot, with ballot papers being posted out to UNITE members employed by Fujitsu Services across the UK on Monday 3rd August. Your reps are delighted to report that the PCS union (which organises staff on a number of Fujitsu’s government contracts) has decided to work side-by-side with UNITE and will be holding a consultative ballot of PCS members at the same time.
UNITE and PCS are campaigning for the same broad goals that all employees can unite behind:
Pay:
1. A fairer pay system
2. More money for employees
Pensions:
3. Defend the ICL DB pension scheme
4. Improve pension provision for those with something worse
Your reps are urging every member to vote YES + YES and return your vote straight away when you receive your ballot papers.
| YES | X |
| YES | X |
Your reps believe that a big YES + YES vote is an essential step in our campaign. Without it there is no chance of the company seriously listening to employees over pay and pensions.
The questions on the consultative ballot will be the same as the ones which will be legally required if we go ahead to a statutory ballot for industrial action:
* “Are you prepared to take part in strike action?”
* “Are you prepared to take part in industrial action short of strike?”
Your reps believe it is crucial that there is a strong YES vote on both questions – one form of action without the other would be ineffective or unworkable.
UNITE has already issued some Questions & Answers about the consultative ballot (when it was running on a different timescale), and more will be produced during the process.
UNITE and PCS have produced a new joint leaflet for the pay and pensions campaign. It is important that it is distributed as widely as possible across the company. Can you help?
If you can help distribute the leaflet where you work, please speak to one of your local reps or email your reps centrally saying how many leaflets you need and where you intend to distribute them.
Crewe Unite Meeting on Pay and Pensions – The Local Campaign
Following the response to the first meeting we had on understanding the Pay and Pensions issues, the UNITE reps for the Crewe area have called a second local meeting to discuss the national campaign strategy and local activities.
We will again be joined by Sarah Holden, the local Unite organiser who works around Fujitsu.
This message has been sent to members in the Crewe area, but is open to anyone. Please encourage everyone to attend, including interested non-members.
Date – Thursday 23rd July
Time - 12.30pm for 1 hour, prompt start
Location – CR 0-2, CRE02
CR 0-2 is the largest conference room on the ground floor at CRE02, behind reception.
Read on for Agenda ....
Agenda
· Apologies
· Acceptance of minutes from meeting of 1st July 2009
· Report on Malcolm ----- dismissal meeting
· Update on pay and the ICL DB Pension consultation
· The elected national campaign combine
· The consultative ballot
· Local campaigning and reasons for being a member
· Motions (see below)
· AOB
· Summary and Close
Motions
Motion 1: “that members in the Crewe area undertake local campaign activities to support the national Pay and Pension strategy, guided by the Combine members for the North-West area”.
Note that the North-West area excludes those in the Manchester collective bargaining unit.
Non-members cannot vote on motions. For AOB and further motions to be added, please advise Alan Jenney by noon, 22nd July.
Crewe Reps
This meeting has been arranged by your Crewe area reps, who are:
Robert "Wilf" Williams (trained)
Bob Anderson
Alan Jenney
Stephen Ryan
Adrian Prince
Red "UNITE for fair pay in Fujitsu" lanyards are still available. Although most members and some non-members have one, contact one of the reps or pick some up at the meeting to pass round your colleagues
The publication of the audited Fujitsu Services Holdings PLC financial report for 2008-9 has seriously undermined the company’s case for the pay freeze and attack on pensions. They don’t present a picture of a company in trouble. The report isn’t just some bit of PowerPoint to bamboozle employees. It is signed off by KPMG (the auditors); the board says that in preparing it they “make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent”; and it was signed off by Richard Christou.
Some key points and quotes:
No doubt there are some issues in the business, but let’s keep a sense of proportion. The hard work, skill and commitment of employees deliver good profits for the company. What is the company delivering for us? In good times and bad, the company always wants more from us for less in return. First they came for bonuses, then pay, then pensions. If we don’t say “Enough Is Enough!” what will they be after next?
Our UNITE National Officer, Peter Skyte, has written to Ella Bennett (HR Director, Fujitsu UK & Ireland) as follows:
|
From: Skyte, Peter Can I introduce myself as the Unite National Officer with responsibility for our membership in Fujitsu Services, and the IT & Communications Sector more generally. I believe we have spoken in the past but not met. As I am sure you are aware, the proposal from Fujitsu Services to close the ICL Defined Benefit pension plan to future accrual has produced a very strong reaction from our members and the Fujitsu workforce affected. This came on top of the last-minute decision to cancel the April pay review. Unite is already involved in the forum the company has set up as the channel for consultation over the pensions proposal, but only on behalf of the Manchester bargaining unit. Across the UK we are campaigning in defence of Fujitsu Services employees' pay and pensions and members have decided the following goals: Pay Pensions The recent publication of the Fujitsu Services financial report for 2008-9 has reinforced the belief that the company can afford to offer a pay rise and good pension provision for its employees. We believe that a direct negotiation, rather than merely consultation, would be more likely to produce an outcome that is acceptable to both the company and its employees. Accordingly I would like to invite Fujitsu Services to enter into negotiations with Unite with a view to seeking an agreed resolution on pay and pensions. I look forward to your response, and an early meeting to discuss this further. If you go along with this, perhaps your office could contact Maureen German in my office via the number below to arrange a mutually convenient date. Regards, Peter Skyte |
Following the company decision not to end pension consultation prior to 25th September 2009 (which means that no change will take effect before January 2010), UNITE paused the process of the “consultative ballot” of members across the country to gauge support for industrial action. Your reps and officers are discussing a new timescale for this.
In the meantime meetings are taking place across the country, our new combine structure is up and running, and many more employees are deciding to join UNITE. Membership across the UK is up over 20% already this year – keep up the good work. Employees can only win on big issues like pay and pensions by sticking together and being organised.
This witty film about how a union can improve things in a workplace may help you get the message across. [Note: this is on YouTube, so cannot be viewed from work during peak hours]
Elsewhere in the IT industry, mobile engineers at HP/EDS in the London and Eastern region have won union recognition with UNITE through the statutory process. As the majority of them had joined UNITE, they didn’t have to go through a ballot.
Over at IBM, employees are up in arms over the proposal to close their Defined Benefit pension scheme. IBMers report the same feelings of betrayal that have been so widespread in Fujitsu. One site had a meeting of 150 staff to discuss the issue, and many across the country are joining UNITE. This is a very significant development in what has for decades been a bastion of non-unionism in the industry.
UNITE members in Barclays (which is also threatening a final salary pension scheme) have already returned a 92% majority in a consultative ballot and are going forward to a statutory ballot for strike action over the coming weeks, with strikes possible in September.
The news from American Express should shatter any illusion that it is only Defined Benefit pensions that were under threat. The AMEX “stakeholder” scheme was miserly to begin with, proving that giving up valuable benefits doesn’t make cheaper ones safer.
Pension Updates
The Company has now published the minutes of the Pensions Forum meeting on 2nd July.
A company “leaflet” about their proposal is being mailed out to all scheme members. You should take a good look at this. One key statement is:
Fujitsu is very interested in pursuing and developing an alternative solution, if one can be found, which delivers the same risk reduction as closing the Plan to future accrual.
While that sounds very open-minded, the company’s target risk reduction (which the company quantifies as 100%!) is totally incompatible with a Defined Benefit pension.
The email notice sent out to DB members today goes even further:
Fujitsu is very interested in pursuing and developing an alternative solution, if one can be found, which delivers the same risk and cost reduction as closing the Plan to future accrual.
If we want decent pensions we are going to have to fight for them!
Your Choices and AVCs
Please remember that the main election period for Pension Choices and AVCs closes on 24th July. The lack of the normal pension benefit statement prior to the election period has caused concern and confusion. As a result of UNITE and the IPMC raising this, the company is now allowing a limited second election period.
The company has now published "Benefit Statement and Pensions Choices FAQs" on the "FAQs and more information" section of the "Pension Change" CafeVIK community. You should read these so that you can decide whether to take any action, and if so what action to take. Questions 5-15 deal with the timescale and should be read together.
Solihull
On Tuesday UNITE held the first union meeting at Solihull for many years. The turnout was impressive, with both union members and non-members taking part.
Sarah Holden explained the background and the reasoning behind our current campaign and a lively discussion ensued.
The following motion was agreed:
We instruct our reps for the Midlands area to act on members' anger at the threatened close of accrual to the ICL Defined Benefit Scheme and continued erosion of pay and benefits by liaising with the national combine to organise members' local activities for the Pay and Pensions campaign.
A further lunchtime meeting will be scheduled in a month’s time - look out for details.
Staines
On Wednesday UNITE held a successful meeting in Staines, another site where this has not been a regular event. As well as STN02 residents, employees from other Thames Valley sites took part.
Wakefield
UNITE is planning a meeting in Wakefield:
12:30-1:30pm, Thursday 23rd July
WAK01 Hemsworth Room (this may be subject to change)
Crewe
The same day, UNITE will be having another meeting in Crewe, following up on the one on 1st July:
12.30-1:30pm, Thursday, 23rd July
Room CR 0-2 at CRE02.
ThomsonReuters
Two local meetings have already been held for members on the ThomsonReuters account in London, with two more planned.
When’s Yours?
With our “Enough Is Enough” campaign around pay and pensions gathering pace, it is important that you have the opportunity to meet up with your reps and other members to discuss the situation – wherever you are based.
UNITE is also in the process of organising meetings in Basingstoke, London and Newcastle.
