Working Better Together

Frances O’Grady Adam Marshall Dave Prentis Andrew Harrop Brendan Barber Adam Memon

Untitled-1 1 18/08/2015 10:43:56

The General Federation of Trade Unions has more to offer than ever before.

• The GFTU family is growing, there are now 23 Trade Unions affiliated• The GFTU Next Generation Festival will take place 13 - 15 May 2016 #NGF16• The GFTU offers affiliates core and customised training courses• The GFTU has just completed a 2 stage mentoring course, training

experienced trade unionists to support younger trade unionists• The second GFTU Trade Union Management Development Programme starts

25th September 2015 and is ILM accredited• The GFTU will be hosting a summit in November 2015 on shared services

between Trade Unions• The Quorn Grange Hotel is owned by the GFTU and is the perfect

place to hold your conference, meeting or just for a relaxing getaway www.quorngrangehotel.co.uk

For more information please contact us:T: 01509 410 853

E: sean@gftu.org.ukW: www.gftu.org.uk

Twitter: @GFTU1

GFTU.indd 1 18/08/2015 11:23:51

21-27 AUGUST 2015 | NEW STATESMAN | 3

CO

VE

R: S

HU

TT

ER

STO

CK

/DE

SIG

N B

Y F

FILL

ME

IN

New Statesman2nd Floor71-73 Carter LaneLondon EC4V 5EQTel 020 7936 6400info@ newstatesman.co.ukSubscription inquiries, reprints and syndication rights: Stephen Brasher sbrasher@ newstatesman.co.uk0800 731 8496

Supplement EditorsGareth JonesTom CollingeProductionLeon ParksSub-EditorPeter Barker

Commercial DirectorPeter Coombs020 3096 2268Account ManagerHarry Browning020 3096 2267

CONTENTS

Working Better TogetherIt was once suggested that there is no such thing as society. Yet even as public spending is cut by historic levels, larger forces are pushing us together. The internet, in particular, has provided a means for sharing information and experiences on a vast scale, while Airbnb and Uber appear to be ushering in what pundits call “the sharing economy”. The connections between us, and their value, are becoming ever more visible.

At the same time, however, the relationships between some of our longer-standing institutions appear to be under threat. We need look no further than the Labour leadership contest, in which the support for Jeremy Corbyn from the likes of Unite and Unison starkly illustrates the widening

gulf between the trade union movement and the mainstream parliamentary party. Andrew Harrop has assessed the rocky relationship between Labour and the unions in recent years, and his analysis is on pages four to six.

Meanwhile, the election of a Conservative-majority government presents the trade union movement with an even bigger challenge. The Trade Union Bill is poised to impose fundamental restrictions on how unions may engage with their members, specifically when balloting for strike action or raising money for political activities. Dave Prentis and Adam Memon make the cases for and against the bill on pages eight and nine.

It is also evident that relationships are changing across

Could unions disaffiliate from Labour?

4 Andrew HarropA link on the brinkLabour-union relationship faces historic threat

8 Dave Prentis v Adam MemonWithin striking distanceAre ballot restrictions necessary or ideological?

10 Peter Ackers and Jim MoherStriking parallelsHow industrial action has changed over the decades

13 Frances O’GradyContinental driftEU renegotiation must protect worker rights

Restrictions on striking: fair or foul?

geographic borders. As David Cameron looks to renegotiate Britain’s membership of the European Union, Frances O’Grady looks at what this might imply for worker rights and how (page 13), while Grahame Smith explores how the decline of Labour in Scotland is leading to new alliances between Scottish trade unionists and the SNP (page 14).

Finally, there’s the age-old relationship that lies at the heart of the trade union movement: the one between employer and employee. Brendan Barber reveals the ingredients of a good relationship that will improve conditions for workers without the need for strike action. If the Trade Union Bill passes, the art of negotiation may become more important than ever. l

14 Grahame SmithEmbracing the unionsTrade unionists are building links with the SNP

15 Vox PopsWorking smarter not harderHow do we solve the UK’s productivity puzzle?

18 Brendan BarberNot just tea and toiletsListening is key to employer-employee relations

23 ListingsTrade union directoryKey contacts in the union movement

The history of strike action

4

The paper in this magazine originates from timber that is sourced from sustainable forests, responsibly managed to strict environmental, social and economic standards. The manufacturing mills have both FSC and PEFC certification and also ISO9001 and ISO14001 accreditation.

First published as a supplement to the New Statesman of 21-27 August 2015. © New Statesman Ltd. All rights reserved. Registered as a newspaper in the UK.

This, and other policy reports, can be downloaded from the NS website at newstatesman.com/page/supplements

8 10

Untitled-2 3 18/08/2015 10:59:26

4 | NEW STATESMAN | 21-27 AUGUST 2015

LABOUR AND THE UNIONS

The 2015 general election was a ter-rible setback, not just for the Labour Party, but for the trade union move-

ment, too: within days of coming to pow-er, the new Conservative government had unveiled an assault on union free-doms on a scale unseen since the 1980s. There could not be a starker reminder of how the fortunes of the trade unions and the Labour Party are joined. Ever since the formation of the Labour Party in 1900, it has been Labour MPs who have champi-oned trade union rights, and Tory gov-ernments that have undermined them.

But for the affiliated unions the minu-tiae of the election results offered some small consolation. Although the overall number of Labour MPs elected was far too low, the 2015 intake is probably the most pro-trade-union cohort in decades. Many are former union officials – people such as Richard Burgon, Vicky Foxcroft, Rachael Maskell, Chris Matheson, Melanie Onn, Angela Rayner and Daniel Zeichner – and others are unquestionably on the left of the parliamentary party.

The composition of the new intake reflects the general sentiment of Labour Party members under Ed Miliband’s lead-ership, with constituency parties keen to signal a break from the Blair/Brown years. But it is also a consequence of the huge efforts made by the big affiliates to win parliamentary selection contests. The rumours and allegations surround-ing the Falkirk selection gave the impres-sion that the unions were trying to sub-vert Labour’s selection processes. The

more humdrum reality is that they had the money, people and expertise to run highly professional selection campaigns, working within the party rules to win se-cret ballots.

Yet despite the affiliated unions’ suc-cess in shifting the parliamentary arith-metic, the Labour-union link is under threat. Indeed, the next five years could present the greatest challenge to a united labour movement in over a century. The story begins in 2010 with the election of Ed Miliband as Labour leader. He won because of union endorsements – and also because some of the affiliates directly promoted his candidacy alongside ballot papers. But the manner of his election always cast a shadow over his leadership and his relationship with the unions.

Miliband was the most left-leaning prime ministerial candidate in a gen-eration. But throughout the 2010 to 2015 parliament the trade unions were uneasy about Labour’s overall direction and the management of party-affiliate relations. One low point came in 2012 when Ed Balls failed to provide advance warning before endorsing the coalition’s cap on public-sector wage rises. Informal dis-cussions after the Falkirk crisis were also badly mishandled. Miliband’s previous

association with the unions was a prime driver behind the radical reforms to the union link which followed.

But the unions’ real beef was with the leadership’s approach to austerity. As the election neared, the Institute for Fiscal Studies highlighted the huge gulf in the fiscal plans of the parties; but many in the union movement believed that Labour was failing to do enough to defend public spending. Some on the left were always going to be dissatisfied, but Miliband and Balls also obscured how much leeway for spending they had, choosing to present their plans as more hawkish than they really were.

Despite all their concerns, the unions played a major part in the election cam-paign, pouring money into the national party coffers and manpower into critical marginal seats. But as the scale of the de-feat became clear, a new rupture emerged. Subsequently, all the mainstream candi-dates for the party leadership concluded that Labour would only win again by reaching out to the centre ground. They talked tough on the public finances and seemed to position themselves to the right of Miliband.

As a result, many of the unions ini-tially felt reluctant to endorse a candidate; eventually, several of them backed Jer-emy Corbyn, the standard-bearer of the far left and a man with no chance of being elected as prime minister. This marked a new chapter in their relationship with Labour, which must put the long-term affiliation of unions such as Unite in

Political disagreements, potential changes to the law and hardening public attitudes have put the relationship between the Labour Party and the unions at tipping point

By Andrew Harrop

A link on the brink

The next five years could present the greatest

challenge in over a century

t

UK government crackdown on trade union rights tears another strip off Magna Carta

By Philip Jennings, General Secretary of UNI Global Union

The Conservative government crackdown on trade union rights goes against the spirit of the Magna Carta, which is celebrating its 800th anniversary this year. Freedom and justice enshrined in that document are under attack by Cameron’s anti-trade union laws because they aim to take away a worker’s right to legally protest. According to the recent ITUC global index on the world’s worst countries for workers, the UK is now down in the third division with countries such as Russia and Albania. The Tory government’s trade union proposals are in danger of sinking the UK’s human rights reputation still further while tearing another strip off the Magna Carta. Cameron is out of step and out of time – the proposals not only go against the 800 year old Magna Carta, they go against the decent work aims of the United Nations’ 2030 Sustainable Development Goals.

The proposals are putting legal manacles on the right to strike. Even when the legal limits have been satisfied, employers will be allowed to use agency workers as strike breakers. The Conservative government has failed to do its homework – bringing in temporary workers as strike breakers is inconsistent with international conventions. The international body representing the interests of agency work businesses, CIETT, has always been clear that agency employees should not be used to replace striking workers – a position confirmed by CIETT in a Memorandum of Understanding with UNI Global Union.

These measures are an attack on the British trade union

movement and will widen the income divide in the UK to catastrophic levels – at a time where inequality is being recognised as a killer of growth by organisations as diverse as the IMF, the World Bank, the OECD and the central banks. The IMF has admitted that the fall in unionisation in advanced economies and its impact on workers’ negotiation power is a key contributor to the rise of economic inequality. We know only too well what happens when workers are not allowed to protest or withdraw their labour. When workers at the Rana Plaza garment factory complex in Bangladesh were forced to work in a building known to be unsafe the results were deadly.

The Government is bringing its over-the-top, anti-union activities to social media as well as the streets with proposals for intrusive control of trade union protests. For example, the government will require trade union members to provide their employers with two weeks’ notice of what they plan to post on Facebook or Twitter during a period of industrial action; and unions will be penalised if a member uses a loudspeaker at a protest without first having informed the authorities. The waste of police time that will have to go into implementing these plans is hardly something you would expect given the UK’s proud tradition of liberty.

UNI Global Union and its 20 million members stand with the TUC in demanding that the government’s trade union bill is ripped up, rather than shredding the principles of justice represented by the Magna Carta.

Untitled-3 4 18/08/2015 13:02:44

UK government crackdown on trade union rights tears another strip off Magna Carta

By Philip Jennings, General Secretary of UNI Global Union

The Conservative government crackdown on trade union rights goes against the spirit of the Magna Carta, which is celebrating its 800th anniversary this year. Freedom and justice enshrined in that document are under attack by Cameron’s anti-trade union laws because they aim to take away a worker’s right to legally protest. According to the recent ITUC global index on the world’s worst countries for workers, the UK is now down in the third division with countries such as Russia and Albania. The Tory government’s trade union proposals are in danger of sinking the UK’s human rights reputation still further while tearing another strip off the Magna Carta. Cameron is out of step and out of time – the proposals not only go against the 800 year old Magna Carta, they go against the decent work aims of the United Nations’ 2030 Sustainable Development Goals.

The proposals are putting legal manacles on the right to strike. Even when the legal limits have been satisfied, employers will be allowed to use agency workers as strike breakers. The Conservative government has failed to do its homework – bringing in temporary workers as strike breakers is inconsistent with international conventions. The international body representing the interests of agency work businesses, CIETT, has always been clear that agency employees should not be used to replace striking workers – a position confirmed by CIETT in a Memorandum of Understanding with UNI Global Union.

These measures are an attack on the British trade union

movement and will widen the income divide in the UK to catastrophic levels – at a time where inequality is being recognised as a killer of growth by organisations as diverse as the IMF, the World Bank, the OECD and the central banks. The IMF has admitted that the fall in unionisation in advanced economies and its impact on workers’ negotiation power is a key contributor to the rise of economic inequality. We know only too well what happens when workers are not allowed to protest or withdraw their labour. When workers at the Rana Plaza garment factory complex in Bangladesh were forced to work in a building known to be unsafe the results were deadly.

The Government is bringing its over-the-top, anti-union activities to social media as well as the streets with proposals for intrusive control of trade union protests. For example, the government will require trade union members to provide their employers with two weeks’ notice of what they plan to post on Facebook or Twitter during a period of industrial action; and unions will be penalised if a member uses a loudspeaker at a protest without first having informed the authorities. The waste of police time that will have to go into implementing these plans is hardly something you would expect given the UK’s proud tradition of liberty.

UNI Global Union and its 20 million members stand with the TUC in demanding that the government’s trade union bill is ripped up, rather than shredding the principles of justice represented by the Magna Carta.

Untitled-3 5 18/08/2015 13:02:44

LABOUR AND THE UNIONS

6 | NEW STATESMAN | 21-27 AUGUST 2015

RE

X F

EA

TU

RE

S

doubt. While Unite’s vast member-ship reflects Britain at large, and includes a great many Conservative and Ukip vot-ers, its leadership is now well to the left of mainstream Labour.

In 2014, the press reported debate with-in Unite on whether to disaffiliate in the event of Labour losing the election, per-haps to support a radical workers’ party. Many of Unite’s Scottish activists, mean-while, sought independence in order to build links with the Scottish National Party. Then, as the leadership election began, the Unite general secretary, Len McCluskey, spoke of the possibility of disaffiliation if the “correct” candidate was not elected. Whatever the outcome of the contest, if the link between Labour and Britain’s biggest union is to survive, strenuous efforts will be needed to reset the relationship.

However, these political disagreements are only the backdrop to an even greater threat to the union-Labour link: the Con-servatives’ Trade Union Bill, which if passed in its current form, will practically kill union political funds. Currently these funds are worth £24m a year and are used for non-party campaigning, as well as to support Labour, in the case of the affiliat-ed unions. The affiliation fees themselves

account for £8m – almost a quarter of the party’s annual budget.

Today the levies that finance the po-litical funds are “opt-out” and union members do not necessarily pay less if they choose not to contribute. Under the proposed legislation, every member will need to “opt in” and pay extra to do so; they will have to give their permis-sion again every five years, in a narrow three-month window; and consent must be in writing, not electronically or by re-corded phone call. With these conditions in place, it is inconceivable that more than 5 per cent of union members will opt in – it could even be much less than that.

This would certainly reflect experience of the new “opt-in” arrangements for un-ion members to take part in Labour Party elections. Some unions have decided they cannot justify the resource of a big cam-paign to sign up their members as “affili-ated supporters”. But even Unite, which is actively recruiting using call centres, has signed up only 50,000 of its 1.3 mil-lion members in Great Britain.

These changes to Labour’s rules, im-plemented after the 2013 Falkirk selection scandal, were hailed at the time as a means of rejuvenating the relationship be-tween the party and rank-and-file union

members. The laudable aim is to turn the members of the affiliated unions into true party supporters, with the long-term goal of drawing them into local campaigning and activism. But with low sign-up rates, the influence of union members has been much less in this leadership election than in the past. And it will be harder for the unions to justify their affiliation – or at least the numbers they choose to affiliate – if very few members have actively cho-sen to be party supporters. In any case, Labour’s voluntary attempts to democra-tise the union link – and the understanda-ble concerns they have generated – are be-ing overtaken by events. Labour’s union funding already looked likely to fall, but the Trade Union Bill and the near death of political funds will lead it to an almost complete end. Only the House of Lords stands between the proposals (which were not included in the Conservative manifesto) and the statute book.

The whole labour movement will unite to resist this nakedly political assault. But that should not be an excuse for an unquestioning defence of the status quo. There are grave flaws with the way the link works, which hurt the party and the unions alike. The left needs its own agen-da for reform.

In particular, the union link is no long-er working as a conveyor belt to bring typical shop-floor, non-graduate work-ers into parliament. This is because union membership in the private sector is too low; many union-backed candidates are professional union officials, not ordinary members; and the unions are as guilty as anyone else in creating an “arms race” in parliamentary selection contests, which increasingly leads to the exclusion of can-didates from diverse backgrounds.

While the Labour Party is on the de-fensive about its relations with the un-ions, affiliation does not even serve the latter’s policy interests. The 2015 general election offers the perfect illustration. Labour’s 2015 manifesto made just one mention, in more than 80 pages, of the phrase “trade union”.

