UNISON Scottish Ambulance Service

🗳️🟣🟢Your vote is your voice 🟢🟣 Electronic balloting can make that voice stronger. UNISON is preparing to pilot electronic ballots before a wider rollout, making it easier for members to participate in industrial action ballots and union elections. For Scottish Ambulance Service staff working demanding shifts and serving rural communities, voting online could make a real difference, reducing reliance on postal deliveries and helping more members have their say. Greater participation strengthens our collective voice when campaigning for better pay, conditions and treatment at work. When your ballot arrives, use your vote—our strength depends on members taking part. Please act now: log in to My UNISON and change your registered email address to a personal email address you regularly check. If you already use a personal address, check that it is correct. This helps you stay connected when you are off duty, absent from work or changing jobs, without relying on access to a work inbox. An outdated address could mean missing voting instructions and important updates, so check your mobile number and home address too, and save any changes. Don’t wait until a ballot opens—make sure we can reach you now. Not yet a member? Join UNISON and help strengthen the voice of ambulance staff across Scotland. Update your details on My UNISON: my.unison.org.uk/ Join UNISON: my.unison.org.uk/join/ Visit our branch website for more information unisonsas.com/

This Remembrance Day, UNISON Scottish Ambulance Service Branch remembers those who lost their lives in war and all whose lives it has changed. The poppy asks us to remember The lives cut short, the futures lost; The families left with empty places, And those still living with the cost. We honour those who never came home, And those who carried others through; The hands that cared amid the fear, The love that loss could not undo. May remembrance shape the way we live, Long after poppies fade from view: With kindness, care and hope for peace In every act of good we do. We will remember them. #RemembranceDay #LestWeForget #UNISONSAS

💜 STRONGER TOGETHER Stress Awareness Week ends today. Our commitment to staff wellbeing continues. Across A&E, patient transport, control, fleet, administration and support services, every member deserves to feel heard, respected and supported. Your UNISON steward or health and safety representative can help you raise concerns, seek support and challenge working conditions that contribute to stress. As we finish the week, take one step: • Speak to someone if you are struggling. • Check in with a colleague. • Raise a workplace pressure that needs action. • Find out who your local UNISON representative is. Please contact your representative directly about personal concerns so they can be discussed privately. Support today. Change for tomorrow. UNISON Scottish Ambulance Service Branch — stronger together. unisonsas.com #StressAwarenessWeek #UNISONSAS #StrongerTogether

💜 REST. RECOVER. RECHARGE. Time to eat, drink, rest and recover matters for everyone working across the Scottish Ambulance Service. Long shifts, missed breaks and repeated late finishes can place extra pressure on staff and family life. UNISON’s message is clear: working arrangements must support staff wellbeing, with practical opportunities for breaks and recovery. If missed breaks, overruns or fatigue are becoming a pattern, record and raise your concerns through the appropriate service processes. Your UNISON steward or health and safety representative can help you seek action. If fatigue is affecting your ability to work safely, raise it promptly with the appropriate manager. Looking after the people who deliver our service must be a daily priority. unisonsas.com #StressAwarenessWeek #UNISONSAS #RestAndRecovery

💜 STRESS AWARENESS DAY: TACKLE THE CAUSES Work-related stress is a health and safety issue. Employers have a legal duty to assess the risks and act to address them. For UNISON Scottish Ambulance Service Branch, meaningful prevention means: • Safe staffing and manageable workloads. • Reliable opportunities for breaks and recovery. • Support following distressing incidents. • Action on bullying, harassment and violence. • Stress risk assessments that lead to practical changes. Staff and their representatives should be involved in identifying pressures, agreeing solutions and reviewing whether those solutions work. If recurring pressures are affecting you or your team, report them through the appropriate service processes and speak to your UNISON representative. Safe staffing. Manageable workloads. Real action. unisonsas.com #StressAwarenessDay #UNISONSAS #HealthAndSafety