If there’s not a meeting scheduled for your area, why not contact one of your local reps / contacts (see list below) to discuss setting one up?
If there’s no rep or contact where you are, why not volunteer?
Elections closed yesterday for the contested seats on our new “combine committee” which will lead and coordinate our pay and pensions campaign. Thanks to everyone who voted.
The following were elected:
| Constituency | Combine-21 members | Combine-7 members |
| London, South & East | David Seymour (HOM99) | Steven Warren (LDN04) Deputy: Leslie Mayar (LDN04) |
| Leslie Mayar (LDN04) | ||
| Steven Warren (LDN04) | ||
| Manchester Bargaining Unit | Jackie Cook (MAN33) | Lynne Hodge (MAN33) Ian Allinson (MAN34) |
| Lynne Hodge (MAN33) | ||
| Ian Allinson (MAN34) | ||
| Isabel Hay (MAN34) | ||
| Pauline Bradburn (MAN35) | ||
| VACANCY (HOM99) | ||
| Midlands | Alasdair Lewis (HOM99) | John Garvani (HOM99) Deputy: Alasdair Lewis (HOM99) |
| Vince Scott (SOL10) | ||
| Yorkshire & North-East | John Garvani (HOM99) | |
| Northern Ireland | Roger Dane (IRE11) | Roger Dane (IRE11) |
| Scotland | Alan Black (GLA18) | |
| Wales | Paul (DP) Lewis (SWN03) | |
| North-West | Alan Jenney (CRE02) | Alan Jenney (CRE02) Deputy: Robert (Wilf) Williams (CRE02) |
| Robert (Wilf) Williams (CRE02) | ||
| VACANCY (WAR) | ||
| Thames Valley and South-West | Finn Burns (STN02) | Finn Burns (STN02) |
| VACANCY (BRA) | ||
| VACANCY (HOM99) |
There were no candidates for four of the seats on the combine-21 committee – one for Warrington, one for HOM99 staff in the Manchester bargaining unit, one for Bracknell and one for HOM99 staff in Thames Valley and the South West. These seats remain empty for now. It would be beneficial for members if these seats were filled as quickly as possible. If you are from one of these areas and are willing to stand, please get in touch and we will re-run the process for your constituency. The combine committees will operate with vacant seats if necessary.
Timesheets
Employees in some areas have been receiving company notices about completion of timesheets. Members have raised concerns about threats such as:
“Fourth week default or continued ad-hoc failure will invoke the appropriate Fujitsu UK&I disciplinary process.”
Reps’ experience with similar “guidelines” on sickness absence suggests that some managers may misinterpret this instruction. The notice refers to a disciplinary process, not a disciplinary sanction. The first step in the company Conduct Guidelines is the investigation. The guidelines say “If, following preliminary investigations, it is not necessary to instigate formal disciplinary action, the matter will be closed”. Disciplinary procedures are required to be “corrective”, not “punitive”, and the manager must consider each case on its merits, not simply apply a sanction because a threshold has been reached. The company should not be imposing formal disciplinary sanctions where there are genuine reasons why timesheets were not submitted.
Attendance
Many employees had reacted angrily to the new “Attendance” policies which were introduced on 1st April without consultation. There was a widespread feeling that the approach treated employees as if we were skivers and “guilty until proven innocent”. It also seemed excessively bureaucratic. Other changes led some managers to try to force employees to make up time-off for medical appointments. UNITE complained strongly about the lack of consultation and the content of the new policies. This week UNITE reps, along with colleagues from the PCS union, took part in a workshop with HR to look at the policies. UNITE will keep members updated on progress.
Disability
Our newsletter on 19th June included some guidance on disability and maternity as a result of legal and policy changes.
A number of members have already used the model letter to request “reasonable adjustments” under the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA). Several members have received very similar replies, so it looks like HR have their own model letter. The response completely evades the requests, neither accepting them nor rejecting them. If you get this kind of response, you can reply seeking clarification as to whether this means they are accepting or rejecting your request.
Bonus
As usual at this time of year, reps are being contacted by members with concerns about bonus payments. In some cases bonuses have been wrongly stopped or reduced. In previous years, UNITE has had a good success record at getting bonuses reinstated. If you are unhappy with your bonus, it is important that you raise this with the company promptly. Seek advice from your local rep where appropriate.
It’s always a good idea to keep your membership records up to date, so that your union can communicate with you effectively. However, at the moment it is absolutely vital that you do so. Some employers use the anti-union laws to challenge ballots if even a few membership records are incorrect and your reps want to avoid Fujitsu having any grounds for doing so.
Thanks to members for the replies so far to the “UNITE: Membership check ***PLEASE RESPOND***” email sent out late on 3rd June or 10th July. If you haven’t done so yet, please do so as soon as possible. Not only will this ensure you get your vote correctly in any ballot and reduce the risk of Fujitsu taking your union to court – it will also allow your reps to spend time campaigning on pay and pensions rather than having to contact you individually to check your membership record.
