Scotland's Learning and Organising Committee's seminar this weekend generated new ideas for engaging activists and bringing them together in an 'Organising and Campaigning Festival' weekend comprising short and linked modules on trade union history, political education, campaigning, media, new media and organising. They will jointly work with Communications and Campaigns colleagues and tap into the huge range of skills and knowledge from lay and full time officers across the Region.
Giving activists the tools for the job is a key part of organising. "We don't need to re-invent the wheel", said Scotland L&O chair Jim Burnett. "Across the union people are coming up with fantastic work. We need to learn from that, pull the resources together and find new ways of involving activists and members". The event will include excerpts from inspirational speeches by great figures like Jimmy Reid.
Edinburgh City Branch is an example. Pulling together ideas from work done by East Midlands on the budget, the STUC campaign, special Scottish Committee and Communications Committee events, along with work from the branch's local activists, it had a successful branch committee event using an organising pack and powerpoint. This is now being used by stewards at local meetings, building towards a major activists' organising event next month. See the pack here http://www.unison-edinburgh.org.uk/publicworks/organising/index.html
Other branches including Aberdeenshire, South Lanarkshire, are running 'there is an alternative' initiatives. Glasgow branch held its latest ‘Defend Glasgow Services’ public meeting with speakers from Strathclyde FBU, Glasgow UNISON Health and PCS Scotland and the Scottish Pensioners Forum.
In Northern Region, local Public Service Alliance coalitions are now organising that in their workplaces and communities, building alliances on a local level to promote an alternative positive agenda, and to build for a massive regional event for the ETUC Day of Action on 29 September.
All UNISON branches in North West region are being urged to make members and the public aware of the alternative to cuts in public services.
Northern Ireland's special 'De-bunking The Myths' e- newsletter arms members and workers in the sector with the facts to debunk the myths being peddled by those who wish to introduce slash and burn economics to the public sector http://www.unison.org.uk/northernireland/pages_view.asp?did=11752
And of course the National Leadership School saw lay activists and staff from the regions and HQ came together to meet the huge challenges and major threats to working people and the poorest in society from the political ideology of the ConDem Government.