Leading voluntary sector groups in Scotland have formed an unprecedented alliance with Scottish trades unions to press for reforms in the ways local councils and other public sector bodies purchase services from the third sector organisations.
Currently some voluntary organisations are being contracted to perform public services at less than market rate and both voluntary groups and unions agree that this is harming the provision of public services in the long term. They are calling on local authorities to ensure that voluntary sector workers get the same pay and conditions as their public sector colleagues and also to ensure that tendering processes for contracts are sensible and ensure value for money for council tax payers.
The Scottish Trades Union Congress(STUC), the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations(SCVO), TGWU/Unite, UNISON and Community Care Providers Scotland(CCPS) who represent voluntary sector social care providers have pledged a joint campaign to secure:
• A commitment by public sector purchasers to fund wages and conditions of employment for front line workers in third sector providers at the same level as front line workers in the public sector
• Five year contracts for third sector service providers to replace current short term funding arrangements
• Agreement on the appropriate use of competitive tendering to minimise disruption to the users of services, reduce transaction costs and increase the stability of jobs and services
• A government initiative to improve the standard of public sector commissioning to achieve the government's aim of high quality personalised services
• Fresh guidance on the use of ‘Best Value’ criteria in service commissioning focusing on the added value which third sector providers are able to provide
• A national contract framework covering the key principles of commissioning and funding needed to maximise the third sector's contribution to high quality public services to be agreed between the Scottish Government, purchasers and providers.
Stephen Maxwell, Associate Director of SCVO said: "The Scottish Government has an extension of the third sector's role as one of its National Outcomes and in its budget has allocated an extra £30m to build the capacity of the sector to help achieve that.
“However its ambitions for the sector will be frustrated without major improvements in the way the public sector purchases and funds third sector services. The tight financial settlement and the greater discretion given to councils in fact leave third sector providers particularly vulnerable to cuts. If councils can be persuaded to join public service unions and third sector providers in this agreement it will lead to both better public services for taxpayers and to greater stability for front line service workers across the sectors.”
David Moxham of STUC said "Too many workers providing frontline public services continue to suffer from low pay and poor conditions. The third sector has a vital contribution to make to delivering public services, but its workers should enjoy comparable wages and conditions. It is equitable and it is sensible in terms of ensuring high quality public services. It’s time to end the merry-go-round of continual compulsory tendering and concentrate on delivering for service users.”
Annie Gunner the Chief Executive of CCPS said "This campaign is about supporting workers who assist some of the most vulnerable members of our society. It’s only fair that they have the same terms and conditions as other sectors. Sustainable funding on a five-year basis will ensure that voluntary organisations can play a full part in providing quality services that are tailored to the needs of users. ”
The Voluntary Sector in Scotland is worth just under £3.9bn and new research by the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisation finds that the sector employs an estimated 129,000 professional paid staff, which is larger than employment in Financial Services, and the Electricity, Gas & Water Supply industries. ENDS
For more information contact the Head of Communications on 07790 601 995 or Dave Moxham 0141 337 8100