💜 CHECK IN WITH EACH OTHER “How are you doing?” can open an important conversation. A difficult call, a demanding shift or pressures outside work can stay with someone long after their working day ends. Today, take a moment to check in with a colleague: • Find a quiet moment to ask how they are. • Listen without judgement or pressure to explain. • Ask what support would help. • Check in again afterwards. You do not need to have every answer. Listening and helping someone find support can make a difference. Where workplace pressures are involved, your UNISON steward or health and safety representative can help raise concerns. Ask. Listen. Support. unisonsas.com #StressAwarenessWeek #UNISONSAS #LookOutForEachOther

💜 YOUR WELLBEING MATTERS Today marks the start of Stress Awareness Week. Across the Scottish Ambulance Service, every role comes with pressures. Whether you work in A&E, patient transport, control, fleet, administration or support services, your wellbeing matters. Stress can show up as disrupted sleep, irritability, difficulty concentrating or feeling overwhelmed. You deserve support, and you can ask for it early. Speak to someone you trust. If work is contributing to how you feel, contact your UNISON steward or health and safety representative. If stress is affecting your health, speak to your GP or seek Occupational Health advice. UNISON Scottish Ambulance Service Branch stands with you. Every role. Every shift. Every member. unisonsas.com #StressAwarenessWeek #UNISONSAS #StaffWellbeing

📣 HAVE YOUR SAY ON THE FUTURE OF SCOTLAND’S PUBLIC SERVICES The people delivering Scotland’s public services must have a voice in shaping their future. The STUC has launched its Workers’ Inquiry to gather workers’ experiences and ideas in response to the Scottish Government’s public service reform agenda. UNISON is encouraging members across all public services to take part. You understand what works, the pressures facing your service and what needs to improve. Your responses will help the STUC and public sector trade unions develop demands and recommendations to put to the Scottish Government. 🚑 WHY THIS MATTERS TO SCOTTISH AMBULANCE SERVICE STAFF For SAS staff, this is an opportunity to highlight what would improve working conditions and patient care — including staffing, workload, resources and staff wellbeing. Whether you work in emergency response, PTS, ambulance control or support services, your experience matters. Help make sure the ambulance workforce is heard. 🔒 The survey is anonymous. 📅 Closing date: 30 November 2026 👉 Complete the survey: forms.cloud.microsoft/pages/… 📖 Read more about the STUC Workers’ Inquiry: stuc.org.uk/news/news/the-wo… Have your say. Share with colleagues. Help shape the future of our public services. #UNISON #UNISONSAS #STUC #PublicServices

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ANNEX 21 COLLECTIVE GRIEVANCE — UPDATE FOR MEMBERS Five years on from the original collective grievance, concerns about the Scottish Ambulance Service’s application of Annex 21 remain unresolved. Members deserve clear answers, meaningful progress and a fair outcome. UNISON, alongside our Staffside trade union colleagues, continues to pursue concerns about the financial disadvantage experienced by some trainee Advanced Practitioners (APs) through the application of Annex 21. This concerns staff who undertook training in good faith to develop their skills and support patient care. They should be able to have confidence that their pay arrangements are applied fairly and consistently. How did we get here? * September 2021: The original collective grievance was submitted. * 2024: The Scottish Terms and Conditions Committee (STAC) issued updated guidance following recognition that NHS Boards across Scotland were applying Annex 21 differently. This provided greater clarity but did not resolve the concerns raised by affected staff. * February 2025: A further collective grievance was submitted, addressing both the application of Annex 21 and the failure to conclude the original grievance. A Short Life Working Group was subsequently established, but no agreement has been reached. * March 2026: Staffside was advised that calculations relating to potential monies owed to affected staff were close to completion. * August 2026: Individual meetings with affected employees were expected to begin, following further advice that the calculation work remained ongoing. The latest Staffside update confirms that these meetings have not taken place. Why is Staffside concerned? The continuing delays have left affected members without a resolution or certainty about their individual position. Subsequent working group meetings have also been cancelled, further limiting progress. After five years, members need more than further delays. They need clarity about the calculations, an opportunity to discuss their individual circumstances and a clear timetable for bringing this matter to a conclusion. The issue has therefore been raised through partnership arrangements and escalated to NHS Scotland leadership and the Scottish Government, alongside other unresolved employment matters. What does this mean for affected members? The matter remains unresolved. Although calculations concerning potential monies owed have been discussed, there is currently no agreed outcome confirming whether individual payments will be made, their value or when they might be received. We recognise how frustrating this uncertainty is, particularly for colleagues who have been waiting for answers for several years. What should members do now? * Check your membership details: Make sure your union has your current contact information so you can receive updates and be contacted about your circumstances. * Keep relevant records: Retain contracts, training agreements, payslips, emails and other correspondence relating to your training and pay under Annex 21. * Contact your union representative if you believe you may be affected: This includes members who have since completed their training but have concerns about how their pay was calculated during that period. Please keep personal pay information and employment documents secure and share them directly with your representative when needed. Our commitment to members UNISON and our Staffside colleagues remain committed to securing a fair and equitable resolution. Staff who invested in their professional development should not be financially disadvantaged by the application of Annex 21. Members have waited long enough for clarity. We will continue to press for answers, accountability and a satisfactory conclusion, and share further updates as information becomes available.

