After the best ever ballot result, 73.11% turnout and 100% YES vote for strike, Camden traffic wardens started on Monday 24 July, an indefinite (also known as continuous) strike action. Everyone attended their base picket line since (including many who were meant to be on a rest day), sending a really clear message to NSL that we’re organised and determined and can win!

Picket lines, rallies, lobbying the Council and the strike meetings have been well attended and a resounding success with everyone coming together, reporting how their picket lines were successful and discussion followed.

Many message of support from colleagues, other trade unions and the public have been received. UNISON published a press release and information has been sent to other UNISON branches in London.

A great article about the strike has been published in this the Camden New Journal, and they will continue to report the dispute.

We are continuously producing leaflets, badges and stickers that have been given out to members of the public about the strike, and distributed to other trade union branches asking for shows of solidarity.

A delegation from Tower Hamlet UNISON visited your picket lines already and two young traffic wardens members have attended their branch meeting explaining the reasons behind the strike.

Tower Hamlet Unison has promised a contribution to the strike fund and other will follow from other trade unions as the dispute is publicised.

So make sure you continue to attend your picket line– and let’s be loud and proud!!!!

Camden UNISON

unison@camden.gov.uk

Tel: 020 7974 1633
Email: unison@camden.gov.uk
Web: http://www.camdenunison.org.uk

Camden UNISON Branch Office
3rd Floor Crowndale Centre
218-220 Eversholt Street
London
NW1 1BD

We haven’t been able to email members with the result of our national pay ballot because of IT problems, so we decided to post the results for our branch here.

Our main ballot of Camden employees including the community schools was a turnout of 42.19% with a YES vote of 84.64%.

So very mixed feeling – obviously, it’s gutting that we didn’t quite make it over 50%. Lots of you in the branch and who come to our meetings regularly put in loads of work – so for instance based on our own info, we had turnouts over 80% in DDS and Housing Officers (big up the reps there!). We also had some fantastic turnouts in schools, again over 80% in some.

Our weakness was the areas where we don’t have reps/people we could ask to be ballot rep and chase up their team – so we know what to work on next time. The phoning definitely made a difference and members seemed to like a call from the branch, which will also help in the future. One important action out of this is that we spend time over the summer/autumn making contacts in those areas so we have more organisation.

We are one of the branches with quite a lot of ‘NJC’ members, and so our result really is a testament to the work of reps and pay campaigners – and you can tell the strength of feeling by the huge YES vote for strike action!

We haven’t yet got the results of our non-Camden schools, I think it’s likely that we will have got over 50% in some of those, but let’s see, and we need to look how many members we have in each of them etc.

In the midst of being frustrated that we got so close, there are a couple of important positives. In the last month alone, over 60 people have joined the branch, and hopefully having joined whilst we’re campaigning about action over pay will be up for getting involved. Some of the new members are in the areas where we aren’t so well organised, so will make a difference there. Also, this is the best result we’ve had certainly for about 20 years (of course the 50% turnout wasn’t relevant for most of that time) and almost double what we got in the last official ballot, so is definitely something we can build on. And it’s a good enough turnout, and YES vote, that management will see we aren’t a pushover – if there were to be a local issue, we could get over 50%, and they’ll recognise that too.

UNISON is now waiting for the outcome of the Unite Local Government pay ballot before announcing next steps.

So all in all, we should of course be gutted that we haven’t got over 50%, but also should be very proud of how close we came and the work we’ve done. We can have a good discussion our meetings about how we can build on it. And don’t forget our traffic wardens! More details about their dispute coming soon.

It needs to be in a post box by the end of the week to get to it’s destination by 10am on Tuesday 4 July!

Last year, Chris Smalls was part of a group of workers who took on Amazon and won the right to have a union at the Staten Island centre. They started the Amazon Labor Union (ALO) and since then have been campaigning for recognition across the US, and supporting Amazon workers globally in their fight for union rights. Earlier this year, he met with Amazon strikers at Coventry, where they have recruited hundreds to the union and been taking strike action for decent pay.

During the pandemic, Chris led a walkout about the conditions they were expected to work in. He was dismissed the next day, but along with workmates, he spent the next two years organising the union. Amazon even had them arrested when they brought leaflets and other union material to hand out in the car park.

Jeff Bezos, the Amazon boss, is the third richest man in the world, and he spent millions of dollars trying to stop Chris and his workmates. But they still lost!

Come along to the meeting (in person) to hear the story of how workers beat Jeff Bezos — and be inspired to take on our bosses too!

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