It is vital that we keep membership records up to date throughout the period leading up to any ballot, during the ballot and throughout any industrial action – right up until we win.
In particular, for legal reasons, please ensure you let our membership secretary know:
1. Any change of home address
2. If you expect to be absent from work for a significant time (e.g. maternity leave, long-term sick, sabbatical) during the period when industrial action might take place (probably from September 2009)
3. If you expect to leave the company before or during the period when industrial action might take place (probably from September 2009)
Of course, it would also be useful if you let our membership secretary know about any other changes to your contact details.
If you know a few Fujitsu friends or colleagues who aren’t in the union yet but you think might be interested, why not pass this email on to them?
If you’re one of those friends or colleagues, and are interested in finding out more about UNITE in Fujitsu, you can leave your details here: http://www.ourunion.org.uk/interested
Of course if you want to get involved in the campaign, please join UNITE.
See here for a copy of the Unite leaflet for Fujitsu Technology Solutions (the former Fujitsu Siemens Computers).
Thanks to all the members who attended this morning’s Extraordinary General Meeting for members in the Manchester bargaining unit.
The meeting discussed the unfair “redundancy” dismissal of Malcolm ---- last week. As he is currently not employed, he had to attend the meeting as a visitor. Reps explained the gross unfairness of his situation and particularly the fact that he had been dismissed without the company fully hearing his grievance, which is a serious breach of our Recognition Agreement and Annex 1.
Malcolm has lodged an appeal against his redundancy dismissal, but no date has yet been set for a hearing. Reps had raised Malcolm’s case with Roger Gilbert and Ella Bennett when they visited the site on Thursday.
As well as securing a suitable settlement for Malcolm, it is important to discourage any further breach of agreements. Members agreed the following motion:
|
The “redundancy” dismissal of Malcolm ----- without first hearing his grievance represents a serious breach of our Recognition Agreement and Annex 1 in several respects: Recognition Agreement, section 9.5: Recognition Agreement, section 9.6: Annex 1, section 7: We note that when the company took the decision to dismiss Malcolm on Friday 3rd July, it knew this would be in breach of our agreements, having already dismissed and reinstated Malcolm once this year. We believe that the company’s treatment of Malcolm has been grossly unfair and reinforces the impression that the company does not take its promises to employees seriously. We call on the company to resolve the situation with Malcolm at his redundancy dismissal appeal. We instruct our reps to raise a collective grievance in relation to the breaches of our agreements. Given the level in the company at which the decision to breach our agreement was taken, the grievance should go straight to a stage 3 meeting with ACAS. We instruct our reps to report back to us on the progress of the grievance. We call on UNITE to support Malcolm in seeking legal remedy if necessary. |
The main part of the meeting was taken up with an update and discussion on the pay and pensions campaign.
This included:
- The change in the company’s proposed timescale for the pension consultation.
- Views on Roger Gilbert’s visit to Manchester the previous day.
- The inconsistencies between what the company is saying to justify the pay freeze and pension cuts and what is in the company’s newly-published financial report.
-A reminder to vote in the elections to the new “Combine Committee”
There was a vote of thanks to UNITE at Ineos Grangemouth. Their convenor (senior rep) had attended the Fujitsu reps’ weekend school and given a lot of support, advice and encouragement. They had also provided “Hands Off Our Pensions” t-shirts which some members had worn at the Roger Gilbert sessions. The t-shirts had been left over after the successful defence of their own pension scheme.
While our campaign is focused on winning on pay and pensions, many other company actions are feeding the general feeling that “Enough Is Enough!”. A number of employees have had their bonus reduced on highly dubious grounds. Nikki Aldridge is coordinating our work on this, so please contact her if you might be affected.
Under “Any Other Business”, reps highlighted the PCS campaign against job cuts to the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) helpline in Manchester, which supports employees facing discrimination at work. Members were encouraged to sign the petition on the number 10 web site. Many members also signed a paper petition that was circulated.
Reps also reported on the strike last week by UCU union members at Manchester College (which includes parts of the building next door to MAN33) last week against job cuts. The cuts targeted the UCU Branch Secretary, David Swanson. David’s union branch had supported us during our dispute in 2006-7. The college Principal, Peter Tavernor, has a track record of targeting trade unionists for redundancy. A collection in support of their campaign raised £70.
The company has confirmed that the pension consultation will not end before 25th September, instead of mid-August as they originally planned. See the note below which reps sent to ICL DB pension scheme members.
As a result of this UNITE has paused the process of our consultative ballot on industrial action over pay and pensions, so ballot papers will not be sent out on Monday as originally planned. Look out for further UNITE notices with the revised timescale.
