You are:

Other useful courses

These are some of the courses that you as a rep might find useful. They are run from the PCS national and regional offices.

Thinking of becoming a rep?

This short course is aimed at PCS members who might be interested in taking on the role of representative.

It covers what PCS is and how it works, how members can play a role in PCS, and what help and support is available. Thinking of Being a Rep? is run either in one day or over two or three (day or evening) sessions.

Introductory women's course

A three-day course aimed at new women reps or women who are thinking about becoming more active in the union.

This course is aimed at new women reps or women who are thinking about becoming more active in the union. It aims to build confidence and seeks to provide you with information about PCS and how the union is structured.

The introductory women's course aims to strengthen women's involvement in the union. It is held once a year and coincides with the TUC Women's Week course in London.

The course covers a wide range of issues and skill development areas including:dealing with personal cases; preparing for negotiations with management; recruitment and increasing women's involvement in PCS; public speaking and wider social and political issues that affect women.

Introductory black members

A two-day course is aimed at black and asian representatives or members who are thinking about becoming reps.

This two-day course is aimed at black and asian representatives or members who are thinking about becoming reps.

The course aims to examine issues of concern to black members and to explain PCS structures. It is also intended to develop a range of skills. It covers: gender differences in discrimination; drafting skills - including motions for conference; public speaking; handling personal cases and personal objective setting.

Health and safety

A two-day introductory course for new reps.

This course aims to help you: understand the role of the health and safety representative, risk assessment and basic health and safety law; gain confidence in the role; and develop skills to analyse problems.
The course covers:

  • workplace surveys
  • the statutory position of health and safety reps
  • risk assessment
  • health and safety inspections.

Please note that this course is not intended to replace the 10-day course organised by the TUC which is recommended for all safety representatives.

The health and safety course is fully accredited by the National Open College Network.

Branch learning co-ordinators

A three day course for branch learning co-ordinators.

This course is aimed specifically at branch learning coordinators. It aims to help them to:

  • recruit, organise and support a network of learning representatives in their branch
  • negotiate on learning issues on behalf of their members
  • deal with personal cases related to learning
  • use the learning agenda to organise in their branch.

Dealing with sexuality and transgender issues in the workplace

A two-day course designed for PCS representatives who negotiate with management or have responsibility at branch or group level for equality and diversity issues.

The course aims to help you to:

  • understand the issues faced by lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) PCS members
  • develop a basic knowledge of the legislation that protects LGBT people
  • improve your skills and confidence when dealing with issues around sexuality or transgender
  • provide support and recruit LGBT members to PCS.

Branch treasurers

This one day course, aimed at branch treasurers and auditors, is run in conjunction with the PCS Finance Department.

The course covers basic record keeping skills, expenditure that can and cannot be claimed through branch funds and how the rebate system works.

Employment tribunals and advocacy

This course is aimed at experienced representatives who have responsibility within branches, regions, groups or bargaining units for handling Employment Tribunals.

The course covers the whole process, including applications to ETs and CSABs, timescales, the preparation for hearings, and obtaining legal advice. It also looks at advocacy skills including presenting the case, cross examination and closing the case.

Reps will be made aware of the PCS Employment Law Toolkit, and will get the chance to practice their skills on actual case studies.

Work-life balance

This two-day course aims to equip union representatives to negotiate and organise for work-life balance. The course aims to help you:

  • understand the law on work-life balance
  • think through how you can support and represent your members on work-life balance
  • think about how you can campaign to improve members' work-life balance.

Advanced personal cases

This course is targeted at reps who deal with more complicated cases, including discipline and grievance cases, which could potentially lead to dismissal.

The course also covers misconduct, sick absence and capability issues, as well as giving guidance on legislative provisions.

Reps will learn how to use legal advice and assistance and will get an introduction to settlements and compromise agreements and the role of ACAS. Reps will also get an introduction to the processes for employment tribunal (ET) and civil servcie appeals board cases.

Advanced course for PCS reps

The Advanced Course for PCS Reps has been especially developed for experienced PCS representatives who have been through the range of PCS or TUC courses and who wish to deepen their understanding of trade unions and the world in which they operate.

It will be particularly useful for those who have been out of formal education for some time or have few formal qualifications.

At the end of the course you will get an Access to Higher Education Certificate which you can use to go on to further or higher education or study for professional qualifications.

The course lasts for one year and consists of regular study groups and independent study. Areas of study include:

  • Public Service and Privatisation
  • Influencing Government
  • Industrial Relations and Trade Unionism
  • Changes in Work Organisation
  • The European Union
  • Research Methods
  • Globalisation.

There is no cost to PCS representatives selected for the course. This course is currently going through a second pilot in Yorks & Humberside. We hope to roll the course out throughout 2008. 

Social Bookmarking

How to use social bookmarking