Celebrating Learning with UNISON
What is Lifelong Learning?
The government’s Lifelong Learning policy
for Scotland is about ‘personal fulfilment and enterprise,
employability and adaptability, active citizenship and social
inclusion’. What does that mean?
For UNISON it means trying to encourage a
culture in which education and training is available and
accessible for everyone. UNISON has been at the forefront
of developing lifelong learning for people called non traditional
learners, that is people who have had a poor experience
of learning in the past, people who lack confidence in their
own abilities or who feel school was so long ago that they
could never study again.
By learning UNISON doesn’t just mean getting
skills needed to do a particular job. Lifelong Learning
should mean learning in the broadest sense, gaining skills
to develop your confidence to progress and participate in
work, in the union and in the wider community.
UNISON wants to make sure that as many members
as possible have opportunities for learning at work. This
is why UNISON has put so much into the development of the
Return to Learn programme. Increasingly Return to Learn
is being delivered in the workplace through partnership
with the employers. This approach enables UNISON to reach
many of the ‘non traditional learners’. As part of this
approach UNISON has developed the role of Union Learning
Rep.
For more information on Lifelong Learning
and how to organise training please contact:
Union Learning Reps
This is a new role for UNISON members, which
has evolved from UNISON’S commitment to lifelong learning
and in particular to Return to Learn and other education
courses such as Women’s Lives. Members who have completed
R2L have the opportunity to ‘sell’ the course to their colleagues
and UNISON want to support these people by offering them
free training and the opportunity to become an integral
part of the branch education team. Legislation recently
enacted means that potential advisers will be entitled to
paid release to train for this role and to carry out your
duties in much the same way as stewards and health and safety
reps enjoy.
What do Union Learning Reps do?
The role is still evolving but it is clear
that it is a very flexible and will vary according to the
circumstances and experience of the individual and the needs
of their branch and workplace. The role is not some sort
of pseudo careers adviser but someone who can talk with
their colleagues about training and education, who knows
and can promote UNISON courses, who knows where to direct
people who need information about further education or how
to access funding for training.
Other work that could be undertaken could
include:
-
Encouraging colleagues to join courses
such as Return to Learn and supporting them while they
are learning
-
Helping to identify and highlight the
learning needs of people in their workplace
-
Raising awareness of lifelong learning
issues in their branch
-
Working with the branch to encourage
learners into branch activity
-
Liaising with employers and the experienced
branch negotiators on lifelong learning opportunities
in the work place
-
Working with branch officers especially
the branch education officer to promote lifelong learning
opportunities
For more information on Lifelong Learning
and how to organise training please contact:
Union Learning Reps – Background and Training
UNISON’s long involvement in membership education
and more recently in Return to Learn led us to view the
concept of the proposed Union Learning Rep differently from
other trade unions.
Other unions decided that existing stewards
should undergo the TUC training to become Union Learning
Reps and add that role to all their other duties. ULR training
is intensive and includes the negotiating and bargaining
skills appropriate for experienced activists.
UNISON recognised that, for us, this was an
opportunity to draw in a new group of activists, in particular
a channel for successful Return to Learners into branch
activity. However UNISON also realised that ULR training
may not be appropriate for people on the first step into
union activity.
UNISON can also provide its ULRs with the
opportunity to undertake further training if they wish.
We hope to offer ULRs training on setting up a Workplace
Learning Agreement. For some ULRs further training may be
steward training or Health and Safety training as they become
more involved in day to day branch activity.
Just to complicate matters members can choose
to attend the TUC ULR course. It is very important that
the branch ensures these individuals are fully integrated
into the branch education team. Current activists
who would like long term direct involvement in lifelong
learning activity can undertake ULR training.
For more information on Lifelong Learning
and how to organise training please contact:
Lifelong Learning-The Role of the Branch
The easiest way for a branch to get to grips
with Lifelong Learning and the role of the ULR is for experienced
branch activists, especially the branch education officer,
to undertake the training.
Once trained these activists can link into
the branch committee. They can also target groups of members
i.e. Return to Learners at their Options and Choices session,
and offer the chance to train as ULRs once they have completed
R2L.
A crucial role for the ‘activist’ ULR would
be to make the links with the bargaining agenda. Using local
knowledge and information, training issues can be raised
directly with the employer and linked with existing issues
i.e. A4C Knowledge and Skills Framework, Joint Future, recruitment
and retention etc. Information gathered can also be used
to begin negotiations with employers on the establishment
of a Workplace Learning Agreement that would guarantee equality
of access to training for all, not just those who already
have qualifications.
Regular contact between ULRs and the branch
is very important, as is keeping ULRs up to date on employer
led training initiatives. As ULRs gain confidence and become
used to speaking on behalf of their colleagues, branches
should recognise that they may be willing to speak for them
on issues other than training and become recognised in their
workplace as a very positive face of UNISON.
The great strength of the Return to Learner
turned ULR is their ability to promote education to the
very groups that make up the majority of UNISON members
but who are in the minority at activist level - low paid,
part time, women and ethnic minorities – benefiting the
branch and UNISON in general.
For more information on Lifelong Learning
and how to organise training please contact:
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