Below are the Summary Minutes of the GMB Northants Branch Meeting that took place on the 27th September 2017 in Corby, Northants
Download a PDF version of the September Summary Minutes here
Download a PDF version of the September Summary Minutes here
GMB Northants Community Branch
Secretary: Gordon Glassford, Corby, Northants, NN17 2LL
Phone: 07792208229
Email: gordonglassford@gmbnorthants.org
www.gmbnorthants.org
Summary of the branch meeting held on 27.09.17
The minutes of the last meeting were agreed to be a true record.
Matters Arising from the last Meeting
It looks as if the Kier contract will now go back in house. Services will be shared with Kettering borough council. We don’t know any details yet and won’t be able to start consultation until next year. There is still no rep in place, we are hopeful we will have someone soon.
Corby Urgent Care Centre has had a stay of execution for another year. The donation the branch had offered to the campaign to keep the centre open hadn’t been taken up.
Correspondence: It was agreed to make a donation to the Freedom From Torture charity which helps those who have suffered from torture to recover and the Nicodemus Trust which helps young people in need in Banbury and Guatemala. We also agreed to make a donation to the International Brigade Memorial Trust to erect a stone in Leicester to commemorate those who gave their lives fighting fascism in the Spanish Civil War.
Secretary’s Report:
Regional GMB had decided to support Beth Miller as prospective Parliamentary candidate for Corby and East Northants constituency. Although Beth has already stood as the labour party candidate at the last election, when the candidate had to be chosen quickly due to time constraints, we know nothing about her views. It was agreed that Beth should be invited to a future meeting.
The secretary feels that the labour party is now well placed to form the next government and that Jeremy Corbyn is being looked on by more people as a potential future Prime Minister. A lot can still go wrong but things are looking good at the moment.
A member in Corby has received a substantial amount in compensation for an industrial injury. The secretary has emailed her to see if we can use her details for publicity on the website but she hasn’t replied. If she doesn’t agree then we can use the bare details but it would be better if we could ‘name names’. He will try and contact her again.
Financial Report: There is a healthy amount in the current account and in the GMB Credit Union. It was suggested that, as the credit union account attracts a dividend, we should transfer some money over from the current account. The secretary said that he is looking into ways of making more regular charitable donations. When he has done that we will have a better idea of our incomings and outgoings so we can manage the accounts better.
Social Media: Adrian reported that the September newsletter had been sent to 1217 members with 272 opens. The website viewings remain stable and the website has been updated with info supplied by region. The secretary doesn’t understand social media but will take Adrian’s word for it that it is all going well. The secretary said he is having problems with the gmbnorthants email address. Adrian will look into it. He suggested that we send a questionnaire to members to find out their views on the website etc and also on the way the branch communicates with its members. The secretary is going on an activists weekend in October and will meet with Adrian after that.
Workplace Reports:
Matalan: David said that there is a recruitment drive going on at the moment aimed mainly at agency workers. The company has hinted that it might sign up to the TUC’s ‘Dying to Work’ campaign.
Accuma: There is to be a meeting with management soon. Accuma are clearly not paying the minimum wage.
Trade Unions have been called to an emergency meeting with the Northants County Council chief executive tomorrow (the 28th Sept). Rachelle is very worried that there will be even more cuts. This will have an adverse impact not only on our members but also on the less well off in the county, not that the tories worry about that too much but after years of doing the governments bidding and making cut after cut they have realised that they desperately need more government cash. There is to be a rally in Northampton on October 21st at which Rachelle will be one of the speakers.
Matters Arising from the last Meeting
It looks as if the Kier contract will now go back in house. Services will be shared with Kettering borough council. We don’t know any details yet and won’t be able to start consultation until next year. There is still no rep in place, we are hopeful we will have someone soon.
Corby Urgent Care Centre has had a stay of execution for another year. The donation the branch had offered to the campaign to keep the centre open hadn’t been taken up.
Correspondence: It was agreed to make a donation to the Freedom From Torture charity which helps those who have suffered from torture to recover and the Nicodemus Trust which helps young people in need in Banbury and Guatemala. We also agreed to make a donation to the International Brigade Memorial Trust to erect a stone in Leicester to commemorate those who gave their lives fighting fascism in the Spanish Civil War.
Secretary’s Report:
Regional GMB had decided to support Beth Miller as prospective Parliamentary candidate for Corby and East Northants constituency. Although Beth has already stood as the labour party candidate at the last election, when the candidate had to be chosen quickly due to time constraints, we know nothing about her views. It was agreed that Beth should be invited to a future meeting.
The secretary feels that the labour party is now well placed to form the next government and that Jeremy Corbyn is being looked on by more people as a potential future Prime Minister. A lot can still go wrong but things are looking good at the moment.
A member in Corby has received a substantial amount in compensation for an industrial injury. The secretary has emailed her to see if we can use her details for publicity on the website but she hasn’t replied. If she doesn’t agree then we can use the bare details but it would be better if we could ‘name names’. He will try and contact her again.
Financial Report: There is a healthy amount in the current account and in the GMB Credit Union. It was suggested that, as the credit union account attracts a dividend, we should transfer some money over from the current account. The secretary said that he is looking into ways of making more regular charitable donations. When he has done that we will have a better idea of our incomings and outgoings so we can manage the accounts better.
Social Media: Adrian reported that the September newsletter had been sent to 1217 members with 272 opens. The website viewings remain stable and the website has been updated with info supplied by region. The secretary doesn’t understand social media but will take Adrian’s word for it that it is all going well. The secretary said he is having problems with the gmbnorthants email address. Adrian will look into it. He suggested that we send a questionnaire to members to find out their views on the website etc and also on the way the branch communicates with its members. The secretary is going on an activists weekend in October and will meet with Adrian after that.
Workplace Reports:
Matalan: David said that there is a recruitment drive going on at the moment aimed mainly at agency workers. The company has hinted that it might sign up to the TUC’s ‘Dying to Work’ campaign.
Accuma: There is to be a meeting with management soon. Accuma are clearly not paying the minimum wage.
Trade Unions have been called to an emergency meeting with the Northants County Council chief executive tomorrow (the 28th Sept). Rachelle is very worried that there will be even more cuts. This will have an adverse impact not only on our members but also on the less well off in the county, not that the tories worry about that too much but after years of doing the governments bidding and making cut after cut they have realised that they desperately need more government cash. There is to be a rally in Northampton on October 21st at which Rachelle will be one of the speakers.
| summary_minutes_270917.pdf |
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