📢 NO COMPULSORY REDUNDANCY: REASSURANCE FOR NHS SCOTLAND STAFF Following media reports that caused concern about job security during public service reform, UNISON Scotland’s Head of Health, Matt McLaughlin, wrote on behalf of NHS trade unions and professional organisations seeking clear answers. The message was firm: unions are open to strengthening and modernising our NHS, but will not support reform built on mass job losses and severe financial cuts. 📩 In her response dated 6 October, Cabinet Secretary for Health and Care Angela Constance stated: “There has been no change, and there will be no change, to the Scottish Government’s No Compulsory Redundancy (NCR) policy.” She also reaffirmed the Government’s commitment to working in partnership with trade unions as public service reform progresses, including within the NHS. 🚑 For Scottish Ambulance Service staff, this is important reassurance. However, protecting staff also means ensuring that any proposed changes are properly explained, scrutinised and discussed with the workforce through their unions. ✊ Staff deserve secure employment, meaningful consultation and a strong voice in decisions affecting their future. UNISON will continue to challenge uncertainty and stand up for members throughout this process. Your job. Your voice. Your union. #UNISON #UNISONScotland #ScottishAmbulanceService #NHSScotland #JobSecurity

🚨 THE COST OF LIVING IS STILL HITTING HARD Slower inflation doesn’t mean lower prices. For ambulance staff and their families, the cost of getting to work, paying the bills and putting food on the table continues to put pressure on household budgets. UNISON Scotland’s cost of living briefing highlights: ⛽ Motor fuel prices up by 23%. 📈 Consumer prices up by 3.1% in the year to August 2026. 💷 A median pay settlement of 3.8% across public and private sectors — which does not undo years of lost purchasing power. ‼️ A UNISON survey reporting that 94% of public service workers were struggling to make ends meet. For Scottish Ambulance Service staff, particularly colleagues travelling long distances across rural communities, rising fuel costs can take a significant bite out of wages. Staff should not be left carrying the cost. ✊ We need fair pay that protects living standards. 🚗 Mileage allowances that reflect the costs staff face when using their own vehicles for work. 🚑 Investment in public services and the people who deliver them. Our members work around the clock supporting others. They deserve financial security themselves. A stronger union means a stronger collective voice. Stand together with UNISON. 💜 ✊ NOT A MEMBER? JOIN UNISON With major changes being proposed, a strong collective voice matters. Join your colleagues in UNISON and help us stand up for jobs, fair pay, working conditions and the future of our public services. 👉 Join UNISON today: join.unison.org.uk/ 📲 ALREADY A MEMBER? KEEP YOUR DETAILS UP TO DATE Your voice matters—but we need to be able to reach you. Please check that UNISON has your correct personal email address, mobile number, home address and workplace details. Accurate details help ensure you receive important branch updates, consultation information and ballot communications when they matter most. 👉 Check and update your details through My UNISON: my.unison.org.uk/ Our services. Our jobs. Our voice. Stronger together. #UNISON #UNISONScotland #ScottishAmbulanceService #PublicServices

