I initially refused and tried to sort the issue within the company but with no response the media were notified and my story hit the National newspapers and was aired on both BBC & ITV and also on radio five live and local stations.

Johnnie Walker is the world’s leading brand of Scotch Whisky, with Johnnie Walker Red Label being the world’s best selling whisky.

Johnnie Walker was established in Kilmarnock in 1820 and has been connected with the town ever since. Every bottle of Johnnie Walker whisky sold around the world bears the town’s name.

Diageo does not deny that the Kilmarnock plant is profitable. Its focus is on making greater profits by restructuring its operations in Scotland.

History plays a major part in the appeal of whisky but it would appear that Diageo places no value on that history or on the loyalty shown to the Johnnie Walker brand by the Kilmarnock community for almost 200 years.

It will be a hammer blow to everyone in Kilmarnock if Diageo goes ahead with these closures.

Please support the petition.

A campaign to retain the plants has been established, led by East Ayrshire Council. For news of the campaign, please visit the website at:

http://www.keepjohnniewalkerinkilmarnock.com

Since 2009, the workforce have suffered a three year pay freeze and a well-below inflation pay rise of just 1% last year. Those on the lowest pay levels earn just above the National Minimum Wage - poverty pay for responsible jobs that require skill and responsiblity.

The three trade unions who represent these workers, UNISON, the GMB and Unite, submitted a pay claim for a minimum increase of £1 an hour for local government and schools support workers back in October 2013. The Local Government Association Employers have made a measly offer of 1% for 90% of the workforce and a little more for those on the lowest pay points. The offer would mean that the lowest paid would be only 25p above the minimum wage.

Since 2010, local government workers and school support staff have seen the value of their pay drop by 18%. Many rely on benefits and tax credits to make ends meet. This doesn't need to be the case if they were paid a decent wage for the important work they do.

The Human Services sector employs over 36,000 staff in Western Australia.

The non-government community services sector in Western Australia is already under resourced and sector staff are significantly under paid. In 2006/07 average weekly earnings for community sector workers were 30% lower than the average full time equivalent weekly wages for the health and community services sector in Australia.

The difference in base level salaries between public sector specified calling salaries compared to salaries for equivalent staff positions on the SACS Award in the community sector is up to 57% or $29,210 higher.

A first year graduate base grade social worker in the public service will earn $12,450, or 32% more, than a first year graduate social worker in the community sector.

After reaching the top level in the public service, the same base grade social worker will receive $29,210, or 57%, more than their equivalent in the community sector.

Women in WA are paid 26% less than men, and WA has the widest gender pay gap of any State. The national average gender pay gap (GPG) is 17% and WA has had a larger GPG than the national average since the late 1980s. The fact that the community services sector is large (the second-largest employer of women in WA), female-dominated (80.8% female) and lowly paid means that more equitable wages for the sector would have a significant effect on the gender pay gap in Western Australia.

Salary packaging in non government, not for profit organisations is considered a ‘benefit’. However, not all organisations have it, it is also available in certain Government Departments, not all staff have access to it or wish to use it and there have been no indexation changes.

Because of the demand for services, the NFPO community services sector is one of the fastest growing in Australia.

In Western Australia in 2007:
People being turned away by community service NFPOs has increased by 7%;
73% of NFPOs report waiting lists have stayed the same or worsened; and
53% of NFPOs say that the complex needs of their clients have increased.

There has been insufficient attention to capacity building and sustainability in the face of this rapid growth since the 1980s.

The compliance costs of reporting and monitoring were an increasing concern for agencies for which Government agencies were not making allowance in funding.

The demands of the increasingly diverse and complex service delivery demands emphasised the need for high level skills and their renewal.

65% of not-for-profits in Australia report an increase in demand for services as a result of the economic downturn, and 83 per cent expect an increase in demand for services in the next financial year (2009-2010).

Dennoch haben Vertreter der Gemeinden uns Musikschullehrerkräften mit ihrem Antrag zur Novellierung des Gemeinde-Vertragsbedienstetengesetzes hinsichtlich der Änderung der Arbeitszeit der MusikschullehrerInnen im Jahr 2006 pauschal ihr Misstrauen gegenüber der von uns erbrachten Arbeitsleistung ausgesprochen. Den massiven Protesten gegen diese einseitige Dienstrechtsänderung wurde mit einer Evaluierung der Gesetzesnovelle in Form einer dreijährigen Studie begegnet.

