We offer this as a model motion for promoting and supporting StatusNow4All. Please feel free to use it in your Unions, or elsewhere as appropriate:
This branch/committee/ organisation notes
The deliberate misrepresentation by Politicians and media relating to Asylum Seekers, Refugees and Economic Migrants which has led to an alarming rise of racism, Islamophobia and Antisemitism in our communities and workplace.
A recent TUC call for evidence found:
- One in five BME workers said they received unfair treatment because of their ethnicity.
- Around one in six BME workers felt they had been put more at risk of exposure to coronavirus because of their ethnic background. Many reported being forced to do frontline work that white colleagues had refused to do.
- Other respondents said they were denied access to proper personal protective equipment (PPE), refused risk assessments and were singled out to do high-risk work.
We further note:
- Currently, different categories of people who are in the legal system cannot keep physically safe on their allowances, because those allowances don’t amount to enough money to eat healthily, or buy and apply appropriate cleaning materials, and many are living in accommodation where they cannot socially isolate as they may want and need to.
- People who are destitute and/or undocumented and living in the shadows fear what will happen to them if they identify themselves, cannot access healthcare, emergency shelter and food, nor report or seek protection from domestic violence, rape, exploitation and other abuses – levels of which are already rising.
We believe:
1. Racism has no place in the workplace or our communities, and unions must be at the forefront of challenging it.
2. Everyone has the right to be in an environment where they can follow the Public Health directives necessary to limit COVID19 viral transmission to the absolute minimum and to care for themselves, their loved ones and their living and working communities.3. It is imperative – being in everyone’s best interests – that the basic needs of all are met.
4. People living in extreme poverty and/or destitution and/or without immigration status in the UK should be able to access the NHS without charge.
5. All People should be able to socially isolate as needed
6. All people in the UK should be able to access health care, and income and other social support
7. That all people can openly contribute without fear, to making the population as safe as possible, alongside everyone else.
We resolve to:
1. Support the aims and objectives of StatusNow4All https://statusnow4all.org/about-status-now/: We believe that public health is only public if we include the undocumented, mostly people of colour, Asylum seekers, refugees and migrants living in the UK. We are not asking for amnesty. Amnesty is only for those who commit a crime, are found guilty, and are then pardoned. We refuse to deploy the language of this government criminalizing migration. We are asking for Status Now 4 All
2. Sign up statusnow4all as our Trade Union Branch to become an organisation signatory – emailing info@statusnow4all.org to add in our branch details and join the growing coalition of organisations calling for the United Kingdom to act NOW and grant #LeaveToRemain to all undocumented migrant people.
3. Support all future petitions that promote the statusnow4all call