You are:

VOSA Branch


In this issue:

Branch Chairs Address

It gives me great pleasure to welcome three new faces to our Branch Executive Committee this month, its great to see such an interest being taken in matters like this. I would also wish to welcome members from VCA into the Branch.

The previous months have been tough on us all and I cannot say that the rest of the year will be any better as a number of key issues are on the horizon that we need to deal with. Articles later set out the challenges that we will and are already facing and on the key issues separate briefings will, as always be sent to you as and when.

I wish to personally thanks each and every member for their continued support of PCS and encourage you to make contact with your local rep and share ideas and concerns. We are here as your representatives, let us know what you need.

It was with utter disbelief that we heard, like yourselves, that VOSA, the Department and the Minister had decided to close both Ipswich and Stoke GVTS sites, especially when you realise that the same information that was used to delay the closure of Stoke a few months ago is now showing that it is safe to close! Amazing! Additionally we are horrified that despite the Organisation admitting that their original criteria for assessing ATF interest in a location was flawed; they continue to announce these closures using the exact same data. It does beg the question doesn’t it?

As you will become aware, the more that you read later on, that the Branch has not been quiet in responding to these closure announcements and indeed we, along with the other VOSA unions met with the influential Chair of the Parliamentary Select committee for Transport and put forward our extreme concerns to her. It would be very true to state that she was most interested in what we had to say and asked if we would keep her abreast of any further information. More of that will follow later.

The cuts that VOSA have, and continue to make, are hitting us all and we are all struggling to keep up. On behalf of your Union I must remind everyone that you are only one person and are not being paid enough to do more than your fair share of the work, so if it can’t be done as there is insufficient staff, please do not be pressurised into any unwanted overtime, especially not unpaid and unrecognised overtime.

To this end remember that we are stronger if we are united and speak together as one voice.

Sue Samson

Departmental Wide Sick Absence Policy

We are about to enter into negotiations with the Department in relation to a new sickness & absence management policy which would apply uniformly across all parts of DfT and its Agencies. The Branch Secretary is part of the PCS Negotiations Team so we will be kept up to date on developments as well as the various circulars that will come out on this.

The aim of PCS in these negotiations will be to look at a fairer, more person orientated method of managing sick absence with the emphasis being on support not, as it appears to be in other places, a mechanism for disciplining staff who are unfortunate enough to suffer form ill health and to fight for the best of the policies of all departments to be spread across the DfT.

This will be the first set of cross Agencies departmental talks and we will need to see how they go and prepare for further changes in policy to be negotiated in this way in the future.

Your reps will play a key role in informing the negotiations and ultimately it is the plan of PCS to ballot you on the acceptability or otherwise of any policy changes in this area.

PCS DfT Fundraising Club 

VOSA Assistant Secretary Wins a Prize!!

It was me!


Why not try your chances at winning £25 £50 or even £100??
Join the PCS DfT Fundraising Club.  £5 per month will get you entered into the draw and will get you the chance to win one of the prizes on offer.

Proceeds from the Fundraising Club will go into the DfT Hardship fund which Members can apply to if they are experiencing financial difficulties. Applications are judged on their individual merit and any payments that are awarded are not subject to repayment.

Last month I returned home from work only to find an unexpected letter on the doormat thankfully it wasn’t a bill of some description or another for a change LOL. Before I opened it and noticed it had come from PCS head office in London. I wasn’t expecting anything. What could this be? On opening the letter I was amazed to find a cheque enclosed. I had been the lucky 2nd prize winner of £50. My name had been drawn from the 100 Club PCS DfT Fundraising Club.

It's for a very good cause so why not give it a go?


Application forms are available online and can be completed and returned to:

Group Treasurer,
VOSA TUS Office,
Room B5 Berkeley House,
Croydon Street,
Bristol, BS5 0DA

Download the application form today

Health & Safety

Reporting of Incidents, Accidents & Near Misses


Hi to you the members

VOSA is employing members of staff who are by the nature of their employment exposed to elements of risk, and as a good employer, it tries to mitigate said risks through training, risk assessments, safe working practices and in the last instance the provision of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE).

As with all things to monitor how well they are doing they have a H&S Manager and team who go around the whole of VOSA and carry out inspections and audits, they also collate all HS1’s Near Miss, Accident and Injury Reports, They then report back to the directing board and rectify any problems through accident and incident trends analysis.

