The place of community organising in union strategies

Unions 21 has produced an excellent and very readable booklet on the debate around community organising, with interesting examples and a thought provoking chapter from Professor Jane Holgate on union approaches. There is also a good solid summary of where we are in the introduction by TUC officers Kevin Rowan and Carl Roper. it is a worthwhile read for all UNISON activists engaged in our campaigns nationally and in local campaigns where we need to work with service users in a community: http://www.unions21.org.uk/download/371

Winning people to the union cause

‘I’m personally committed to unions devoting ever more resources to organising, to be willing to take risks about the new models of trade unionism we develop to reflect the real working lives of people today rather than a generation ago, I think there’s something more profound that we have to tackle. This is about rebuilding support for collective values, solidarity, people looking after each other, equality, compassion, dignity at work. These are very basic values but I don’t think we should take them for granted’ says TUC General Secretary Frances O’Grady in a wide ranging interview in Red Pepper on the challenges facing the British trade union movement today:
http://www.redpepper.org.uk/persuading-the-unpersuaded-frances-ogrady-interview/

Durham - a reminder of our collective strength

The massive turnout at yesterday’s 129th Durham Miners Gala proved once again why it is the key event in the labour movement calendar bringing together trade unionists, political activists and other campaigning organisations to show the collective voice and strength of ordinary people.
   We should never forget our collective history, whilst looking to change the future - the 'Big Meeting' is a political event which reminds us of our collective strength.
   Speakers including TUC General Secretary Frances O’Grady and Mirror journalist Kevin Maguire hammered home this point in well received speeches. A contingent of UNISON strikers from Future Directions in Rochdale received great support on the march:
http://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/news/10546842.Fun_in_the_sun_for_50_000_plus__as_police_hail_Durham_Miners__Gala_a_huge_success/

Quality public services for all on International Workers’ Day – 1 May 2013

“We have a responsibility to future generations to protect trade union and social rights. We must join in collective action to ensure that in the future quality public services will be available to young and old, generating social justice and equality for all,” says Rosa Pavenelli in her first May Day message as General Secretary of Public Services International. Rosa will be speaking at UNISON conference in June:
http://www.world-psi.org/en/quality-public-services-all-international-workers-day-1-may-2013

Trade Unions alive and well? Only if we’re kicking...

‘Thatcherism is unfortunately alive and well, but so – thankfully – is trade unionism,’ says Carl Roper of the TUC, writing on the Stronger Unions blog. Carl makes an important point that ‘the paradox of Margaret Thatcher's policies is that whilst proclaiming the illegitimacy and irrelevance of unions they actually reinforced the need for collective representation of working people.’ Of course unions are alive but we can be less confident that the condition of the trade unions in the UK is ‘well’ whatever criteria is used - membership density, collective bargaining coverage, political influence etc.