Dear GMB Member
GMB Scotland in Education Update
GMB Scotland has issued a letter to the Scottish Government calling for the priority vaccinations of all school support staff across Scotland. We have been consistent, that if the Scottish Government want to return children and young people, this can be done with a priority vaccination programme that ensures your safety and provides a clear pathway to recover, for the education sector across the country.
The Scottish Government will make its final decision today, about the possibility of schools returning next week, on a phased basis as already communicated. The Scottish Government have issued new guidance to all local authorities, for this phased return period which makes it clear that your employers should be engaging more with trade unions about workplace issues. Therefore, any issues should be addressed with your line manager in the first instance.
This is a worrying time for all support staff, but remember that your health and safety is paramount, for the safe operation of a COVID secure workplace. So, you need to have the confidence and ability to address any local issues at school level, to ensure that your safety is not being compromised. GMB Scotland members should not be timid about raising collective grievances around key health and safety failures within the workplace. If you have any difficulty in addressing workplace issues or concerns, please don’t hesitate to contact your local branch for more further assistance.
GMB Scotland is the union for school support staff, but we need more members to join and support our campaigning activities across the country. We are the union of cleaners, clerical and catering staff, janitors, early years, and pupil support assistants. So please remember to get your colleagues to sign up today to ensure that we have one united voice for school support staff across Scotland – https://bit.ly/3b9K09c
Share this communication with everyone you work with, we need everyone in your school to back our demands on vaccinations and safer workplaces.
Kind regards
Stephen Massey
GMB Scotland – Schools Support Team
Posted: 25th February 2021