Ed Miliband was the unions’ man and he championed the reform of capital-ism. But because of his union baggage, he could never state the blindingly obvious: that a fairer economy requires stronger collective bargaining. lAndrew Harrop is the general secretary of the Fabian Society

Some unions have backed Jeremy Corbyn (centre right) in the Labour leadership race

t

Untitled-3 6 18/08/2015 13:02:47

PUBLIC MEETING THE PEOPLE’S POST RALLY A debate on the future of the British Postal Service and the

People’s Assembly week of action

MANCHESTER CATHEDRAL MONDAY 5TH OCTOBER

7PM

SPEAKERS

Dave Ward CWU General Secretary Terry Pullinger CWU Deputy General Secretary (Postal)

Jeremy Corbyn MP Owen Jones – Political Commentator Lindsey German - People’s Assembly

Kevin Maguire – Associate Editor Mirror Mark McGowan – Artist Taxi Driver

Ellie Mae O’Hagan – Class Thinktank Further speakers to be confirmed…….

#PeoplesPost #NoMoreAusterity

cwu.indd 1 18/08/2015 11:25:15

8 | NEW STATESMAN | 21-27 AUGUST 2015

HEAD-TO-HEAD

No one willingly loses a day’s pay. But sometimes, when every attempt to resolve a dispute with an employer

has failed, union members have no choice but to take action. Nurses, teaching assis-tants, hospital cleaners and council refuse collectors take no delight in disrupting the public, but unfortunately that is the nature of industrial action. If no one no-tices that a strike has taken place, it has probably not been worth having.

For five years the government has ei-ther frozen pay in the public sector or awarded pay rises below the cost of living, and now there are four more years of pay restraint to come. With public-sector pay falling by about 20 per cent in real terms since 2009, it is little wonder that council, National Health Service, police and pro-bation staff have all voted to take strike action in the past year.

NHS workers in England were un-derstandably aggrieved when they held their first national strike action over pay in more than 30 years, after Jeremy Hunt couldn’t even honour the 1 per cent rise recommended by the independent pay review body.

Yet, despite these short national strikes, the disputes were settled. Overall, days lost to strike action across the economy are at a historic low.

An outside observer could only con-clude from the new Trade Union Bill proposals that ministers have public-service workers and their unions firmly in their sights. Not on the basis of any firm evidence of a need to curb strikes – but as more of an ideological obsession.

The Trade Union Bill is no friend to working people who might want to pro-test at years of pay cuts and freezes, or take a stand over unsafe or unfair deci-sions taken by bad employers.

Unfortunately, none of Unison’s recent national pay disputes – in health, in high-er education, on behalf of police support staff, in local government or probation – would have passed the test of a 50 per cent turnout threshold. However, many local disputes, where the numbers involved are smaller, often fare better.

Under the government’s proposals, any disputes in “important public services” would have an even higher bar to pass. Forty per cent would have to vote Yes before any legal strike action could take place. That means anyone who abstains counts as a vote against. Yet in no other ballot or election is that the case.

Unions will fight against this vindictive bill wherever and whenever we can, even if it requires taking a legal challenge to the highest court in Europe. We will join civil liberties groups to protect the right of working people to have a voice.

The government says it is on the side of working people – but not, it seems, if they are in a union and want a pay rise. Unions are made up of working people, and if ministers are worried about indus-trial unrest, they should take a long, hard look at why their public servants are so unhappy at work.

Turnout in strike ballots should and could be higher – but not if we are limited to 20th-century methods of communica-tion and voting. If working people were

able to take part in strike ballots using their phones, tablets or secure workplace ballot boxes, more people would have their say.

But the government isn’t interested in increasing participation. Ministers want to stop the unions from winning for working people, and in doing so they are giving a green light to bad employ-ers to act without fear of provoking a dispute. Even where unions pass every ballot threshold the government throws at them, employers will be able to break legal strikes by bringing in groups of agency workers.

There is also a raft of other new, highly unreasonable, human-rights-breaching measures on notice periods, criminalis-ing picket lines and requiring the un-ions to register their social media plans in advance. Not content with last year’s Transparency of Lobbying, Non-party Campaigning and Trade Union Admin-istration Act, which prevented charities, campaign groups and unions from talk-ing to the public, in effect gagging them (while at the same time leaving the super-rich and shadowy business associations unregulated), the Trade Union Bill attacks union political funds yet further with a bureaucratic opt-in process.

The government is using the language of the 1970s when it talks about unions, but although the public might not like the inconvenience of strike action, few people seriously think that unions are too powerful these days. lDave Prentis is the general secretary of Unison

The government’s proposed changes to trade union rules have divided opinion

Within striking distanceBy Dave Prentis and Adam Memon

Untitled-4 8 18/08/2015 11:00:46

21-27 AUGUST 2015 | NEW STATESMAN | 9

RE

X F

EA

TU

RE

S

Keir Hardie would be aghast if he could see the state of the trade union movement today. Its reputation has

been trashed and the sad truth is that, too often, this is completely justified. Knee-jerk, reactionary opposition to even mod-est reform inflicts misery and heavy eco-nomic costs on the public.

Unions have failed to keep up with changes in the labour market. They have become intransigent and complacent and too often do not adequately represent the interests of workers. If they don’t accept the need for change, they will become increasingly irrelevant and a relic of the past. Unfortunately, many union leaders seem hell-bent on continuing with this self-destructive approach. In response to proposed reforms, some have threatened civil disobedience and unlawful strike ac-tion, and have compared the reforms to Nazi policies. This only serves to discred-it the unions and alienate them from their membership and the population at large.

