The sister may 2014

THE SISTER: SER WOMEN’S NEWSLETTER

Issue 1

The Sister:

SER Women’s Newsletter

ORGANISING WOMEN IN THE SOUTH EAST REGION

01/05/2014

IN THIS ISSUE

R.I.P. Bob

by Amanda Pulsford

Although I find it truly tragic We must continue without your magic Be rest assured your legacy Has awakened something inside of me.

Better conditions and better pay What's been awakened is a need for justice We'll stand by this every day I do hope that you will trust us Because we know it's what you To stand united both brother and sister wanted Bound by the fact we'll always miss you.

We'll all stand up and be counted.

We'll fight the fight and talk the talk Now's the time to let you rest Let those around us dare to mock Never something you did best We'll carry on to the bitter end In our minds, we'll always see Whilst always thinking of you, our friend You Bob Crow..... R.I.P.

RMT Women’s Conference Report First time delegates Amanda and Sue tell us how they got on!

Page 2

Save the Guard!

A personal account of why the Guard is so important for passengers.

Page 3

THE SISTER: SER WOMEN’S NEWSLETTER | Issue 1

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RMT Women’s Conference

by Sue Saunders

Hello my name is Sue and I had the pleasure of attending the RMT Women’s Conference with Amanda Pulsford this year.

It was our first time to Glasgow and we found it very much like London but the people were very friendly.

Friday 6th: The conference was opened by our late leader Bob Crow RIP who was a brilliant man. He fought for the rights of the working class and justice within the workplace.

Bob talked about equality and recognising women in the union. He said that unless you have equality, you will never get the things you want in life.

We discussed about having a woman’s seat in the RMT structure and the participation of women at a higher level.

We heard two speakers one of them being Katy Clark Labour MP who had been a MP since 2005. She was saying that women have a loud voice in the RMT. Saturday 7th: We both found this day very interesting.

Janine Booth gave an excellent talk and PowerPoint presentation on the ETF. Which covered ending low pay, workplace stress and bullying. She also went on to talk about Finland and how they fair better regarding

Bob talked about Emiline Pankhurst and the fight for women’s rights.

When Bob left everyone introduced themselves.

Bob addressing conference.

the amounts of weeks maternity pay they get extra compared to the UK. We then had an excellent talk from two of our sisters who visited Delhi 27th-28th January with 204 other delegates from all over the world.

They went onto say about Qatar Airways and how their contract prohibited them from getting married in the first year and that ITF are taking violence against women very seriously.

To attend the women’s conference in 2015 you need to be nominated by your branch as a delegate – you can contact Jess Webb on 020 7529 8821 or j.webb@rmt.org.uk for more information about how to become a delegate for next year.

THE SISTER: SER WOMEN’S NEWSLETTER | Issue 1

I want to keep Guards on the train because...

by Sue Saunders

My fear is in the society that we have today we need to feel protected. There are too many assaults going on and this will just escalate if there is not a Guard present on our trains.

It is a fact that there are a lot of very vulnerable people out there. This includes my son Peter who is disabled. As a mother I fear for him every time he leaves his Dad’s to travel to Gillingham.

At present there is a Guard on the train for his particular journey but if they take the Guards away, I feel he will be a target for violence and abuse. There should be a Guard for the public to turn to when they are in trouble or feeling unwell. There are too many public sector cutbacks keep our Guards on the trains and keep our trains safe, for all our sakes.

WOMEN’S EVENT The SERC Women’s Officer is organising a networking and education event for women members in the region. The event will take place at Maritime House in Clapham on the 2nd September 2014 from 1pm. The day will consist of workshops, guest speakers and networking opportunities with the aim of building contacts for women members in the region, supporting women that hold Rep and Women’s Officer roles and planning future organising of women in the region. A BBQ and refreshments will be provided.

For more information, contact Emily King (contact details on page 4)

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THE SISTER: SER WOMEN’S NEWSLETTER | Issue 1

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“Dear Sister…”

Women’s Officers in your region have set up an email account as an easy way for you to get in touch. We would also like you to email us with issues that you face in the workplace to share on our ‘Dear Sister’ page. We will print your email along with our response and advice, so that it can be shared with other members in the region who may be facing the same issues. You can also contact us for confidential advice, just indicate in your email that you do not wish it to be shared. We will double check before anything goes to print.

