Sunscreen, EmbRACE & Colleague Thank You Vouchers

Colleague Thank You Vouchers Go Live

Following the voting results at the AGM, eligible colleagues will have now received their colleague thank you vouchers digitally via the Your Co-op Members app. All the details including eligibility can be found here.

I would like to say thank you for everything you have done over the last year and all you continue to do. With it being pay day today, you can take also advantage of the further colleague discounts, including the additional 10% off all Fairtrade products. Click here to find out more.

 

EmbRACE

Earlier this week the Executive and I had an update on our Diversity and Inclusion work. I was particularly keen to hear of the progress of our EmbRACE working group, following on from the interview I had with Julian Wilkins during our AGM in May.

One of the members of the group, Ramz Sandhu, wrote a brilliant update earlier this week on Colleague Connect into the festival celebration of Raksha Bandhan. If you haven’t had the chance to read it yet, then I would really recommend you do so by clicking here.

Each month the EmbRACE group also share an update on any upcoming religious festivals, so please keep an eye out for the August update next week.

 

VAT Sunscreen Campaign Update – Your Co-op Pharmacy

Something I have discussed previously is the ongoing campaign to remove VAT from sunscreen products. I am pleased to say that Co-op Party & Co-op Pharmacy are working in partnership to continue the call for change.

At the moment sunscreen is classified as a cosmetic product by the government and therefore attracts a full VAT treatment of 20%. The basis of the campaign is to have sunscreen re-classified as an ‘Essential Healthcare’ product, which would then mean it would be free of VAT, reducing the price by 20%.

Given the current economic climate, hot weather and Cancer Research UK’s findings that getting sunburnt just once every two years can triple the risk of melanoma skin cancer, we are working hard to bring about change. You can sign the petition here or write to your local MP here.

 

Colleague Pulse Survey is Now Live

The latest colleague pulse survey opened yesterday and closes on 7 August. This is your chance to take part and let us know your views. All you need to do is log in via Colleagues Connect, and the survey link will be shown in your notifications(link).

Taking part in the survey ensures we gain an overall view of what colleagues think and from this, we can make positive changes for the better. I encourage everyone to take part and share the survey with fellow colleagues. Entries are anonymous, and if you take part, you have a chance to win one of five £20 Your Co-op Vouchers. To find out more, click here.

For next week's blog I will be sitting down with Rebekah Smallwood, our Society Engagement Manager, to discuss our Pulse Surveys. If you have any questions for myself or Rebekah, please share them in the comment below and we'll do our best to answer them in next week's blog.

 

Finally, good luck to the Lionesses who have reached the final of the Women’s Football Euros on Sunday, it’s fantastic to see the growth of the women’s game and let’s hope they bring it home! This weekend also sees the start of the Commonwealth Games, which I’ll be watching with interest.

 

If you enjoyed this week's blog, why not give it a 'Heart' above or leave a comment below.