Our volunteer workplace reps play a vital day-to-day role in helping UNISON members.
Elected workplace representatives
Workplace Reps are the heart of our trade union. UNISON’s reps are the reason we win campaigns that result in better lives for our members and all working people. Reps help to organise your colleagues into an effective, strong and welcoming membership. They:
- Are the first point of contact for members in a workplace
- Talk to members about the union
- Talk to staff about their issues
- Offer advice on issues at work
- Represent members in cases (including at disciplinary and grievance hearings).
- Campaign for better working conditions
- Recruit and organise new members
- Encourage more members to get active in UNISON
- Raise your members’ issues with the branch.
Reps in workplaces where UNISON is recognised by the employer have rights to time off for training and to carry out their work.
Reps have a right to be involved in how their branch is run and are the most important link between the members and the union.
UNISON aims to have at least one workplace rep in each workplace and department, more in larger departments and where members work shifts.
Reps are elected each year by the group of members that they represent
Union learning reps
Union learning representatives, often known as ULRs, are passionate about getting people back into learning – whether it is professional qualifications or basic numeracy and literacy skills. They:
- find out how lifelong learning could help to resolve issues at work
- promote learning in a workplace
- support members to take up learning opportunities
- encourage adult learners to be active branch members
- organise workers around learning
- support people who want to join UNISON
- recruit new learning reps
Learning reps are likely to be members who have recently completed a learning programme and are enthusiasts and advocates for learning in their own workplaces.
They have some rights to time off for training and carrying out their duties.
Equality reps
Equality reps aim to make sure people are treated fairly at work and do not suffer from discrimination on the basis of sex, race, sexual orientation, disability, age, religious beliefs or because they work part time. They:
- Work with their branch to improve a workplace and employer equality policies
- campaign for equality in the workplace and the union
- Promote national campaigns such as International Women’s Day, LGBT History Month and Black History Month
- Work with other reps to ensure your branch is inclusive and accessible
- Support people who want to join UNISON
- Raise awareness of, and talk to members about UNISON’s self-organised groups and forums
Workplace contact
The role of a workplace contact is to let your branch know what’s happening in your workplace, and to help the union get messages to its members. It’s a good learning opportunity and starting point to get involved in the union. They:
- Share information with colleagues and other UNISON members
- Keep notice boards up to date with UNISON information
- Have regular conversations with members in the workplace
- Support people looking to join UNISON
Workplace contacts can and do play an important role in helping groups of members to organise effectively.
Easy Joiner: Quick Paperless Joining !
Talking to colleagues about UNISON?
You don’t have any Application Forms?
Easy Joiner, is our digital tool that that allows you to recruit new members in mere minutes, as long as you’ve got a phone, tablet or even laptop to hand?
It’s even easier than you might think – we rolled it out during our Grovember campaign and now have an updated version 2.0 following feedback. So if you’ve not tried it, check it out now!
If you’re talking to colleagues about joining the union and you don’t have any application forms on you, then Easy Joiner could be just the thing for you.
You don’t need to buy or load an app onto your phone, using up precious memory. Just use your phone, or any device with Wi-Fi connection, and go to easy.unison.org.uk
Register your email address. We’ll email you straight away with a link.
Click the link in the email we sent you and start recruiting – it’s that simple to get started.
Now, click begin recruiting and hand your phone or tablet to the person who is joining, so they can put in their name and email address.