The new bill proposes to switch the levy for union members affiliated to a po-litical party to an opt-in. Unions provide

important services and support to mem-bers; many political activities are second-ary for most of them. If politically affili-ated unions want to funnel a portion of members’ pay packets to the Labour Party, then they should have to make a proper case and persuade them to make an active decision to do so, rather than simply rely-ing on inertia. Elsewhere, the government wants to tackle intimidation of non-strik-ing workers and ensure strikes cannot be based on ballots held years ago. Arguing against these self-evidently sensible plans will prove utterly unproductive.

The more contentious and important of the reforms is to ballot thresholds. The reason why industrial action has be-come so monstrously unpopular, even though the number of days lost to strikes is far lower than in the 1980s, is that when a union votes to strike, the costs are not only felt by the employees and the em-ployers. When the NUT goes out on strike action, teachers lose pay and par-ents have to take a day off work or pay for childcare. Single parents can be hit hardest. When the RMT and Aslef strike,

people are late for work and miss hospital appointments.

Strike ballots are not the same as other votes because – even before considering the significant external costs – if a union votes to strike on an absurdly low turnout, all members are expected to support that decision and lose a day’s pay. This econom-ic damage hurts people who have nothing to do with the dispute and is rarely inter-nalised in negotiations. It is deeply unjust that they should suffer as a result.

The impact assessment undertaken by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills estimates the new thresholds would reduce the number of work stop-pages by about 65 per cent and have a net economic benefit of more than £100m. Unions that resort to action too early and without widespread support will lose out. However, those that can pass these thresholds could see their bargaining power increase because they will be able to claim real legitimacy and a clear man-date for action. lAdam Memon is the head of economic research at the Centre for Policy Studies

The Conservatives’ new Trade Union Bill aims to make it harder for workers in the “essential public services” to go on strike

Untitled-4 9 18/08/2015 11:00:48

10 | NEW STATESMAN | 21-27 AUGUST 2015

STRIKE HISTORY

In Britain, the number of strikes is at its lowest in generations. This reflects changed patterns of worker behaviour

and a severe loss of union strength since the early 1980s.

The early-20th-century syndicalists dreamt of one gigantic general strike that would paralyse capitalism and allow trade unions to take over the running of industry. Since then, sections of the com-munist and Trotskyist fringe have seen strikes as ways of raising the political con-sciousness of workers and preparing for the overthrow of capitalism. However, the mainstream trade union movement has regarded strikes in more mundane terms, as a necessary bargaining tool in the power struggle that is the employ-ment relationship. In this view, the main countervailing power of ordinary work-ers lies in the ability of trade unions to organise a withdrawal of labour to the detriment of employer profits.

There is truth in this viewpoint, but it neglects three things. First, strikes inflict costs on employees, too, leading to one-day strikes that are more symbolic than a proper threat to business. Second, trade unions may have other sources of “soft power”, which are more effective than the withdrawal of labour. This is particu-larly true when unions have alternative avenues for dispute resolution, such as arbitration or independent review bodies.

Finally, strikes are one of a variety of tactics, each appropriate to different his-torical conditions. In the 19th century,

large-scale strikes usually collapsed quickly without employer involvement. However, by the Victorian era strikes were more cost-effective, whereby labour was withdrawn from a few bad employ-ers until they complied with the union standard, while those on strike were sup-ported by a levy of other union members.

The major strikes of largely unskilled workers from the docks and elsewhere from 1889 to the Great War and its after-math were often inspired by socialist and syndicalist activists. They were about wages, but most importantly they were recognition strikes for the establishment of stable collective bargaining. Once em-ployers and the state began supporting collective bargaining as industrial rela-tions good practice, industry pay dis-putes became a ritualised and regularised tactic of last resort in annual negotiations. In the 1930s these strikes were rare and again fairly low-cost.

The great exception to this picture of growing industrial relations order was coal mining, where Marxist union leaders often met ruthless anti-union employers, and fluctuating prices undermined co-operation. Thus the 1926 General Strike – the only apparent instance of this radical socialist/syndicalist tactic in UK histo-ry – was really a short sympathy strike to support the embattled miners.

Radicals saw some prospect of over-throwing capitalism, but in truth the dis-pute was a huge setback for such flawed strategies and led the TUC and all the

major trade unions to abandon such con-frontational approaches.

The new welfare capitalism, follow-ing the Second World War, gave scope for a return to more aggressive tactics in disputes driven from below, notably in engineering. But, once more, the miners dominated strike statistics, first through the unofficial disputes of the 1950s and 1960s and then through the two great national set pieces of the 1970s. Other in-dustries rarely experienced a strike.

Given the destructive power of strikes for both sides of industry, attempts to find some institutional alternative began as soon as employers realised that the un-ions were here to stay. In the 19th century, coal miners agreed to a sliding scale that linked wages automatically to the price of coal and obviated the need for an an-nual battle.

Another alternative was some form of compulsory, third-party arbitration, which became the backbone of the entire Australian system of industrial relations. During and after the Second World War a similar system was established in the UK and this is a policy idea that has never really gone away. So in the 1980s the elec-tricians’ union and others struck single-union/no-strike deals with pendulum arbitration to achieve recognition from incoming Japanese employers such as Ni-ssan and Komatsu.

The postwar social-democratic settle-ment of full employment, strong trade unions, welfare state and mixed economy

Historically, strikes have been necessary for change. Today requires a partnership between Labour and the trade unions

By Peter Ackers and Jim Moher

Striking parallels

Untitled-5 10 18/08/2015 11:01:31

21-27 AUGUST 2015 | NEW STATESMAN | 11

RE

X F

EA

TU

RE

S

unintentionally encouraged a new vari-ety: the unofficial strike, especially in en-gineering. In the 1950s and 1960s, when workers could leave one job on a Friday and start another on the Monday, short “wildcat” walkouts were an extremely ef-fective and low-cost form of action.

