GMB North West and Irish Region Connect Magazine February 2020

Induction Training Dates Regional Office Liverpool 3 to 7 Feb & 17 to 21 17 April to 1 May & 11 to 15 May 24 to 28 Aug & 7 to 11 Sept 23 to 27 Nov & 7 to 11 Dec Cheadle Hulme 10 to 14 Feb & 24 to 28 Feb 22 to 26 June & 6 to 10 July 12 to 16 Oct & 26 to 30 Oct Preston 16 to 20 March & 30 March to 3 April Training 2020 Course content and dates The GMB trade union, North West & Irish Region, have a dedicated education department who design and run courses throughout the region. These courses are trade union speciﬁc, developing our GMB union reps and GMB Health & Safety representatives, so they can make a positive impact on the working conditions of their workplaces. Educators Alﬁe Jones and Paul Holleran are supported by Julie Dowling from the regional office, Bill Smith House in Liverpool. Did you know? The Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 section 168 and the Safety Representatives & Safety Committee Regulations 1977 give accredited union and safety representatives a legal right to reasonable time off with pay to attend courses approved. GMB UNION REP INDUCTION COURSE The GMB induction course has been designed to help new reps hit the ground running. It is a set of two blocks of ﬁve days over three weeks. Learning about the role of the GMB rep is an essential introduction to our unique ways of training. It will forge your attitude and provide you with a wide range of knowledge and resources enabling you to carry out your responsibilities with conﬁdence. It is also essential for new reps to understand the importance of the dual role as a shop steward and health and safety rep. Health and safety make up a large proportion of the demands on our reps and we try and cover as many relevant areas as possible within the ten day course. The course content looks at the legal duty and need for employers to carry out risk assessments on the physical and mental health hazards in the workplace. 2 to 6 Nov & 16 to 20 Nov We also explore the legal questions of your rights to inspect the workplace, show how risk assessments should be carried out, provide you with guidance on how to demand relevant information, provide support in setting up formal health and safety committees that are genuine conduits for trade union activity. Holywood Office 9 to 13 March & 23 to 27 March All of these activities are great tools for our reps going forward. 5 to 9 Oct & 19 to 23 Oct Advanced Courses Bullying & Bullying and Harassment – provides legal studies and practical strategies Harrasment for tackling a major problem in many workplaces. This two day course Cheadle 7&8 May explores tactics and policies to remove what can be a constant source of Holywood 28&29 May stress and mental health problems in the workplace. Liverpool 17&18 Aug Preston 13&14 July Tackling Stress and Mental Health in the Workplace - is a two day non-stop Conﬁdence Building awareness course where we go through a practical workbook of activities and for Negotiation Cheadle 3&4 Aug powerpoint exploration of the causes and implications of not tackling stress Holywood 24&25 Aug at work. This is not a mental health ﬁrst aid course but a real approach Liverpool - towards preventing stress and mental health, through tackling issues like 1 & 2 December 2020 bullying, poor staffing levels, punitive absence management and capability Employment Law/ policies as well as just plain old bad management. Grievance Cheadle 9&10 Nov We have merged the Employment Law course and the Holywood 20&21 July Grievance & Disciplinary two day session. There is a clear cross over and Liverpool 1&2 Oct we look at case law in relation to the problems facing our reps around grievance Preston 21&22 Sept and disciplinary procedures. Health & Safety/ Risk Assesment Health and Safety and Risk Assessment is a ﬁve day course which goes into Cheadle14to18 Sept more detail of how risk assessments should work and the different methods Holywood used. We also highlight the need for employers to carry out risk assessments 15to19 June for physical and mental risks and hazards. The use of surveys and speciﬁc Liverpool 27 to 31 July workplace inspections is part of the course which will take reps onto a higher Preston 10 to 14 Aug level of activity. Stress Cheadle 6&7 Aug Half of the GMB membership is female and our unique Gender Holywood Sensitive Health and Safety course is designed to show how little the 20&21 April legislation is directed towards anyone who isn’t an average man. The issues Liverpool 28&29 Sept facing our members and the reps that have to step and represent women, Preston 8&9 June who maybe being discriminated against are many. It is essential our reps are Pension aware of the conditions and a strategy of how to tackle this at work. Cheadle 18 May Holywood 3 Aug Politics—This one-day workshop is for trade union activists who wish to Liverpool 12 Oct become actively involved in politics and the Labour party, and also looks at Politics the National and Regional structures. Liverpool 17 July Conﬁdence for Negotiation this 2-day course will enhance the skills of reps Women's who are likely to have responsibilities for negotiations. This will also enhance Health & Safety their conﬁdence when dealing with management. Improving communication Cheadle 1&2 Dec Holywood 18&19 May skills, utilising difference means and methods that are available. Liverpool 1&2 June ADVANCED COURSES FOR GMB UNION REPS Our course also engages in role playing in negotiating scenarios, improving your ability to communicate and represent members. It is a practical introduction to employment and health and safety laws but speciﬁcally looks to help you ﬁnd solutions to your problems at work. GMB Union Training Courses for 2020 14 15

GMB North West and Irish Region Connect Magazine February 2020 | Page 14