Please get in touch!

rmtwomensoutheast@gmail.com You can also contact the South East Region Women’s Officer, Emily King, on 07876 441 690, the Eastbourne Branch Women’s Officer, Amanda Pulsford, on 07811 975 093 or the Gillingham and Strood Branch Women’s Officer, Sue Saunders, on 07949 636 954. If you are the Women’s Officer for your branch please email the above address and let us know so we can include your contact details in the next edition of The Sister.

We want to hear from YOU about what you want to discuss in the workshops at the Women’s Event in September!

We want to make the women’s event at Maritime House relevant and informative so have set up a short questionnaire to find out the issues affecting you and your colleagues in your workplace. Your responses will go towards steering the content of the workshops, with the aim of producing a Women’s Officer Guide for the South East Region that contains hints and tips on how to support and organise women members.

WORKSHOP SURVEY Your input will be gratefully received.

Please take five minutes to visit the link below and complete the questionnaire.

Thanks in advance!

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/3S8HWDF ORGANISING WOMEN IN THE SOUTH EAST REGION ORGANISING WOMEN IN THE SOUTH EAST REGION

THE SISTER: NEXT ISSUE OUT SOON!

RMT CREDIT UNION LTD.

MEMBERSHIP NUMBER

Finance Department, Unity House, 39 Chalton Street, London NW1 1JD

RMT CREDIT UNION APPLICATION FORM – please complete your application along with the attached Direct Debit.

P l e a s e u s e B L O C K C A P I TA L S and black ink.

1

PERSONAL DETAILS. Surname

Address

Forename(s) Home phone Mobile phone

Postcode

Email address Date of Birth

National Insurance Number

2

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married

3

Your Employment.

partner

single

divorced

Drivers Licence No.

Employer

RMT Branch

Job Description 4

Mr

Mrs

Ms

5

Membership Status RMT TU Member

Miss

Retired RMT TU Member

RMT Family Member This is the amount you wish to save by Direct Debit monthly on the 28th weekly if 4 weekly (Fri)

6

How much do you wish to save £

7

Normally your payments are made once a month (28th) to RMT Credit Union Ltd.

8

Next of Kin

.....................................................................................

Address

.....................................................................................

9

or date you next get paid date here.......................

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We are checking new member identification electronically. To do this, we now carry out searches with credit reference agencies who supply us with relevant detail including information from the Electoral Register. The searches will not be used by other lenders to assess your ability to obtain credit.

.....................................................................................

I agree to my identity being checked electronically If we cannot verify your identity and address by this method, we will ask you to provide paper documentation instead. Full details of these can be supplied to you by calling 020 7529 8835.

I undertake to abide by the rules now in force or those that are adopted.

Your signature

Date

Instruction to your Bank or Building Society to pay by Direct Debit Please fill in the whole form including official use box using a ball point pen and Send to: RMT Credit Union Ltd., 39 Chalton Street, London NW1 1JD

Name and full postal address of your Bank or Building Society To: The Manager

Originator’s Identification Number

9

7

4

2

8

1

Reference Number

Bank/Building Society

Address

FOR RMT CREDIT UNION LTD OFFICIAL USE ONLY This is not part of the the instruction to your Bank or Building Society.

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Instructions to your Bank or Building Society.

Please pay RMT Credit Union Ltd Direct Debits for the account detailed in this instruction subject to the safeguards assured by the Direct Debit Guarantee. I understand that this instruction may remain with RMT Credit Union Ltd, if so, details will be passed electronically to my Bank/Building Society.

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• •

The Direct Debit Guarantee This Guarantee is offered by all banks and building societies that accept instructions to pay Direct Debits.

If there are any changes to the amount, date or frequency of your Direct Debit RMT Credit Union Ltd will notify you seven working days in advance of your account being debited or as otherwise agreed.

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