In the longer term, this spawned the “British industrial relations problem” of strikes, inflation and restrictive practices and began the process of eroding public, state and employer support for trade un-ions. In this era, demarcation disputes be-tween unions about who did what were another corrosive form of industrial action.

The failure by TUC and Labour leader-ships in the 1960s and 1970s to address the problem of strikes and inflation played into the hands of the emerging New Right, making union power and how to curb it a critical political issue. Unofficial strikes in manufacturing rarely impinged on the well-being of the general public. At worst, they damaged the profits and effi-ciency of private industry, weakening the national economy. But, from the 1970s, a new form of public-sector national strike

was directed primarily at inconvenienc-ing the public in order to put pressure on governments to step in and concede higher pay. Thus, the 1972 and 1974 min-ers’ strikes were pay disputes that in one case led to power cuts and a three-day week, hitting not only other businesses but citizens in general. They also led to mass picketing, which blocked access to workplaces and caused public disorder.

Defensive strikes by the print unions and miners in the 1980s, against job losses and changed working practices, caused vi-olent mass picketing and became a symbol of disruptive impotence. In the new, un-sympathetic context of Thatcherism, not only were strikes ineffective but they gave trade unions an uncooperative, antisocial, disruptive image. Hence, in the 1990s, the TUC, under John Monks, promoted

partnership between employers and em-ployees. The legally binding Royal Mail agreement, concluded as an alternative to an overwhelming Yes ballot for strike action against privatisation, includes de-tailed procedures to avoid or resolve dis-putes at every level.

For the future, Labour needs a popular and constructive trade union movement, while the unions need a sympathetic and supportive Labour Party. Looking ahead, a strong TUC, working closely with the Labour leadership, would make it easier to address this problem. In the short term, the emergence of a few mega- unions, public-sector “austerity”, and further government legal restrictions on ballots and industrial action, will all make this hard to achieve. For the long-term health of the labour movement, however, a “root-and-branch” review of its trade union strategy, including strike tactics, is surely needed. lPeter Ackers is a professor of employment relations at De Montfort UniversityJim Moher is a former national union official at the TGWU and CWU

In the 1980s, strikes such as the 1984-85 miners’ dispute were carried out against the unsympathetic backdrop of Thatcherism

Labour needs a popular and constructive trade

union movement

Untitled-5 11 18/08/2015 11:01:34

We knowyour rightsfor whenyou don’t

Morrish Solicitors have acted for Trade Unions and their members for decades.We are proud to act for many Trade Unions and Associations, nationally andregionally - each is treated in the same way, as an important client, deserving ofthe highest levels of service and attention, whose members are valued individualsand not dealt with as files or numbers.

We are a Trade Union law firm, not a law firm with a Trade Union department. We do not act forEmployers or Insurance Companies; we are deliberately on the side of the individual - proud toact for working people.

We’re proud to be sponsoring TUC 2015. We’re here in person, too, not juston paper. We can be contacted throughout the event as follows:David Sorensen: 07841 794576Clair Watmore: 07595 564764

www.morrishsolicitors.com morrishsolicitors @Morrishlaw

New Statesman Advert_Layout 1 14/08/2015 09:44 Page 1

morrish.indd 1 18/08/2015 11:27:03

21-27 AUGUST 2015 | NEW STATESMAN | 13

David Cameron is being uncharacter-istically coy about what exactly his shopping list for renegotiation of

Britain’s position in the European Union contains. But what seems clear, and is of great concern to trade unionists, is that his strategy aims to fulfil a long-standing Conservative ambition to water down or undermine workers’ rights.

Obviously, I want to prevent any back-sliding on workers’ rights, but I don’t want to be forced into defending every-thing that the EU does in order to prev-ent things from getting worse. I want to campaign for a positive agenda of change in Europe, with sustainable growth, more and better jobs, better training and higher wages.

The European Trade Union Confed-eration has called for a “New Path for Europe” to promote green jobs at good wages, building and insulating homes, extending broadband coverage and im-proving transport links. And it is not just in Britain that wage stagnation has re-duced living standards and held back de-mand: Europe needs a pay rise, too.

We need to defend the paid holidays, rest breaks and work-life balance that the Working Time Directive delivered for British workers. And we need to main-tain the protections for agency workers, part-timers and temporary workers, not least because they act as a bulwark against exploitation of migrants, and stop bad bosses using those migrants to under-cut workers’ existing wages and working conditions. The French and German gov-ernments (and others) understand this problem, and we are working with trade unions in those countries to get their gov-ernments to reject the attack on workers’

rights in the Prime Minister’s agenda, as we did with trade unions in Ireland and Italy when Cameron visited those coun-tries in June.

More pernicious than Cameron’s at-tack on these basic rights is his call for a moratorium on future social measures. The world of work keeps changing, with zero-hours contracts just the latest devel-opment. If workers’ rights do not evolve in line with those changes, they will fall into disuse, and abuses and insecurity will spread. We also ought to be doing more for the rights of working carers.

Yet the European Commission’s so-called better regulation strategy, and the failure to introduce any substantial new rights in the past decade, suggests that Cameron’s agenda is already being imple-mented. No one is against better regula-tion, but better doesn’t mean less, and it doesn’t mean weaker.

The former European Commission president Jacques Delors famously said

that no one would fall in love with a com-mon market. The social model that he championed is a fundamental part of the design of the EU, and our polling straight after this year’s general election suggests it is also fundamental to popular support for Britain staying in the EU.

I have warned British business lead-ers that they should be careful what they wish for. If they press for reducing work-ers’ rights, they will lose votes from peo-ple at work – especially those most likely to be attracted to the Eurosceptic case – for staying in the huge and profitable market that Europe represents. My discussions with business leaders tell me that access to that market for goods and services is far more important to them than gratefully seizing whatever falls from the deregu-latory tree. My message to these leaders is clear: you can’t campaign for Europe at the same time as cutting rights by the back door.

