Dear Techman & VinceM,
It's a pity that you both feel that the only value of being in the union is for legal representation. The union isn't just the full time officers and the bits of paper that you get from union HQ.
I know that most individuals that join unions do so as an "insurance" policy in case something goes wrong and they need some support. That's fair enough. However, like everything else if you don't like how the union is run or what it does you have to participate if you want to change it. As the old saying goes, it's much better being in the tent and p*****g outside than being outside the tent and p*****g in!
I'd agree that to a certain extent Amicus could and should do more to support reps for Agenda for Change. However, I know that there's been lots of training in the Regions by the union and it has been up to reps and members to get involved.
Remember, AfC is a "partership" deal between all the NHS unions and the NHS Management. This extends right down to local level. Only union reps can sit with managers on Job matching panels. If unions can't find reps to do this task it cannot be done correctly. Any job that's been matched by panel that is not properly set up in partnership is invalid. Furthermore, partnership extends beyond AfC. It's for all matters in the NHS where managers and unions will be required to work together. Which means local reps working with local managers in your hospital.
Having said all that, I wasn't in favour of AfC and I didn't vote to support it. However, as I've said previously, we are stuck with it and we've got to get the best out of it, which means being involved.