This is where you the member have an important part to play, If you witness or are an unfortunate on the end of an incident, then you should be completing an HS1 Performa and sending it to your line manager and to then ask if said manager has forwarded after the completion of their part the report to the H&S team. It is very important that you do this. The line manager will possibly have some questions that they may need to ask, be honest open and upfront and give as much detail and where possible take photographs and attach them they all help.

Reports should be made of incidents of aggression to you or other staff as what may be a rant at you today may be an assault on a colleague in the future. You are responsible for not only your personal safety but that of your colleagues so please ensure you complete the reports.

The HS1 can be accessed via VOSA Net Health & Safety, Manuals and forms, Accident Reporting Forms then click on the link HS1, save said document to either your desk top or my documents, open it from there complete and save it then attach it to a lotus notes email and send it to your line manager as high priority and please complete it as soon as possible after the occurrence, while it is still fresh in your memory and be as detailed as possible.

Karl Hornby
PCS H&S Officer

TTP/ATF

VOSA management appear to be steaming full speed ahead with the testing transformation and authorized testing facility program, and still they are using flawed data from the market validation exercises carried out using unproven statistics and potentials rather than hard facts and available now!

We have met with members of the Transport Select Committee and have meetings booked with Minister highlighting the inconsistencies flawed data and most importantly the risks to the Public and staff of continuing down the path which has been chosen. It has already been shown that with the economic turmoil we are in companies are going to the wall and being placed into the hands of the receivers. Where will that leave the Public and our customers when we have no Government owned test facilities as they have all been sold off and business decides it is not viable financially to sustain being an ATF, either they demand prices go up to give them profitability and small hauliers are crucified with costs or pull out of the contracts and VOSA will have to take testing back in house.

The problem then arises VOSA has no “House” remaining it as all been sold of or transferred to other Government Agencies. Again we are aware that only recently a private business who took on the Fire Engines from the public purse has gone bust, what happens to the Fire Brigades of Lincolnshire and London if the engines they are currently attending emergencies with are suddenly seized as assets of the “Bust” company. Has no one learned from Gordon Brown, “selling assets off like this ends in tears”?

It is very clear at the moment that this is an estates disposal plan under any other name however we at PCS can be sure that we will not stop our campaigning against this anytime soon. Whilst we accept that there is a case for testing at Operators Premises, and has been for many years (with DP’s) and in principle we are not opposed to it as a supplement to our Testing Stations. However that must be the key phrase here “supplement”, not instead of, which is the current agenda. We must, and do, acknowledge that some of our stations are not located in the best places and others are rather run down, but instead of closure we should look at re-sighting in a better location and even sharing ownership/usage of the site with other DfT Agencies.

We in PCS are not against change however we do not believe in the current approach nor believe that it will deliver what the customer wants and needs and this is the message that we will work with the other Unions to get out to our customers. We have a public service to provide and we are very good at it. The Agency needs to claw back a not insignificant deficit but how can closing a location in which we still have to pay rent on for years make good business sense? What is the real motive and objectives here?

T & S Negotiations

You may have heard that Prospect and Unite are considering balloting their members in a consultative manner on what action they are prepared to take to get VOSA Management to the table to discuss mileage rates.

After lengthy debate your committee decided that whilst we fully support and agree with the stance and approach being proposed by the other unions, we will not be looking to join in this ballot at the moment. The primary reason for this decision is that PCS are fighting currently on a number of key grounds including protecting jobs and pensions and that we did not believe it would be right to spread ourselves too thinly in attacking too many battles at the same time.

Be assured that this does not mean we do not believe that mileage and subsistence rates need to be re negotiated and that PCS will be a strong advocate at the negotiations table for sensible and reasonable rises, we are allowing colleagues who have the majority of members affected by this to take the lead.

Finally the Pay Imposition!

This Government has decreed we are not receive pay rises again in this years pay round, it has decreed what remits will be accepted and what can be paid out, there has been no negotiation and VOSA has dictated what it will be doing: Honouring contractual obligations, £250 to those on less than £21K who are already at RFJ and bonuses to those with a box mark 1 on ASR, and qualifying Senior Civil Servants of which there are 2 within VOSA will be getting a bonus. PCS will not be under taking a ballot of the members on this matter as there has been no negotiation, it has formally rejected this imposition on your behalf.

We do fully understand the issues that this raises for a number of staff and as soon as the shackles are removed from VOSA we will be petitioning Management vigorously to improve terms and conditions for you our members!