Polling published in May by the TUC showed that British people are far more likely to want to remain part of the EU if it leads to better pay and rights at work. In the survey of 4,000 UK voters, 55 per cent said they would be more supportive of Britain’s membership of Europe if it did more to help working people get de-cent pay and conditions at work. In con-trast, fewer than one in four (23 per cent) said they would be more supportive of the UK’s EU membership if it did more to cut red tape for businesses.

Europe is at its best when it meets the interests of both business and workers. Abandoning this blueprint would be a disaster for the UK and the EU. lFrances O’Grady is the general secretary of the Trades Union Congress

A strong European Union needs sustainable growth, more employment, better training and higher wages. But is that what David Cameron will secure?

By Frances O’Grady

Continental drift

Will Cameron deliver for us in Europe?

EUROPEAN UNION

RE

X F

EA

TU

RE

S

Untitled-6 13 18/08/2015 11:04:10

SCOTLAND

The Scottish Trades Union Congress’s analysis of the 2015 general election result in Scotland leads us to the

conclusion that trade union members voted for the SNP at least as enthusiasti-cally, and probably in even greater pro-portion, than the Scottish public overall. Support for the SNP is driven by a num-ber of factors but opposition to auster-ity and disenchantment with the current Westminster institutions, including the main parties, is a significant factor.

There is an ongoing debate in Scotland and further afield about the political na-ture of the SNP and the motivation of its supporters. Some on the left find it inconceivable that a “nationalist” party can be anything other than on the right of the political spectrum. The SNP’s op-ponents often suggest that the party talks left but acts right, and certainly the SNP is open to the accusation that its policies on wealth redistribution have not always matched up to its stated ambitions. Only recently was the policy of reducing cor-poration tax jettisoned. The council-tax freeze is now entering its eighth year and continues to benefit the better-off. Crit-ics have also highlighted how inadequate levels of funding and poor policy design within health, education and local gov-ernment have contributed to a failure to tackle disadvantage.

However, policies that fail to match the rhetoric are hardly an unusual phe-nomenon. It is also important to remem-ber that the Scottish government’s room for manoeuvre continues to be limited by the impact of Tory cuts, although its anti-austerity credentials will come un-der greater democratic scrutiny as further tax-raising powers are devolved.

In key areas of policy such as tax, wel-fare and immigration, SNP policy posi-tions are relatively progressive, and its approach to trade unions is quite clearly distinct from that of the UK government.

This was illustrated by the Scottish re-action to the 2013 Grangemouth dispute. While the UK government sought to use the dispute to attack unions through the discredited Carr review, the SNP, at the instigation of the STUC, commissioned an inquiry, the Working Together review, into the positive role unions play in the workplace, and across the economy and society. As a direct consequence, the Fair Work Convention has now been estab-lished as a partnership between unions and employers to improve the quality of work, extend workplace innovation and promote union/employer co-operation in the workplace.

While the Trade Union Bill starts from the false premise that unions are bad and

our activities need to be curtailed, the Scottish government has actively sought to promote the very positive role unions play. As the First Minister said when she addressed our congress in April: “We value highly the role of collective bargain-ing in ensuring decent pay and working conditions – something that is especially important in low-wage sectors.”

SNP MPs were initially widely derided, both in Scotland and south of the border. But any fair assessment of the quality and motivation of those on the SNP benches could not but conclude that there are peo-ple of ability and with progressive politics at least to match those they replaced. The STUC did not need Mhairi Black’s maid-en speech to go viral to understand this, even if many others did.

It should of course be recognised that the SNP neither is nor aspires to be a la-bour movement party, whereas, irrespec-tive of its current situation, the Labour Party is. The SNP does, however, have a trade union group whose membership outnumbers that of the Labour Party in Scotland by some distance, and an in-creasing number of SNP members are also trade union activists. Those active in that group would admit that the meteoric surge in its membership presents chal-lenges. Will the group’s purpose be to drive the SNP’s agenda within the trade unions, as opposed to driving the trade union agenda within the SNP?

As we seek to find an answer, we will continue to engage constructively with the SNP administration, something that is both necessary and advantageous for our members. lGrahame Smith is the general secretary of the Scottish Trades Union Congress

The SNP’s trade union group has more members than the entire Scottish Labour Party. Is this the new progressive force north of the border?

By Grahame Smith

Embracing the unions

The SNP worked with the unions at Grangemouth

14 | NEW STATESMAN | 21-27 AUGUST 2015

RE

X F

EA

TU

RE

S

Untitled-7 14 18/08/2015 11:07:08

PRODUCTIVITY

Productivity – a word banished during the financial crisis and subsequent reces-sion, as all eyes focused on employment rates – is back with a vengeance. From the Chancellor’s summer Budget to the gov-ernment’s Productivity Plan, sorting the UK’s chronically poor productivity per-formance appears to have become a man-tra once again.

Part of the productivity debate in the UK is, frankly, a red herring. Why do we wring our hands, if we can compare the UK’s productivity performance (GDP per hour worked) to that of France, with its inflexible labour market and years of eco-nomic underperformance? Why do we place so much emphasis on productivity statistics when we know that they often do not capture improvements in the UK’s dominant services sector? Some of the elements that make up Britain’s produc-tivity “puzzle” seem to get acres of unde-served column inches.

Yet a big chunk of Britain’s productivity lag is structural and deadly serious. It is a toxic combination of underinvestment and bureaucratic inertia that ultimately threatens the UK’s competitive future.

