Search tagged member learning

UNISON support for non-formal workplace ESOL learning could take place before, during and after formal ESOL classes are arranged, as well as where ESOL classes cannot be negotiated. Coaching support for self-directed learning can be empowering. Short taster activities can build confidence and skills that help people progress while giving workers a positive first experience […]

Branches, through their officers, have responsibilities to… provide opportunities for the education of members and the development of activists UNISON Code of Good Branch Practice The role of the lifelong learning co-ordinator is to lead on member learning in the branch. They work closely with the branch education co-ordinator and the same person might even […]

Government withdrawal of ESOL funding for people in work has made UNISON’s ability to organise workplace ESOL classes increasingly challenging. However, UNISON can still play an important role in supporting ESOL learners and ESOL learning in the workplace. UNISON is in a great position to bring employers, providers and learners together so our role in […]

Negotiating delivery of structured ESOL learning with an employer and ensuring the learning provider meets the needs of UNISON members is success in itself. However, our involvement shouldn’t end there. UNISON’s ongoing support for ESOL learning can make a big difference to members’ motivation and learning experience. There are many ways that branches, activists and […]

Mapping Knowing where migrant workers are based, their job roles, which languages they speak, what (if any) language needs they have, what barriers to learning they may face, what workplace issues they are experiencing, how they feel about trade unions, and which community organisations they have links with, will help inform and structure workplace organising. […]

Ian began his learning journey when he left school in 2005, studying horticulture at college. He then completed an apprenticeship in the same subject, which led to a full time post as a gardener for Rochdale Borough Council where he began his 10 year UNISON membership. Before long, Ian took up a workplace union position […]

UNISON has been recognised by the Workers’ Educational Association (WEA) as its National Strategic Partner of the year. The award marks ‘the degree to which a strategic partnership has enabled WEA to raise profile, influence the sector and raise educational aspirations.’ Roger McKenzie, assistant general secretary for organising and recruitment, said, ‘Our work with the […]

Last week, union learning reps (ULRs) from across UNISON gathered to share their experience and generate new ideas in promoting reading in the workplace at our Stepping Up workshop. They came from sectors including local government, healthcare, further education, and police and justice. Some had run the Reading Ahead challenge in their branches; some had […]

UNISON assistant general secretary Roger McKenzie has today signed agreements reaffirming two of the union’s most significant learning partnerships, with the Open University and with the WEA. The three organisations share a common goal: to widen access to education and training and to extend learning opportunities to those who have previously been excluded or discouraged […]

The National Extension College (NEC) has launched a campaign to make GCSE and A levels more accessible to adult learners. The five-point plan identifies barriers faced by independent learners and proposes ways of removing these. These barriers exist because the system is geared towards mainstream students studying in a local school or college. They include: […]