The issues on pay and pensions remain, and our campaign must continue to gather strength. So far in 2009, UNITE membership in Fujitsu Services UK has increased by over 20% as more and more employees decide that Enough is Enough!
Please keep talking to your workmates about the issues, asking them to join, and taking part in the local UNITE meetings that are now happening around the country.
If we get organised and stick together we can win.
It’s always a good idea to keep your membership records up to date, so that your union can communicate with you effectively. However, at the moment it is absolutely vital that you do so. Some employers use the anti-union laws to challenge ballots if even a few membership records are incorrect and your reps want to avoid Fujitsu having any grounds for doing so.
Thanks to the members who have already replied to the “UNITE: Membership check ***PLEASE RESPOND***” email sent out late on 3rd June. If you haven’t done so yet, please do so as soon as possible. Not only will this ensure you get your vote correctly in any ballot and reduce the risk of Fujitsu taking your union to court – it will also allow your reps to spend time campaigning on pay and pensions rather than having to contact you individually to check your membership record.
It is vital that we keep membership records up to date throughout the period leading up to any ballot, during the ballot and throughout any industrial action – right up until we win.
In particular, for legal reasons, please ensure you let our membership secretary know:
- Any change of home address
- If you expect to be absent from work for a significant time (e.g. maternity leave, long-term sick, sabbatical) during the period when industrial action might take place (probably from September 2009)
- If you expect to leave the company before or during the period when industrial action might take place (probably from September 2009)
Of course, it would also be useful if you let our membership secretary know about any other changes to your contact details.
Crewe
Fujitsu Crewe had its biggest union meeting ever on 1st July, and there were more who sent apologies for being unable to attend.
Members discussed the pay and pensions campaign and the feedback was strong that members wanted to take action if that was necessary. Several members volunteered to help with the campaign. Members took away “UNITE for Fair Pay” lanyards.
Bob Anderson, Alan Jenney, Adrian Prince, Stephen Ryan and Robert (Wilf) Williams were elected as reps.
The following motion was agreed:
We instruct our reps for the Crewe area to act on members' anger at the threatened close of accrual to the ICL Defined Benefit Scheme and continued erosion of pay and benefits by liaising with the national combine to organise members' local activities for the Pay and Pensions campaign.
The meeting agreed to send a message of support to Malcolm Tetlow and his colleagues in Manchester who were planning to protest against an apparent company intention to dismiss Malcolm in breach of the agreements.
A further lunchtime meeting has been scheduled for Thursday, 23rd July at 12.30pm. It will be held in room CR 0-2 at CRE02.
Manchester
There will be an Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) for all UNITE members in the Manchester bargaining unit:
10:30-12:00, Friday 10th July
MAN35 canteen
The meeting will discuss latest developments in the pay and pensions campaign.
Despite members protesting, the company went ahead and dismissed Malcolm Tetlow on Friday, in breach of our Recognition Agreement and Annex 1. The meeting will decide how to respond.
Solihull
A lunchtime UNITE meeting is planned for 12:30-1:30pm, Tuesday 14th July in Room 217, SOL10.
Staines
A lunchtime UNITE meeting is planned for 12:30-1:30pm, Wednesday 15th July in Room G03, ground floor, STN02.
When’s Yours?
With our “Enough Is Enough” campaign around pay and pensions gathering pace, it is important that you have the opportunity to meet up with your reps and other members to discuss the situation – wherever you are based.
If there’s not a meeting scheduled for your area, why not contact one of your local reps / contacts (see list below) to discuss setting one up?
If there’s no rep or contact where you are, why not volunteer?
Consultative Ballot – 6 days to go!
Unless the situation changes, consultative ballot papers will be posted to the home addresses of all UK UNITE members in Fujitsu Services on Monday 13th July. Encouragingly, the PCS union has now announced its intention to hold an indicative ballot of its members in Fujitsu Services.
Your reps are urging every member to vote YES + YES and return your vote straight away when you receive your ballot papers.
| X | YES |
| X | YES |
Some questions and answers:
1) What will the ballot questions be?
The questions will be the same as the ones which will be legally required if we go ahead to a statutory ballot for industrial action: “Are you prepared to take part in strike action?” and “Are you prepared to take part in industrial action short of strike?”
2) Why is it important I vote YES + YES?
So far, the company has not responded to the strength of the arguments on pay and pensions, so we need to show that we are prepared to use the argument of our strength if necessary. Given the size of the issues we face (e.g. ICL DB members face the equivalent of a pay cut of around 20%), your reps don’t believe that the threat of action short of strike alone would be enough to win. Every YES + YES vote will send a strong message to the company that employees feel Enough Is Enough and that we are determined to stand up for our pay and pensions. The higher the vote the more likely the company is to back off.
3) I’m not in the ICL DB pension plan, does this affect me?
