A detailed list of motions from the Oldham Liberal Democrats
Council Support for the National Living Wage
This Council believes that the ‘national living wage’ first established by the National Living Wage Foundation in the UK in 2001 should be the minimum pay rate for all employees.
Other local authorities who have adopted the ‘national living wage’ rate have found that staff morale, productivity and retention improves as a result.
The current rate for employees outside of London is £7.65 per hour, a figure significantly higher than the National Minimum Wage set by statute.
Creditably this Council has introduced an intermediate Oldham Living Wage guaranteeing employees the equivalent of £7.31 per hour; however this is still 34 pence per hour less than the out-of-London ‘national living wage’ rate.
Employees working for other public or private sector organisations across Oldham fare much worse.
As a leading employer in the borough, this Council resolves to lead the way by:
- Committing itself to introducing the ‘national living wage’ rate for all employees at the earliest possible time, with the timetable being determined through consultation between the three party group leaders, senior officers and trades unions
- Seeking thereafter accreditation from the Living Wage Foundation as a living wage employer
- Seeking the same wage rate for the staff of contractors, arms-length organisations and agencies engaged in contracts with the Council
- Promoting the adoption of the ‘national living wage’ rate to other Oldham employers
- Asking the Chief Executive to write to:
• The Living Wage Foundation expressing the Council’s support for the campaign
• Our three local MPs and the leaders of the Government and principal Opposition parties calling upon them to support legislation to replace the National Minimum Wage with the ‘national living wage’ as the statutory minimum
Promoting Right Sizing in the Social Housing Market
This Council is committed to working with registered providers, and as a social landlord itself, to making best use of the social housing stock in the borough by promoting ‘right sizing’.
‘Right sizing’ would free up larger family homes for occupation by applicants living with over-crowding, whilst supporting under-occupying tenants taking in lodgers or wishing to move to smaller properties to reduce their heating or maintenance bills, to avoid housing benefit penalties, or because of infirmity or disability.
Council notes that:
• In the report on welfare reform dated 17th July 2013, of the social housing stock, 341 properties were under-occupied by 2 bedrooms, 25 by 3, and 7 by four or more spare bedrooms.
• This figure fails to account for tenants over working age, who are under-occupying, yet are in receipt of full housing benefit or tenants who under-occupy and pay their rent from their own resources.
• In contrast, as of 30th June 2013, there were 2,118 applicants on the waiting list requiring homes with three or more bedrooms, many households living with overcrowding
This Council therefore resolves to ask the Overview and Scrutiny Board to examine the practicalities of:
• Reinstating the council’s downsizing policy to encourage under-occupying households to move;
• Giving an appropriate additional priority to those who are under-occupying on the waiting list, with greatest additional priority being given to those under-occupying by two or more bedrooms;
• Establishing procedures to vet and match up tenants who can property share or who wish to take in a lodger, with a model legal agreement being supplied free for any tenant taking in a lodger;
• Examining the effectiveness and use of the housing exchange and transfer option;
• Promoting the services and the offer of the AGMA Help with Rent housing team which supports tenants moving into smaller properties;
• Explore the adoption of a no eviction policy and the creation of a hardship fund using monies from the Housing Revenue Account to meet the rent arrears for tenants who under-occupy Council properties but who are actively seeking a move until such time as two reasonable offers of alternative accommodation have been made;
• Examining the legal remedies available to the authority to take possession of properties that are abandoned or grossly under-occupied
Promoting Support for Job Seekers
This Council, being committed to supporting local jobseekers to secure employment, recognises that there are practical barriers that prevent jobseekers from attending job interviews or taking up employment opportunities.
Council is heartened to hear of the support made available to benefit claimants through Job Centre Plus, particularly:
- Access to the Flexible Support Fund from which payments can be made to “remove any barrier to employment” for a claimant, including reimbursing travel expenses and unavoidable overnight accommodation, providing work clothes and tools, and meeting the cost of specialist training provision.
- The new Travel Support to Jobseekers pilot in Greater Manchester that enables claimants to claim a travel voucher that can be exchanged for a day’s travel on public transport for the purposes of job-seeking, coupled with a concessionary travel ticket for only £25 in each of the first three months of employment.
- The Stagecoach Group “Back on Board” scheme which permits claimants to receive a 50% discount on the majority of Stagecoach services.
- Assistance with travel planning from Job Centre Plus advisors and Transport for Greater Manchester.
This Council is however disappointed that this support is not more widely publicised to eligible claimants.
Council therefore resolves to:
- Promote this provision via elected members, the Make the Most of Your Money and Get Oldham Working teams, District Executives, Parish Councils and partner agencies such as the Oldham Work Club Network, the Citizens’ Advice Bureau and the Oldham Credit Union to maximise take up
- Seek training from Transport for Greater Manchester so appropriate officers in each of the localities can become travel planning ‘champions’
- Negotiate with Job Centre Plus and Transport for Greater Manchester to secure stocks of the daily travel vouchers and establish a mechanism by which these can be disbursed through district centres so local claimants need not travel to the Oldham Job Centre to submit a claim
- Seek to negotiate a similar concessionary scheme from Metrolink in conjunction with TfGM and the other AGMA authorities
The post Oldham Liberal Democrat Motions for 18 December 2013 appeared first on Manchester Gazette.