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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to say if you work, please join a union

179 replies

frankie80 · 17/02/2020 17:59

I have been off work for a year due to bullying, discrimination etc that caused me to have a breakdown and feel suicidal.

I went to my workplace rep who was nice and sympathetic but quickly realised she was out of her depth who passed me to the regional equality rep who has been absolutely amazing.

Thanks to my union, I have had:

  1. my grievance and appeal letters written for me and damn, they are good. my work have struggled to wriggle out of what they have done
2, representation at all formal meetings from senior union officials 3, full pay for 12 months negotiated by my union 4, no annual leave taken off me even when I took (pre booked) holidays so I have had 40 days carried over into this year on top of this years entitlement 5, no bullshit. My union have been 100% honest about my case, whats strong, what's not strong 6, downgrading a disciplinary to a first written warning when it was looking like dismissal and pointing out to my employer that I am now adding victimisation to my case 7, introducing me to people who have had similar experiences for support network 8, got my employer to pay for specialised counselling (not the employee assistance programme) 9, got policy changes agreed in my workplace 10, got reasonable adjustments in place for me, including ones I hadn't considered 11, put an employment tribunal claim in for me 12, negotiated a positive reference for when I ever decide to leave 13, negotiated additional responsibilities etc for me at work in light of not being promoted due to my protected characteristics 14, putting me through union representative training so I can help colleagues 15, pushed for my line managers to be disciplined, if not fired, ensured their behaviour was not swept under the carpet 16, just sat and listened to me, let me cry and cry 17, answered emails and text messages at weekends and evenings. 18, sent me a very nice email saying how qualified, experienced and capable I am, not to mention strong and resilient and that they weren't just saying that because it was their job but that they were genuinely impressed with me.

I know so many people who are not in unions who got shafted by my employer. I was in a union since the age of 16 when I worked part time in a shop, now I'm full time in the public sector. My parents always insisted I join one and I thank them for that. I've only needed my union twice in my career but this occasion has been the biggie.

So although I've been a member for 17 years, I knew that didn't mean I was paying for nothing. You never know when union membership might be needed.

My union is Unison and I am so grateful to them because I really do not know how I would have coped this year without them. I do not have legal cover or anything like that I could have used instead. I did try going to HR at first but they were utterly incompetent and downright nasty - another thing that will feature in the tribunal claim. I am HR qualified btw so I'm not the typical HR hating employee.

So if you are in employment, please join a union, you don't know when you might need one. Yes there are workplace reps who are not very good (I've had some myself!) but always push for the regional rep if you aren't happy. I'd always rather be in a union than out of one.

Also don't make the assumption that if you are in a union then everything will go your way. If you steal something they are not going to pat you on the head, give you false hope and stop you from getting fired. They will, however, advise you of your options.

Anyway, if you join a union, make it Unison. They aren't just for the public sector.

OP posts:
Elouera · 17/02/2020 19:18

I was actually given brochures from unison last week. I'm already currently with a different union. The unison leaflet made it clear that for certain sectors, you need your own indemnity insurance IN ADDITION to paying them for their 'support'. I was amazed at this, because surely that is what you are paying them for? My current union helped when I was made redundant years ago, covers indemnity and have been great. Union membership in some cases is a requirement to be self-employed, but really depends on the job role. I'm glad they were good for you, but I personally wouldn't want to pay twice for a union!!!

indianbackground · 17/02/2020 19:31

I was in union when in public sector. I’m in small third sector organisation. I’ve no idea if anyone is in a union and not going to ask. Is it worth joining a union if what I want is legal advice/help with letters rather than anyone to come in with me to meetings?

I don’t have the option of extra legal expenses cover with my current insurance.

leghairdontcare · 17/02/2020 19:33

My perspective of being a former unison rep:

The more people at your workplace who are in the same union, the better.

When people are unhappy with their union it's usually because they have either

a) advised the Union of the problem too late to effectively fix it
Or
b) have unrealistic expectations of what can be achieved.

The latter is because many people don't realise how much employee rights have been eroded over the last 10 years. A lot of treatment that employees consider to be unfair are now perfectly legal.

A lot of people only see the individual things and not the collective action. I negotiated the best payrise our sector had seen for 8 years and I still had people tell me that the Union never does anything for them.

Finally, if your union rep is doing a bad job please step up and try to do better.

HoneyCupcake · 17/02/2020 19:36

I was originally in our union. It costs about £11 a month so i decided to not do it anymore.

Although, I do work for a big company that is well known for being fair. It has a big HR and I’d like to think I’d be treated fairly.

