On the first day of UNISON’s national delegate conference, delegates debated the need to challenge the exploitation of migrant workers, particularly in social care.
Paramedic Glen Carrington, from the NEC, said that, as an immigrant himself, being seen as ‘inferior’ was deeply unpleasant.
Mr Carrington described how, earlier this year, he was called to a care home a number of times and each time, saw a nurse, “dead on her feet”. The third time, he asked if she hadn’t got a home to go to. She explained that she lived upstairs and, when the home didn’t have enough staff, she was called down.
She received no overtime and refusal to work could see her sacked. She was a migrant worker. If she then couldn’t find another job within 12 months, she could be deported.
Mr Carrington was shocked, but unsure whether this was really possible, so he started “digging around” and found that this was happening.
Speaking in support of the motion, a delegate stressed that migrant workers – from outside the EU – contribute £5.2billion to the UK’s economy.
Conference called on the NEC to:
Raise awareness of the migrant worker network
Support the work of branches and regions in organising migrant workers workers with resources and advice
Campaign to improve the rights of migrant workers
Continue to campaign against the ‘hostile environment’.
The article Delegates pledge to challenge exploitation of migrant workers first appeared on the UNISON National site.
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