Yes. Firstly, we are campaigning on pay as well as pensions. Secondly, we are campaigning for improvements in pensions for those with worse provision. Thirdly, the company has revealed it has a strategy to exit other DB pension schemes. Fourthly, if the company gets away with cutting 20% off the package of 4000 employees by dismissing and re-employing them, who will be safe?
4) What are we trying to achieve?
Members have agreed the following goals:
Pay:
1. A fairer pay system
2. More money for employees
Pensions:
3. Defend the ICL DB pension scheme
4. Improve pension provision for those with something worse
5) There’s no union recognition where I work, does this affect me?
Yes. Members right across the UK are affected by the pay and pensions issues. Most UNITE members are in areas not yet covered by union recognition. The ballot, campaign and any action would cover the whole country. Any company offer would be voted on by members across the whole country.
6) How is a “consultative” ballot different?
Our consultative ballot will be conducted in a similar way to a real (statutory) industrial action ballot which has to comply with the anti-union laws. Ballot papers will be sent to members’ home addresses and will show the same questions as a statutory ballot. There are some differences though:
· UNITE will not call industrial action based on the “consultative ballot”, the union would hold a full statutory ballot first.
· Both the consultative ballot and any subsequent full statutory ballot will be secret. Nobody will know in which way an individual has voted. However the Consultative ballot will be counted by UNITE, a full Statutory ballot would be counted externally.
· The consultative ballot has the advantage over a full statutory ballot of providing a breakdown of support for action by locations, unlike a statutory ballot where results are only available nationally.
· The wording on the consultative ballot paper will differ slightly from any subsequent statutory ballot as the latter requires certain legal wording.
· For the consultative ballot the union is freed from the slow and complex process of notifying the company about various aspects of the ballot. Any subsequent statutory ballot will have to adhere to industrial action legislation. The consultative ballot can concentrate on gauging the level of support for industrial action.
7) If this isn’t a statutory ballot, why do I need to vote now?
Every YES + YES vote increases the pressure on the company to make an offer acceptable to you, making it less likely that members will have to go ahead with industrial action.
8) If there’s a YES + YES vote, what will happen?
UNITE will announce the result and use it to put pressure on the company to reach a settlement acceptable to members. If the consultative ballot shows support for action but the company still doesn’t come to its senses, UNITE could then progress to a statutory ballot.
Members approved a proposal to set up “combine committees” to lead and coordinate our pay and pensions campaign and members were asked to stand for the 21 seats.
At the deadline for candidates to come forward (Friday 3rd July), there were four seats for which no candidate had come forward – one for Warrington, one for HOM99 staff in the Manchester bargaining unit, one for Bracknell and one for HOM99 staff in Thames Valley and the South West. These seats remain empty for now. It would be beneficial for members if these seats were filled as quickly as possible. If you are from one of these areas and are willing to stand, please get in touch and we will re-run the process for your constituency. The combine committees will operate with vacant seats if necessary.
The original email included a list of all the candidates with their election statements.
In yesterday’s email newsletter to Manchester members we referred again to Malcolm ----’s case and asked employees to join a lunch-time protest today in support of Malcolm and against the company’s attack on the Manchester agreements.
Many thanks to the 40 or so employees who took part in today’s highly visible protest, and to our colleagues in Crewe, who sent a message of support which was read out to those protesting (and which was heard by the company’s Employee Relations manager!) This was greatly appreciated by Malcolm and by Terry Thompson, our full-time Unite Regional Officer who accompanied him to the meeting, and will have sent a strong message to the company representatives.
Your reps are very concerned that the company intends to dismiss or give notice of dismissal to Malcolm ----- on Friday (3rd July).
Dismissal would be grossly unfair. It would also represent serious breaches of the Manchester agreements.
Malcolm’s situation has been described in detail in recent notices, as have the breaches of the agreements. This is simply a reminder.
UNITE is asking employees to protest in their lunch-breaks at the start of the meeting where Malcolm is likely to be dismissed. Please assemble:
12:50pm, Friday 3rd July, MAN34 canteen
The protest will then move to 34GM1 in the West wing, where the meeting is due to take place.
Please come along and give Malcolm your support – it’s what you would need if you were in his position.
The Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) has now been confirmed.
Friday 10th July
10:30 – 12:00
MAN35 restaurant
It is open to all UNITE members in the Manchester bargaining unit.
The meeting will discuss the latest developments on pay and pensions, as well as how to respond to the breaches of our agreements if the company goes ahead with dismissing Malcolm ----.
All members are entitled to attend in work time, but if your manager might need to arrange cover, you should ask them as early as possible to confirm your release. If you experience any difficulties with release, please contact your rep in good time. Leaving it to the last minute will make it impossible for your reps to help you.
Crewe
This is a reminder to all UNITE members in the Crewe area about the meeting that was announced last week:
Date - Wednesday, 1st July (TODAY!)