Your post has made me reconsider joining again though, I do have a job that opens myself up to risk and maybe I need to protect myself a bit more.

ivykaty44 · 17/02/2020 19:36

A Union is only as strong as it members

Dyrne · 17/02/2020 19:38

I always hear how good unions are, how important it is to be a member etc. Unfortunately the union reps where I work are useless so I’m not going to waste my money 🤷‍♀️

NotYourTypicalNerd · 17/02/2020 19:38

@SouthernComforts Interested to know the answer to that too!

Abouttoblow · 17/02/2020 19:39

I've been in a union since I started working many years ago. I raised a question with them recently and received an email from a national rep calling me a TERF. Not all unions are great.

PinkiOcelot · 17/02/2020 19:40

I’m really glad the union came up trumps for you. However, for me it was a totally different story.
Going through review at work and felt I had been unfairly treated so put in a grievance. Union were absolutely crap and there was no one available to even attend the grievance meeting with me. I went with one of my colleagues. Needless to say, I lost. Cancelled my subscription that day. Terrible.

SideHustle · 17/02/2020 19:40

I'm also a member of Unison. I think it feels relatively expensive, but I appreciate the peace of mind that it gives me.

Lazypuppy · 17/02/2020 19:41

YABU Our unions have just rejected an amazing 3 year pay deal without balloting their members. No point in joining as not even given a chance to vote

BrassicaBabe · 17/02/2020 19:42

I'm afraid the union reps I've met have always been about what they could get out of the employer. It was always a "take" relationship. Never a "give/take" relationship. I have zero respect for that mindset. However I have needed union support. Opted for paid legal support instead.

Kinneddar · 17/02/2020 19:42

Be a cold day in hell before I rejoin UNISON
Our rep is totally self serving. Does what suits her not what the majority want. Unison have been told what shes like and why people are leaving but clearly couldn't care less

Yurona · 17/02/2020 19:43

See, my experience is the complete opposite of yours. Company went through major redundancies recently - results for union members and not union member were exactly the same. Only the union members got great promises from their unions that never materialised.
Bullying etc (big organisation, its a massive problem): non union member goes to HR, asks and gets redundancy package. Union member gets encouraged to put up a massive fight, loads of stress, same redundancy package, but a complete breakdown on top.
If you work for a small employer it might be worth it, for the big ones its worth nothing at all.

Notso · 17/02/2020 19:43

My family member did not have a similar experience with their union. They couldn't have been less helpful if they tried.

ChanklyBore · 17/02/2020 19:46

I work.

There is no union I can join.

ivykaty44 · 17/02/2020 19:50

No union you can join? Why have they refused you?

ivykaty44 · 17/02/2020 19:52

So with all the experiences of bad union reps, why haven’t those complaining stepped up to do the job?

MT2017 · 17/02/2020 19:52

My union listened well but didn't DO much - but in my area of work (education) I now wouldn't be without it.

Dyrne · 17/02/2020 20:04

ivykaty44 At my work, at least, the union reps aren’t the sort that are doing the best they can with the limited time they have. It’s a horrible clique who just want to look out for their mates and who don’t want to actually bother with anything that’s remotely difficult...

Yellredder · 17/02/2020 20:04

Had similarly positive experiences with my union whilst working in education. Never ever thought I'd need their help, but wrongdoing towards me by a principal and a colleague meant I badly needed their assistance - I also had regional help: invaluable. They have also been amazing with support when I was made redundant, but they weren't much use in my current job when our contracts were changed. Although, to be fair, I think the employer is now suffering the consequences of said change.

JosefKeller · 17/02/2020 20:04

no annual leave taken off me even when I took (pre booked) holidays so I have had 40 days carried over into this year on top of this years entitlement

how does THAT work then Confused

Mintjulia · 17/02/2020 20:10

Trouble is there are no standards in union representation. How do you avoid the sexist or lazy or incompetent reps.

I rely on family legal insurance.

alltoomuchrightnow · 17/02/2020 20:18

I am thinking about this. I've never been in a union and several times could have done with that support...
Can I ask why, if people DO have an HR department, they join a union? (I've not always had HR)
Is is because..HR are not helpful? Biased? It's too 'close to home' etc?

alltoomuchrightnow · 17/02/2020 20:20

BTW yes have read OP's whole post and her experience with HR...are most people's similar? I once had an issue where my boss was bullying and she was also the only HR we had...so my situation was impossible and I had to leave..
I work in retail and know there is a union just for that