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Your Consultative Ballot 2022

If you are a member of PCS, you should have received your Consultative Ballot today. We advise you vote YES.

The Consultative Ballot is a crucial part of PCS’s Pay and Pensions campaign. It asks if you would be willing to take part in industrial action to support the campaign for fairer pay and pensions. A Consultative Ballot is a way of finding out members’ views, and a second ballot is always held before any strike action is taken.

Throughout the campaign, please remember that under the employee relations agreement you cannot use HMRC systems to talk about industrial action.

Why you should vote YES

PCS urges you to vote YES on both options on the ballot. If PCS have a clear message from members saying they would be willing to take industrial action, the union will be in a much stronger position when it comes to negotiating everything—not just pay and pensions—as it proves members are willing to stand up for these issues. Voting YES at this stage does not oblige you to take action at a later date, but it does give us more negotiating power before proceeding to a strike.

Your Ballot

Voting ends on 21 March. The ballot should have been emailed to you on your main registered email with PCS. If you have not received the ballot, the details PCS hold about you are probably out of date, and you need to update them on PCS Digital.

If you are a PCS member working in Leeds, and want to know more about the Pay and Pensions campaign and the voting process, please contact one of your union reps, or alternatively get in touch using our contact form.

Find out more:

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The Annual General Meeting

The Annual General Meeting (AGM) for the Leeds & District Revenue and Customs Branch will take place on Tuesday 1 March 2022.

It begins at 10:30am at the Ground Floor Business Events centre of 7/8 Wellington Place. It lasts 2 hours, and all members are invited to attend. It will be possible to attend the meeting virtually, so members not working from the office will be able to come. It is a great opportunity to discover what your branch has achieved over the past year, and to have your say in the decisions that shape our future. With the PCS Pay and Pensions ballot fast approaching, this year’s AGM is as important as ever.

Whilst the branch strives to make the AGM as accessible as possible to all, the topics covered and terms used in the meeting can be confusing, especially for new members not experienced in trade unionism. If you come in knowing what to expect, chances are you’ll find it easier to follow and contribute. Below is a guide to what will take place in your AGM:

  1. The Branch Chair gives opening remarks, greeting and welcoming members and union reps.
  2. Apologies are given from reps and members unable to attend the meeting. The Branch Annual report and accounts are circulated, giving insight into your unions actions over the past year, and transparency over its finances.
  3. An open forum is provided for discussion of matters arising.
  4. Branch Officers are elected; these are the people who will work to make your union branch the best it can be, and represent you in personal cases for the year to come. If you are a member, you are entitled to vote.
  5. You are also given the opportunity to vote on our nominations to Group and National officers: the people who will shape the national direction of the union for both HMRC and the Civil Service as a whole.
  6. Motions are submitted and voted on. These motions instruct how your union branch is run, and if you are a member, you are entitled to vote.

If you are a member and HRMC employee, you are entitled to time away from your post to attend the meeting; however, this is to be treated as your own time and not time at work. We encourage all members to attend, so you can have your say and help us in the fight towards a fairer workplace.

We hope to see you there.

pcsleedshmrc Campaigns, Pay

The Great Pensions Robbery: How Much are You Losing?

If you work in the Civil Service, chances are you are overpaying your pension by 2%. This means you lose on average £500 a year, and this money should be paid back.

This much money makes a huge difference, and with the upcoming cost of living increases and hikes in National Insurance and energy prices, for many members it could mean the difference between living comfortably and struggling. If PCS’s Pay & Pensions campaign is successful, it could mean getting your overpayments repayed to you, backdated from April 2019 when the contribution rate was incorrectly changed.

By using the Pensions Loss Calculator, you can find out exactly how much you are losing each year. The answer will probably shock and anger you, and the best thing you can do is to vote in the upcoming consultative ballot. This way, you can tell PCS what you are what action you would be willing to take to make a change.

In order to vote in the consultative ballot, you will need to make sure your details are up-to-date on PCS Digital. If you work in HMRC Leeds and want more information on how to do this, or how to get involved locally in the campaign, speak to a one of the Leeds union reps.

Further Info: