In January 2026, new activist Matt (pictured, right) from NPT branch attended the Private Contractors Seminar in Birmingham. Matt shares his experience from the two-day seminar with us.
Report on Unison’s Private Contractor Seminar 2026
Location: Birmingham
Date of event: 23-24 January 2026
The recent concluded Private contractor seminar was an educative, informative and engaging event that hosted members from across the UK, some of the key and vital topics that were discussed includes the following:
- Anti Racism: This was presented by Lexine King- National Officer for Race Equality. Lexine explained the meaning of racism, how to identify racism, the different types of racism and participants were given scenarios and asked to identify the types of racism in each scenario, members answer according to their groups, and everyone participated in questions and answers. Lexine encouraged members to take part in Anti racism workshops and roadshows as they held some roadshows previously and there was a huge turnout from members.
Being an anti-racist Ally, Lexine explained what it means to be an ally, working together with our local branches, regions, and together with the individual member that is/has been racially abused in other to provide the help the individual requires and to spread the anti-racism awareness. She also spoke about the Anti-Racism Charter and why is it important and Pledge for action, members were encouraged to volunteer to be Equality activists and support UNISON in the fight against racism.
- Employment rights: The presenter spoke about our rights as an employee and that of the employers, he spoke about UNISON’s involvement in the proposed new areas of law and changes in law that’s contained in the Employment Rights Act 2025 which it will is expected to come into law amongst which is the Statutory Sick Pay which is to be paid from the first day employee goes off sick from work, the benefits for employees and why it is important for the employer to treat and care for their staff in other to reduce the number of staff going off sick from work, zero hour contracts, fire and rehire, flexible working rights, Harassment / sexual harassment, pay reporting and menopause, Facility time, Political Fund, Industrial action, Fair Work Agency, etc. At the end of the presentation an interactive session was held, including questions and answers on how the new changes/laws will impart employees and employers.
- Health and Safety: This was presented by Joe Donnelly, National Officer for Health and Safety. Joe spoke about how to eliminate risk, substitute, engineering and administrative controls and the use of PPE in reducing and eliminating risks, hazards and the spread of infections. He spoke about the factors that result in work place injuries and lead to health issues which are physical factors e.g. (MSDs) Physio Social Factors e.g. stress, how to manage and report stress and what action needs to be taken and how to maintain a work life balance. Joe spoke about violence at work, how to identify and report issues, and also to encourage members to volunteer to be Health and Safety activists and reps in their workplaces.
- UNISON College: How learning can open doors, presented by Sarah Hayes, Head of UNISON College. Sarah spoke about developing skills that build confidence, members learning, activist learning and supporting learning, how members can access e-learning, booking physical training that will benefit Unison’s members, she also said they have organised training with different counties and workplaces. Sarah encourages members to volunteer to be Learning Reps and for all to continue to access and make good use of UNISON’s college .
- Employment rights and Legal Matters: This was anchored by one of Union’s Legal Team, Thompsons. She spoke about how the legal team have worked with MPs and the UK government and contributed to some changes in the employment law that was earlier presented to us all. She also spoke about how the legal team in UNISON is working with our local branches in handling legal related issues.
My perspective
The seminar was my very first with UNISON and I am glad I was given the opportunity to represent our branch. I answered questions by first introducing myself and the branch I am representing. I learnt a lot, and it gives me the knowledge and awareness of what it means to be an activist and sense of the position I can function very well in, and I am considering standing for the Equality or Health and Safety Rep roles.
Matt