Time - 12.30pm for 1 hour, prompt start
Location - The Duke of Gloucester
We will be electing reps, discussing the issues around pay and pensions, outlining the national campaign strategy and voting on a motion. We will be joined by Sarah Holden, the local UNITE organiser.
Do encourage others to come along, including interested non-members. The Duke of Gloucester pub is a short walk from the CRE02 site. It is adjacent to the A5020 University Way, close to the roundabout at Crewe Green where that road meets the A534 Crewe Road.
This meeting has been arranged by your current reps, who are:
Robert "Wilf" Williams (trained), Bob Anderson, Alan Jenney, Stephen Ryan and Adrian Prince.
Manchester
There will be an Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) for all UNITE members in the Manchester bargaining unit on Friday 10th July. The time and venue are to be confirmed.
The meeting will discuss latest developments in the pay and pensions campaign, and decide how to respond if the company has breached our Recognition Agreement and Annex 1 by dismissing Malcolm Tetlow.
Solihull
A UNITE meeting is planned for Tuesday 14th July. Further details will be sent to members in the Midlands region.
Staines
A UNITE meeting is planned for Wednesday 15th July. Further details will be sent to members in the Thames Valley and South-West region.
When’s Yours?
With our “Enough Is Enough” campaign around pay and pensions gathering pace, it is important that you have the opportunity to meet up with your reps and other members to discuss the situation – wherever you are based.
If there’s not a meeting scheduled for your area, why not contact one of your local reps / contacts (see list below) to discuss setting one up?
If there’s no rep or contact where you are, why not volunteer?
It’s always a good idea to keep your membership records up to date, so that your union can communicate with you effectively. However, at the moment it is absolutely vital that you do so. Some employers use the anti-union laws to challenge ballots if even a few membership records are incorrect and your reps want to avoid Fujitsu having any grounds for doing so.
Thanks to the members who have already replied to the “UNITE: Membership check ***PLEASE RESPOND***” email sent out late on 3rd June. If you haven’t done so yet, please do so as soon as possible. Not only will this ensure you get your vote correctly in any ballot and reduce the risk of Fujitsu taking your union to court – it will also allow your reps to spend time campaigning on pay and pensions rather than having to contact you individually to check your membership record.
It is vital that we keep membership records up to date throughout the period leading up to any ballot, during the ballot and throughout any industrial action – right up until we win.
In particular, for legal reasons, please ensure you let our membership secretary know:
Of course, it would also be useful if you let our membership secretary know about any other changes to your contact details.
In Fujitsu there are usually a few job losses going on, even when times are good. Contracts are won and lost, jobs and skills change. The company isn’t as good as it should be in anticipating job losses and putting in place the necessary training and support to successfully redeploy people. And of course employees don’t always want to move into the jobs that are available.
UNITE campaigns to ensure that employees have the best possible redundancy terms, not only because this cushions the blow if we are made redundant, but also because it gives the company an incentive not to make us redundant. When members’ jobs are at risk, UNITE helps them at an individual and collective level.
There are no large scale redundancies going on in Fujitsu Services at the moment. To keep it in proportion, UNITE estimates that well under 100 people left the company in May, and the number of actual redundancies was a small fraction of that.
Permanent headcount in the UK and Ireland has been fairly steady so far this year (down from 12,034 to 11,977) with the number of non-permanent staff up from its low point in February of 1,282 to 1,357.
As the pay & pensions campaign gathers momentum, it is likely that some anti-union elements will resort to scaremongering about dire company finances or job losses to undermine people’s confidence. This is common with many employers, and was the experience during the Fujitsu Manchester disputes in 2003 and in 2006-7, both of which ended successfully and without any of the scare stories coming true. If you hear rumours or scaremongering, please take them with a pinch of salt. Why not ask for some published facts to back up the story? Or check with your reps?
It is possible there will be some redundancies in the next few months, though it’s worth saying that the company has not said anything about this to UNITE or the UKCF. We will have around 700 employees from the former Fujitsu Siemens Consulting (now Fujitsu Technology Solutions) TUPE transferring into Fujitsu Services in August. Many companies try to cut jobs following a takeover, so it would not be surprising if Fujitsu tried to do this – irrespective of the economic situation or our pay and pensions campaign. It’s also possible that the company might continue its attempts to jack up profits at our expense by cutting jobs and trying to get those that remain to take on even more work. This would be an absolute scandal when many of us are already under great pressure of work and often doing unpaid overtime.
In several parts of the organisation, employees have reported recently being approached by managers about a “Compromise Agreement” (CA). A Compromise Agreement is a legal agreement that in Fujitsu typically involves you agreeing to leave the company, not take them to court and keep the details of the agreement secret, in exchange for the company giving you a sum of money.
