UNISON--is it worth joining as an NHS employee?

Coraline

I've recently come to learn of UNISON, a sort of general union for public sector workers.

From studying their website they say they offer all sorts of protections and legal advice.

To join it would cost about £200 a year.

Is anybody a member (or was) of this organisation and have any advice if it is worthwhile? Any success stories where you had to rely upon them, or any disappointments with them anybody would like to share?

Thank you in advance for any advice. To be specific my main concern is currently extremely overworked and underbanded in the NHS and not sure how to broach this subject with my employer as I am only 2 months into the role and afraid of repercussions. I do not work in a medical capacity but on the business side.

KME91

I've never been a member of unison, but I have been both a member and a rep for another public sector union. So of course I'm going to tell you that being a member of a union is a good idea. As a rep I helped a lot of individuals who were in trouble or unhappy at work, and provided a lot of support to people who were worried, stressed or just not coping at their work at the time. I know being a union member is not for everyone, so I'm not going to preach about it, all I'll say is that if you're a union member and you have a problem at work, you have someone on your side.

Why not find out who your local rep is and go and have a chat with them? They're just people, and they should be able to answer your questions. Or ask your colleagues, you might find that quite a lot of them are members.

Southend1

I would definitely recommend joining. I don't work in the NHS but became a member of UNISON several years ago when my department was undergoing reorganisation. As a result of the reorganisation I came under a new manager who was a nasty piece of work and bullied me to the point where I was so stressed I had to seek counselling. UNISON supported me throughout this difficult time, attending meetings with HR etc and advising me. Eventually they helped me agree with HR to be redeployed to another department. A colleague also experienced very similar issues and always says how grateful she was to be a member of UNISON. There are many other benefits of being a member e.g. Legal advice, discounts on insurance and other services, representation at work, welfare support, training etc etc. Although members pay their subs, don't forget that employees in unionised workplaces often have better pay and working conditions than those who aren't unionised.

Coraline

Southend1 wrote: »

I would definitely recommend joining. I don't work in the NHS but became a member of UNISON several years ago when my department was undergoing reorganisation. As a result of the reorganisation I came under a new manager who was a nasty piece of work and bullied me to the point where I was so stressed I had to seek counselling.

Southend, this is the exact situation I am in. I swear, I thought I actually wrote what you did at first glance. I've been referred to mental health services because I'm having trouble coping. Obviously, I'm keeping all of this outside of the office and not letting on.

I've worked a long time in many different environments but nothing quite like this. It's complicated because it should sort out in a couple months when we get more staff, but it's not a case that I can just up and quit--my family relies on me and I'm subject to immigration control so I need to be (and of course want to be!) self sufficient when it comes time to apply for permanent residency.


(ETA: I'm a newbie on the NHS as a result of the restructuring--it's utter chaos in my workplace)

Coraline

KME91 wrote: »

Why not find out who your local rep is and go and have a chat with them? They're just people, and they should be able to answer your questions. Or ask your colleagues, you might find that quite a lot of them are members.

Thank you for the advice--I will call them and chat with them Monday.

The thing about asking colleagues is I've found in this office culture gossip is more important than actually getting work done. I do not want the word spread about that I'm looking to join a union. Maybe I'm getting paranoid from the stress but you know what I mean.

It is a large mix of old-time NHS employees, previous public sector employees, and new people brought in from a variety of corporate environments.

Southend1

Coraline wrote: »

Southend, this is the exact situation I am in. I swear, I thought I actually wrote what you did at first glance. I've been referred to mental health services because I'm having trouble coping. Obviously, I'm keeping all of this outside of the office and not letting on.

I've worked a long time in many different environments but nothing quite like this. It's complicated because it should sort out in a couple months when we get more staff, but it's not a case that I can just up and quit--my family relies on me and I'm subject to immigration control so I need to be (and of course want to be!) self sufficient when it comes time to apply for permanent residency.


(ETA: I'm a newbie on the NHS as a result of the restructuring--it's utter chaos in my workplace)

Good luck, I hope everything works out for you in the end. Look for some light at the end of the tunnel and focus on that.

Southend1

Coraline wrote: »

Thank you for the advice--I will call them and chat with them Monday.

The thing about asking colleagues is I've found in this office culture gossip is more important than actually getting work done. I do not want the word spread about that I'm looking to join a union. Maybe I'm getting paranoid from the stress but you know what I mean.

It is a large mix of old-time NHS employees, previous public sector employees, and new people brought in from a variety of corporate environments.

You don't have to tell your colleagues that you're joining or thinking of joining a union. In fact you can join UNISON via their website. You can also have a chat with your workplace rep but ask him/her to keep it confidential.

Coraline

Southend1 wrote: »

You can also have a chat with your workplace rep but ask him/her to keep it confidential.

What's a workplace rep? We don't have one that I know of..certainly not in my office. Maybe there is one in the building I work in (lots of different agencies sharing one building but nobody in charge of the whole place...kind of like the planet if you want to get metaphysical about it )

usefulmale

When the nasty party is in power, it ALWAYS pays to join a union if you are in the public sector.

Coraline

Update: As of 10 minutes ago I'm a member.

Thank you all for the advice, much appreciated.

Savvy_Sue

Coraline wrote: »

What's a workplace rep? We don't have one that I know of..certainly not in my office. Maybe there is one in the building I work in (lots of different agencies sharing one building but nobody in charge of the whole place...kind of like the planet if you want to get metaphysical about it )

For anyone else wondering this, you could also phone the union's regional office and ask who the local rep(s) is (are).

As for the cost, it's earnings related and monthly paid, so not like an annual sub leaving your account.