🚨 PUBLIC SERVICE REFORM: STAFF DESERVE ANSWERS Major changes to Scotland’s public services are being proposed—but what will they mean for the staff delivering them and the communities relying on them? UNISON Scotland’s October briefing to MSPs raises urgent questions about the plans, including proposals for two strategic mainland NHS boards and a review of Special Health Boards. 🚑 For Scottish Ambulance Service staff, we need clarity on what any review could mean for our service, our working lives and patient care. UNISON is demanding answers: 🔹 How will the changes improve services and patient outcomes? 🔹 Will existing organisational change agreements be honoured? 🔹 How will jobs, pay and conditions be protected? 🔹 What could changes mean for work locations, mobility and shared services? 🔹 How will vacancies and existing workforce pressures be addressed? 🔹 How will rural and island communities be protected? 🔹 When will staff and trade unions be meaningfully consulted? A commitment to no compulsory redundancies is welcome, but staff need to know what that protection means in practice. Meaningful consultation requires clear proposals, evidence and time for staff to have their say. Reform must deliver fairness, democratic accountability, genuine partnership and long-term investment. It must not become a cover for further cuts. ✊ NOT A MEMBER? JOIN UNISON With major changes being proposed, a strong collective voice matters. Join your colleagues in UNISON and help us stand up for jobs, fair pay, working conditions and the future of our public services. 👉 Join UNISON today: join.unison.org.uk/ 📲 ALREADY A MEMBER? KEEP YOUR DETAILS UP TO DATE Your voice matters—but we need to be able to reach you. Please check that UNISON has your correct personal email address, mobile number, home address and workplace details. Accurate details help ensure you receive important branch updates, consultation information and ballot communications when they matter most. 👉 Check and update your details: my.unison.org.uk/ Our services. Our jobs. Our voice. Stronger together.

💜 YOU CARE FOR OTHERS. YOUR UNION STANDS WITH YOU. 💜 Clinical knowledge and technical skills prepare you for the job. Having support, protection and a strong collective voice helps you build a sustainable career. Ambulance staff face difficult decisions, demanding shifts and immense pressure. You deserve to be heard, treated fairly and supported when work takes its toll. That’s why being part of UNISON matters. Together, we stand up for: ✊ Fair pay and working conditions 🛡️ Your rights, safety and dignity at work 💜 Staff wellbeing and support 🗣️ A stronger voice when decisions affect your working life UNISON Scottish Ambulance Service Branch brings members together to challenge unfair treatment and campaign for the conditions our workforce deserves. You support patients every day. Let your union support you. 💜 Join UNISON today: unison.org.uk/join #UNISON #ScottishAmbulanceService #StrongerTogether #JoinUNISON

