The Cabinet Member for Organisation & Workforce is scheduled to consider a report on increasing Trade Union facility time. The meeting will also address the signing of the decision record from a previous meeting.

Social Partnership and Trade Union Facility Time

A report is scheduled to be presented concerning an increase in Trade Union facility time. The purpose of this proposed increase is to support Social Partnership with our Trade Unions. The report outlines that the current allocation of facility time, last reviewed in 2020, provides each Trade Union with 2 days of corporate facility time per week, with additional days allocated based on branch membership. This currently results in UNISON receiving 8 days, GMB 4 days, and UNITE 3 days, totalling 15 days.

The proposed recommendation is to increase the facility time for each Trade Union to ensure that their respective Branch Secretaries have 5 full-time equivalent (FTE) facility time days available, aiming for parity. This would mean UNISON's allocation increasing from 8 to 13 days, GMB from 4 to 6 days, and UNITE from 3 to 5 days. The report states that this increase is to meet the legislative expectations of the Social Partnership agenda, ensuring robust collaboration between unions and local government, and enabling union representatives to effectively support their members and contribute to strategic decision-making.

The report notes that the Trade Unions are concerned that the existing facility time is insufficient to meet the expectations of working in social partnership at a strategic level and to respond to an increasing demand from members for advice and support on workplace issues. The financial implication of this proposal is an increase of £68,000, including on-costs, to be met from the Chief Executive's department.

Decision Record of Previous Meeting

The meeting is scheduled to address the signing of the decision record from the meeting held on 29 October 2026.