Äußerst betroffen verfolgen wir die Diskussionen und Gerüchte der vergangenen Monate hinsichtlich der Interpretation der Studie „Arbeitsplatz Musikschule“, deren Daten durch das Roland Berger Unternehmen erhoben wurden, und deren bisherige Veröffentlichung hinsichtlich der zentralen Fragen nicht aussagekräftig war. Die längst ausständige umfassende Veröffentlichung der Ergebnisse und Evaluierung der Gesetzesnovelle wird aus unverständlichen Gründen hinausgezögert. Die Verunsicherung über unsere berufliche Zukunft ist enorm, die tatsächlichen Ziele politischer Kräfte und deren Maßnahmen unklar. Wir vermissen einen fairen Dialog und ein aufrichtiges Interesse an unserer derzeitigen Situation. Daher machen wir auf diesem Weg auf unsere Anliegen aufmerksam. Die folgenden Punkte stellen unsere wichtigsten Forderungen dar:

Σε ότι αφορά το ΤΣΜΕΔΕ τα ταμειακά του διαθέσιμα, που έχουν κατατεθεί στην Τράπεζα της Ελλάδος (άνω των 3 δις), έχουν μετατραπεί σε ομόλογα και έντοκα γραμμάτια ελληνικού δημοσίου. Σύμφωνα με το πρόγραμμα ανταλλαγής ομολόγων και τη νέα δανειακή σύμβαση της 26ης Οκτωβρίου, μετά το «κούρεμα» το ΤΣΜΕΔΕ θα μείνει με το 50% της αξίας των διαθεσίμων του, που προέρχονται αποκλειστικά από τις εισφορές μας. Οι απώλειες για το ταμείο ξεπερνούν το 1,5 δισεκατομμύριο €, χωρίς να συνυπολογιστούν η μη καταβολή της κρατικής χρηματοδότησης (άλλα 500 εκατ. €), οι τεράστιες απώλειες από τα Τραπεζικά παιχνίδια που διαχρονικά κάνουν, τα θαλασσοδάνεια σε ΠΑΣΟΚ-ΝΔ. Ακόμα η υπαγωγή της Attica Bank σε διαδικασία «κουρέματος», θα σηματοδοτήσει κι άλλες απώλειες για το ταμείο.

Όλες αυτές τις απώλειες, κυβέρνηση και Τρόικα, επιχειρούν να «αντισταθμίσουν» με νέα χαράτσια υπέρογκων αυξήσεων των εισφορών μας, ειδικά για τους "ελεύθερους επαγγελματίες", δηλαδή τους ανέργους, τους μισθωτούς με δελτίο, τους αυτοαπασχολούμενους, τους μισοαπασχολούμενους κλπ. Άμεσα ξεκινούν από 50 € το μήνα για τους προ 93 ασφαλισμένους (από 330 σε 380), φτάνουν τα 90 € το μήνα για τους μετά το 93 (από 330 σε 420 στους άνω πενταετίας) και προοπτικά θα ξεπεράσουν το 90% (μέσα από την υποχρεωτική αλλαγή ασφαλιστικής κατηγορίας). Οι ρυθμίσεις αυτές προβλέπονται από το Μεσοπρόθεσμο πρόγραμμα που ψηφίστηκε το καλοκαίρι, μετακυλούν τις απώλειες στους ίδιους τους ασφαλισμένους, οδηγώντας στον αφανισμό και στην έξοδο μας από το επάγγελμα, χιλιάδες συνάδελφους. Αυτές οι εξοντωτικές εισφορές θα υπολογίζονται πλέον ως φορολογητέο εισόδημα.

Τεράστιες είναι οι ευθύνες της Διοίκησης του ΤΣΜΕΔΕ και του ΤΕΕ, που χωρίς ποτέ να ενημερώσουν τους μηχανικούς, συναινούν και συνδιαμορφώνουν τις κατευθύνσεις αυτές.

We write to bring to your attention a major and serious issue which is affecting thousands of overseas qualified nurses who are currently in the UK on various immigration status (eg. Students, Work Permit, Tier 2 & 4 etc).

The current requirement set by NMC in relation to English language requirement, i.e. the International English Language Testing (IELTS) score for the registration of overseas qualified Nurses is unrealistic and not practical. Therefore, we are kindly requesting you to review the current minimum score requirement for the registration of overseas qualified Nurses.

No secret that the economic climate in Michigan has been rough for the last few years. Everybody wants to talk about permanent jobs. I have been on the Hollywood employment call list since 2010. The tax incentives, albeit generous, were STABLE. The film industry was BOOMING! And then, the leadership in Lansing changed.

What I know as fact is this... when the Governor first started tinkering with the incentives in 2011, employment opportunities in the film industry declined dramatically. Thankfully, they stabilized over the last couple years and welcomed major productions Transformers 4 and Batman V Superman. My 2013 & 2014 AGI's are proof that the film incentives create not only well paying, PERMANENT JOBS, but CAREERS. Careers that not only provide MEDICAL BENEFITS to our families, but free us from the clutches of Obamacare! Careers that provide PENSIONS to those who choose this PERMANENT JOB; a job they can retire from some day.

In Public Act 396 of 2014 (Dec 24th), the Michigan film incentives were extended for 7 years; and finally with some quotas that would INCREASE JOB OPPORTUNITIES and PROVIDE TRAINING. And Hollywood was expected to respond favorably with uncounted MILLIONS spent in State. And it finally seemed the industry would reach its potential.

And yet, here we are... Feb 25th, 2015. 10:30 AM. Enter HOUSE BILL 4122, set to kill the film incentive and send a promising new Michigan industry to an early grave. And the giant sucking sound from the south grows louder, as those Michiganders who have "reinvented themselves" to adapt to a changing economic climate, follow their new careers to Georgia.