🚨 PUBLIC SERVICE REFORM — WHAT WILL THIS MEAN FOR SCOTTISH AMBULANCE SERVICE STAFF? UNISON Scotland has warned that, almost a month into the Scottish Government’s three-month consultation on major public service reform, staff and trade unions are still being asked to engage without the basic detail needed to understand what is actually being proposed. For Scottish Ambulance Service staff, that should matter. Major reform across the NHS and wider public sector could potentially affect how services are structured, how they are funded, where decisions are made, staffing models, management structures, local service provision and ultimately the jobs of the people delivering frontline care. Yet UNISON says there is still insufficient clarity around: 🔹 Workforce planning 🔹 Financial modelling 🔹 The cost of restructuring 🔹 Implementation timescales 🔹 Impact assessments 🔹 How services will supposedly improve 🔹 What the changes could mean for staff 🔹 What the changes could mean for patients and local communities At a time when ambulance staff are already working under enormous pressure, this cannot become another exercise where frontline services are reorganised from the top down while the workforce is expected to simply absorb the consequences. Our members need answers. Will reform mean changes to ambulance stations or local service provision? Will there be changes to staffing establishments, shift patterns or deployment models? Could management structures be merged or removed? Will services be centralised? Will posts disappear, be redesigned or transferred? What investment will actually accompany these changes? And most importantly — how will any reform improve care for patients and working conditions for staff? UNISON Scottish Secretary Lilian Macer said: “Almost a month into a three-month consultation, ministers are still asking unions to take part in discussions over plans with no detail or clarity. “Without evidence around workforce planning, financial modelling or impact assessments, it’s difficult to see how these proposals are expected to improve services for people. Or if they’re even feasible. “UNISON wants to work constructively with ministers, but no consultation can be based on guesswork.” For ambulance staff, reform must not become a cover for cuts, centralisation, reduced local resilience, fewer frontline resources or doing more with less. Any proposed change must be backed by evidence, fully risk assessed and developed through genuine consultation with the workforce and recognised trade unions. Staff who deliver the service every day deserve to know what is being proposed before decisions are effectively made for them. 📣 MEMBERS — PLEASE KEEP YOUR UNISON DETAILS UP TO DATE This is particularly important during periods of consultation, restructuring and potential service change. UNISON can only keep members properly informed if we have your correct personal email address, mobile number, workplace and employment details. Important updates, consultation information, ballots and opportunities for members to have their say may all depend on the contact information held on your membership record. If you have changed station, workplace, role, mobile number, email address or home address, please make sure your UNISON membership details are updated. Good communication matters. If major changes are proposed, we want every member to hear about them, understand what they could mean and have the opportunity to make their voice heard. You can check and update your membership details through My UNISON: unison.org.uk/my-unison/ 📄 Read UNISON Scotland’s full e-Brief on public service reform: unison-scotland.org/wp-conte… 🌐 Visit UNISON Scotland: unison-scotland.org/ Public service reform cannot be based on guesswork. It must be transparent, properly funded and shaped with the people who actually deliver Scotland’s public services. And if change is coming, our members must be informed, organised and heard. #UNISON #UNISONScotland #ScottishAmbulanceService #SAS #NHSScotland #PublicServiceReform #AmbulanceService #FrontlineStaff #ProtectOurNHS #PublicServices #TradeUnion #MyUNISON I can also tighten this into a more shareable Facebook version with a stronger “Check your details now” callout near the top.

🚨 NOW OPEN: UNISON SEASONAL FOOD FUND 2026 🛒💚💜 Applications for UNISON’s Seasonal Food Fund are now open for 24 hours only. Eligible members experiencing financial difficulty can apply for a £30 food voucher for each qualifying person in their household, including themselves, their partner and dependent children. ⏰ Applications close at 12 noon on Thursday 1 October 2026. Funding is limited and eligible applicants will be selected at random, so please apply within the 24-hour window. You will need your UNISON membership number. 👇 Check the eligibility criteria and apply now: unison.org.uk/there-for-you/… Please share urgently with colleagues who may benefit. 💚 #UNISON #ThereForYou #SeasonalFoodFund #NowOpen #SupportingOurMembers