At their best, CAs can be a way of resolving a problem to the satisfaction of an employee and the company. At their worst, they can be an under-the-table way for the company to get rid of someone on the cheap and without due process. A few top tips:
Members of the ICL DB pension scheme should by now have seen the correspondence last week between the company on the one hand, and the IPMC and UNITE reps on the Pensions Forum on the other.
While the company has rejected the request to withdraw its proposal and the 90-day “section 188” warning that it intends to dismiss and re-engage the 4000 pension scheme members, their note makes interesting reading. In contrast to so many company communications about issues of concern to employees, the letter is very carefully-worded and has clearly been given a lot of thought by people high up in the company. This alone is an encouraging sign that the company has been shaken out of the arrogant complacency that led them to put forward the original proposal without any real justification.
Reps then asked the company to extend the “consultation” period beyond the minimum 90-days so that the process can be more constructive. The company has refused this request at present. This appears to confirm the view that the company is trying to create what they call a “burning platform”. This is where they make doing nothing (staying on the platform) seem so unattractive that people see any alternative (jumping in the sea) as more and more attractive.
The company used the “burning platform” tactic during the loss of the NHS contract, threatening to make staff redundant as a way of putting pressure on BT and CFH to secure last-minute contract extensions. If this assessment is correct, the company will try to create increasing panic among employees as we approach the end of the 90-days (mid-August) and then as we approach the end of people’s notice periods (from mid-November). If the tactic worked, employees and their reps would increasingly panic, offering larger and larger concessions to the company in the hope of avoiding their original proposal. The way to counter this tactic is to stick together, keep calm and keep building up the campaign.
The new national leaflet for the pay and pensions campaign has begun to be distributed across the country. If it hasn’t yet gone out at your site please get in touch to help with distribution.
While the Sharing In Success (SiS) bonus scheme covering most employees has only paid out 2%, a lot of people are commenting on the relatively large bonuses the company is paying to many more senior staff. Does the company seriously imagine these staff are foolish enough to be distracted from pay and pensions by one-off bonuses?
Goals for the Campaign
Our last national email newsletter (24th June) reported that reps at the weekend school had agreed the following campaign aims:
· Pay:
1. A fairer pay system
2. More money for employees
· Pensions:
3. Defend the ICL DB pension scheme
4. Improve pension provision for those with something worse
It is really important for the campaign that we maintain unity between the 4000 in the ICL DB scheme and the rest of the workforce. Of course everyone has an interest in preventing the “dismiss and re-engage” forcing through big cuts in benefits for the 4000 – if the company gets away with it for this group, what’s to stop it doing the same for the rest? But the best way to achieve unity is to ensure that we all stand to gain directly from a successful outcome to our campaign. For this reason your reps are asking you to agree to make all four points “red lines” for any negotiations with the company. In other words, you would be instructing your reps not to recommend acceptance of any offer which did not cover all four points.
[NB: voting is now closed]
Elections
In order to run the campaign effectively, we need a democratic and accountable way to take decisions at national level. Members approved a proposal to set up a new “combine committee” structure and candidates were invited to come forward.
A number of members have already volunteered, but more are needed. The deadline for candidates is this Friday 3rd July. Please read the original notice for details and how to volunteer.
After the period for candidates to come forward has closed, elections will be organised.
Consultative Ballot
While the slight softening of the company tone on pensions is welcome, there has been no movement on pay and (as yet) no substantive movement on pensions either. It is important we keep the pressure building up to ensure a successful outcome.
UNITE will be conducting a “Consultative Ballot” of its members in Fujitsu Services to gauge the level of support for industrial action as part of our pay and pensions campaign.
The current expectation is that consultative ballot papers will be posted to members’ home addresses on Monday 13th July and that the ballot would close and votes counted on Thursday 30th July.
The consultative ballot gives your reps and the company an indication of the strength of feeling. No industrial action will be called without a further (statutory) ballot. We all hope that agreement can be reached without the need to take action, but your reps believe that a big “YES+YES” vote with a high turnout is essential if our campaign is going to be successful.
You’ve Got the Power
There have been a number of examples recently of UNITE members standing up against powerful employers and achieving success:
Each campaign is different and our own is different again, but these examples all show that where people stick together and stand up for themselves it is possible to win.
Fujitsu staff sometimes feel powerless compared to other groups of workers. But this is largely based on an illusion. The truth is that we provide critical services to a wide range of public and private sector organisations. Fujitsu boasts that we provide services that touch the lives of 99% of the UK population. If we didn’t keep those services running, it would quickly have a huge impact. Fujitsu staff have immense potential power.
But there is a big difference between potential power and actual power. For Fujitsu staff to have real power:
The work you do talking to your workmates about the campaign, recruiting them into the union, making sure you have union meetings in your area and campaigning for a big YES vote in the consultative ballot is vital to ensuring we have the power to win.