Union members protest against budget and job cuts back in December 2010.
Update @ 1.55pm on May 11
Unison staff at Lincolnshire County Council have voted against a strike, but they will still take industrial action against their bosses.
Over 68% of members balloted voted to “work to rule”, with 35.3% voting to strike.
John Sharman, Unison Branch Secretary for Lincolnshire, said: “This result comes as no surprise. Unison members have made it clear throughout that they will not take the cuts lying down. The work to rule will be a massive managerial headache for the County Council.
“Our members will stop working unpaid overtime, stop taking on additional responsibilities above their paid duties, and insist on proper rest breaks. The council relies on the good will of its staff – this vote says that goodwill has been lost.”
Over 800 trade union members are currently working to rule in Adult Social Care in the county. Today’s result means that they will be joined by colleagues in all parts of the council, including Children’s Services where over 500 people are being made redundant.
Sharman continued: “The fact that over a third of voters do want to strike sends out a clear message for the future. Lincolnshire simply does not have a history of local strikes, so although we haven’t got a majority this time, a marker has been set down. Not only does the County Council face industrial action now, it has to expect an escalation in times to come.”
Original @ 11.02am on May 11
Lincolnshire County Council staff are being balloted over strike action, after redundancy talks between the council and unions broke down on Monday night.
Discussions were facilitated by the dispute resolution service ACAS. The council did not uphold the unions’ dispute.
Unison is currently balloting its 2,500 members on strike action.
A joint statement from Unison secretaries John Sharman and David Forbes said: “Representatives of the three unions involved were disappointed that the council refused to budge from the position it has held since its budget proposals were first published.
“Even aside from the national argument that the government’s attack on public services is unjustified, the council has refused to alter its stance that its own staff must take a disproportionate hit at the start of the four-year budget cycle.
“The trade unions remain convinced that the scale of planned redundancies is not necessary, that information provided for the worst hit service areas is inadequate for meaningful consultation, and that detrimental changes to conditions of service, immediate and threatened, are unwarranted.
“We are sorry that the council has not taken this opportunity to avert industrial action. We are also confident that members will support that action, as the only course left to fight the cuts.”
David O’Connor, LCC’s Executive Director of Performance and Governance, said: “At a special meeting of the council’s Joint Consultative Committee (JCC) on Monday, the formal trade union dispute was not upheld.
“Talks will continue between the council and the trade unions however the dispute procedure itself has been concluded. Therefore the implementation of the council’s proposals for restructuring will now continue.
“There were no alternative proposals put forward by the trade unions during the dispute on how the council’s budget should be allocated, except that job losses should only occur through natural wastage.
“The council has managed vacancies over the past few years, and not filling posts has saved the authority around £6 million. However, we are currently in a situation where we need to save £57million this year.”
The Unison ballot closes on May 11. A result will be announced soon after. Unison’s Branch Council meets on May 12 to decide its next steps.
Photo: Peter Barton
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A pair of anti-vaxxers have decided to temporarily stop sharing conspiracy theories on Facebook and stage a protest at a roundabout in Lincoln instead.
The duo were spotted on the Riseholme roundabout on the A15 on Friday afternoon, armed with misinformation signs that appear to suggest England’s Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty has an “evil agenda”.
The protest signs appeared to be against child vaccinations, which suggests that the UK’s Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation were against young people being jabbed, despite a statement in July saying the Pfizer dose had been authorised for use in people aged 12 and over.
They seem to be at loggerheads with Lincolnshire’s own Jonathan Van-Tam, none other than England’s Deputy Chief Medical Officer, who urged people this week to “trust professionals, not Instagram” as fake propaganda posted on social media is being attributed to vaccine hesitancy.
Another sign held up spouts rhetoric about heart problems from the COVID-19 vaccine, while a third notice shows children with masks on and reads: “Is this the future we want for our kids?”
For reference, in case you cannot make it to the Lincolnshire Showground for your vaccination, there will be a free shuttle bus service to take you to and from the jab site starting next week. Read more here.
Up to 86% of adults in Lincolnshire are double-jabbed, and over 25% of 12-15-year-olds.
A special lights show celebrating Lincolnshire’s plants will take place at Boultham Park on Saturday.
The Lincspirational Lightshow will start at 5.30pm on October 23 after the original event was postponed earlier this month due to the weather forecast.
The free show is the final of event of Lincolnshire Wildlife Trusts’ LoveLincsPlants project.
The evening will feature a lightshow parade, artwork projects, park illuminations and music inspired by nature from Sinfonia Viva. During the event the 30 artworks created by the public will be projected onto a large screen.
There will also be an opportunity to bid on the 130 artworks submitted as part of the exhibition. They will be available via an online action, with the 30 winning pieces starting at £40.
The evening will feature a lightshow parade, artwork projects, park illuminations, and more. | Photo: Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust
The money raised from the sale of the artworks will help fund nature’s recovery in Lincolnshire. It will also help the Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust create wildflower rich habitats across the county.
Lincolnshire County Council’s Labour Group will call on the Conservative-led authority to rethink its policy of turning off street lights in built-up areas overnight.
The present situation, introduced in 2016, means that most street lights in Lincolnshire are turned off at midnight, as the council said in March this year that lighting has “no impact” on night-time crime levels.
This statement came after a petition signed by over 5,000 people demanded that street lights were kept on overnight following the death of Sarah Everard in London this year.
The response to Sarah Everard’s death was one of concern for women’s safety, to which the council responded by saying “women’s safety is about much more than street lights.”
A memorial for Sarah Everard in Lincoln on university campus. | Photo: The Lincolnite
More than half of Lincolnshire’s street lights were turned off in 2016 as the council looked to save £1.7 million, and despite the petition and concerns raised, just one parish council asked for lights to be switched back on in 12 months, according to the county’s highways chief.
Now Kev Clarke, Labour County Councillor for Boultham Division in Lincoln and member of Lincolnshire County Council Highways Scrutiny Committee, will be raising the issue at the next meeting on Monday, October 25.
He will be calling for a review of LCC’s street lighting policy, and asking for the council to consider the possibility of keeping the lights on overnight.
Councillor Clarke argues: “After recent sad events – attacks on females – a lot of people feel unsafe and anxious when walking home at night when the county is plunged into darkness at midnight.
“Lincoln is being promoted as a university city with young people leaving home for the first time and moving to Lincoln to study here and gain a first class education. Wonder if the parents were told that lights go off, if so they may look at other locations for their children.
“To boost our local economy we want to attract visitors to Lincoln to visit not only as day–trippers, but to stay over for longer periods to enjoy the benefits of the city and county – one of which is not the turning off of the lights.
“Labour County Councillors are not alone in this plea to Lincolnshire County Council to review the current street lighting policy particularly in Lincoln before it’s too late. Students at the University of Lincoln also want to see changes to the current policy.”
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