Composite N (Covering Motions 78 & 79)
Fair Work
‘‘That this Congress believes that there are enormous potential benefits from making Scotland a Fair Work nation by 2025 and notes the Scottish government stated desire to make this a reality. Congress is also sadly aware that there are employers that do not share this vision of the benefits gained in abiding by fair work principles.
‘‘Congress welcomes that “Fair Work” obliges any employers in Scotland who are in receipt of public money to pay their staff at least the real living wage, engage with and listen to their employees and their representatives, promote fairness and mutual respect in the workplace and invest in workforce development, all in effort to foster good relations between employees and their employers.
‘‘However, this outcome is not yet achieved in community pharmacy where the Scottish Government have allowed the employers’ organisation Community Pharmacy Scotland to veto tripartite structures.
‘‘Congress is concerned that Scottish figures from the recent Safer Pharmacies survey show that in community pharmacy:
- 96% of respondents did not feel they had adequate rest breaks.
- 97% of respondents reported they did not always have safe levels of staffing – with 45% of respondents stating their staffing levels were more often unsafe than safe.
- 90% state they regularly have to work very intensively and 99% report having felt like they have been required to do more work than is possible in their day.
- Just one in five respondents felt they would always be able to raise their concerns to their employer.
‘‘Congress believes that in line with Fair Work principles the Scottish government must require employers to engage with the representatives of community pharmacies workforce and calls upon the Cabinet Secretary for NHS Recovery, Health, and Social Care to ensure this sector meets the Fair Work requirements without further delay.
“Further Congress notes that, at present, Scottish Government funding streams for third sector organisations like Citizens Advice Bureau are usually renewed on an annual or 2 yearly basis. This means that these workers have job insecurity, cannot get mortgages and see little point in joining trade unions.
‘‘For young workers, this means that many are obliged to be constantly on the lookout for more secure work.
“Congress resolves to campaign for permanent contracts for Citizen Advice Bureau workers and those in other third sector organisations working on Scottish Government financed projects and for pay parity with equivalent workers directly employed by the Scottish Government.’’
Mover: Pharmacists’ Defence Association
Seconder: Dumfries & Galloway Trades Union Council
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