📢 NHS SCOTLAND PAY CLAIM 2027/28 – STAFF SIDE CLAIM SUBMITTED NHS trade unions representing staff covered by Agenda for Change in Scotland have agreed a joint pay claim for the period 1 April 2027 to 31 March 2028. The claim recognises the continued pressures facing NHS staff — including the cost-of-living crisis, rising household costs, increased pension contributions, safe staffing concerns and frustration where nationally agreed terms are not consistently delivered. 💷 The 2027/28 claim calls for: • A significant, above-inflation cost-of-living increase across all Agenda for Change pay rates and allowances. • Any offer to be underpinned by a commitment to CPI + %. • Implementation of the outstanding pay modernisation proposals from 2023/24, in addition to the cost-of-living increase. • Further modernisation of Agenda for Change, including a fair deal on supplementary allowances such as on-call, subsistence and Distant Islands Allowance. 🚑 NHS staff have continued to deliver through extraordinary pressure. Pay must recognise the true cost of living and the value of the workforce that keeps NHS Scotland running. We will keep members updated as the 2027/28 pay round progresses. ✊ UNISON Scottish Ambulance Service Branch #UNISON #NHSScotlandPay #AgendaForChange #Pay2027 #FairPay

✊ This is what being in a union means. UNISON Glasgow City Branch has stood firm with its members. Following meetings with the Scottish Government and joint trade unions, Glasgow City Council has paused its proposed fire and rehire plans so talks can begin. Those talks still need to deliver for workers, but this pause shows the power of standing together. Across Scotland’s public services, staff face uncertainty about funding, jobs and working conditions. Ambulance staff know how important it is to have a strong collective voice when decisions affect our work and the services we provide. A union brings members together to challenge unfair decisions, negotiate for better terms and support one another when it matters. Stand with your colleagues. Join UNISON today. 💜💚 #JoinUNISON #StrongerTogether #PublicServices #ScottishAmbulanceService unison.org.uk/join

⏰ PROMISES WON’T GET OUR CREWS HOME ON TIME. ACTION WILL. End-of-shift overruns are a serious concern for ambulance staff. Evidence raised during the Rest Break Test of Change highlighted crews being kept late through enforced overruns, particularly when jobs are allocated in the final hour of a shift and through lengthy hospital turnaround times. In June, the Trade Unions put forward a proposal to address these issues. We were told a Short Life Working Group would be set up to take the work forward. Four months later, there has been no meaningful progress. Our members should not be left carrying the consequences of delays and decisions beyond their control, especially as we head into Winter Pressures and NHS reform. The Trade Unions remain ready to work towards a practical solution. We are calling for the June proposal to be properly considered and for meaningful progress on incident allocation and hospital turnaround. The 94% mandate for industrial action on a high turnout showed the strength of feeling among members in the Rest Break dispute. The message is clear: commitments must lead to action. 📣 Keep your UNISON membership details up to date so you receive the latest updates. #UNISON #ScottishAmbulanceService #EndOfShift #RestBreaks

🚑 THE TECH TO PARA CAMPAIGN IS GATHERING PACE! AND NOW IN THE NEWS HEADLINES! 🚑 More than 700 Scottish Ambulance Service workers have backed the call for a proper Technician-to-Paramedic development pathway—and our public petition is now approaching an incredible 4,000 signatures! Experienced ambulance technicians should not have to leave paid NHS employment and attend university full-time simply to progress. For staff with families, mortgages and caring responsibilities, the current route can make career development financially impossible—regardless of their skills, experience or years of frontline service. A fair, supported and accessible pathway would: ✅ Invest in our existing workforce ✅ Recognise technicians’ experience and clinical skills ✅ Remove financial barriers to progression ✅ Improve recruitment and staff retention ✅ Help address paramedic shortages, particularly in remote and rural communities With growing public support and backing across UNISON, GMB and Unite, the message is becoming impossible to ignore: 📣 Develop the workforce you already have. 📣 Remove the barriers to progression. 📣 Create a fair Technician-to-Paramedic pathway now. ✍️ Help us reach 4,000 signatures—and keep going! Please sign the petition and share it with your friends, family and colleagues: 🔗 change.org/p/create-a-fair-r… 📰 Read the Glasgow Times report: 🔗 glasgowtimes.co.uk/news/scot… This campaign is gathering pace. Together, we can make change happen. #TechToPara #TechnicianToParamedic #UNISON #CareerProgression #NHSScotland