Decades of underinvestment – in in-frastructure, people, plant and premises – are the result of failures by both our governments and business itself.

Britain’s road, railway, aviation, energy and digital infrastructure lag behind key

competitors because successive govern-ments have underinvested, deferred cru-cial planning decisions, or failed to push sectoral regulators to deliver stronger competition. The consequences of three decades of depressed public infrastructure spending are now obvious, and represent a brake on trade at home and overseas.

Skills deficits, which plague British companies in the form of recruitment difficulties and unfilled vacancies, are the fault of companies and governments alike. Too many businesses have failed to invest adequately in training, in part be-cause of their own lack of internal capac-ity, and they in turn have been failed by continuous changes to the infrastructure of education and training. The net effect of all this has been to render the training system all but illegible to most companies; so it’s no wonder they don’t engage.

For too long, governments have been content to rake in rates, make short-term decisions about tax policies or invest-ment allowances, and ignore the finance gap facing the most ambitious businesses seeking to expand. Some companies have in turn become too comfortable – pla-teauing at a certain size, shunning export opportunities, or favouring sell-out over expansion and risk.

Recent moves by the government to tackle some of these barriers to higher productivity can best be described as careful steps forward, but are positive. Now, however, courage, conviction and vision are required from both ministers and company boards alike. After all, if

How to solve the productivity puzzle? It requires government, businesses and employees all to work better together, according to our commentators

Working smarter not harder

The lag is structural and deadly seriousAdam Marshall

ministers can’t or won’t take a contro-versial decision to progress an infrastruc-ture project, boards may do the same on investment. The choice is clear: either we act boldly, or we talk more about our productivity problems in 20 years’ time. I know which I’d choose.Dr Adam Marshall is the executive director of policy and external affairs at the British Chambers of Commerce

We measure productivity by recording how much output the economy gets from workers’ input, and growing it should imply higher wages and living standards. But it hasn’t been growing. Productivity has been stagnant since 2007 and we’re not sure why.

In the aftermath of the financial crisis, employment levels were resilient beyond expectation and unemployment did not rise commensurate to the drop in eco-nomic activity. This provides the headline maths of why productivity stalled, but the way employers managed their workforce under these conditions provides nuance.

Some focused staff time on finding new customers as demand dropped; some paid existing customers more attention; others had to devote more resource to comply-ing with new regulations, rather than new business. In each case, employees could be working as hard, or harder, but for less output, and so productivity suffered.

The UK needs more than just a flexible labour marketSteve Hughes

t

21-27 AUGUST 2015 | NEW STATESMAN | 15

Untitled-8 15 18/08/2015 13:04:27

16 | NEW STATESMAN | 21-27 AUGUST 2015

Keeping on staff who produced less came at a price. As pay packets fell in real value, essentially buying employment, new approaches were taken to control wage bills. Some firms began linking pay to output, rather than inflation; some im-posed shorter working hours; some took on younger, cheaper employees despite their lack of experience.

The lesson learned is that, by and large, labour and business have been flexible, which has supported the UK through the worst economic crisis in a generation. Indeed, some of the examples above are reversing as the recovery continues. If the UK, however, is really to boost its long-term productivity, it needs more than a flexible labour market.

The government believes having skilled workers, good infrastructure and competitive markets will help to improve the UK’s productivity performance, but it could go further. Introducing a new gen-eration of government-sponsored prizes for basic research and innovation, further liberalising the planning system, and fos-tering a regulatory policy that supports

permissionless innovation would be good places to start.

The coalition government had an im-pressive record on employment. This new government needs to ensure it has an impressive record on productivity.Steve Hughes is the head of economic and social policy at Policy Exchange

growth in productivity. So what might?There are three short-term ways em-

ployers can increase labour productivity, and two longer-term solutions that re-quire government intervention.

First, increasing worker well-being im-proves workplace performance. Greater well-being can be engineered by en-hancing job autonomy. Second, workers and employers can adopt mutual gains practices that permit employers to speed the rate of workplace innovation, while avoiding detrimental effects on workers’ well-being. This can be facilitated where trade union representatives have a say in workplace innovations. Third, employ-ers can invest in a good employment re-lations climate. Workplaces that did this before the recession performed better.

In the long run, the UK needs to sus-tain its investment in future generations of workers by continuing to invest heav-ily in education. It also needs to grapple with the underperforming tail of poorly managed firms, most of which managed to survive the recession. A good place to start would be the quality of management

theMU.org@WeAreTheMU

who play livewho recordwho write and compose

For all musicians

MU ad 127x178_Layout 1 10/08/2015 10:21 Page 1

Investing in people boosts productivityAlex BrysonThe UK’s GDP has yet to recover from the recession of 2008. In 2014, output per hour remained 0.4 percentage points be-low pre-recession levels; in other words, labour productivity was 15-16 percentage points below the level it would have been, had it kept growing at pre-recession rates.

Initially workers bore the brunt, work-ing harder while experiencing a decline in real wages not seen since the 19th century. There were pay freezes in the public sec-tor and nominal wage cuts in the private sector. These measures may have kept people in work, but they didn’t lead to

tPRODUCTIVITY

Untitled-8 16 18/08/2015 13:04:27

21-27 AUGUST 2015 | NEW STATESMAN | 17

practice. Governments are usually reluc-tant to interfere with managers’ right to manage, even when those managers ap-pear poorly equipped for the job. In con-trast, some of those countries with higher productivity levels have greater levels of state intervention and, in some cases, strong industrial strategies supported by government.

Finally, the wages question needs to be addressed. Some firms can sustain poor productivity because they can draw on a plentiful supply of low-waged labour. Cutting off this option might kick-start growth, just as the uprating of the mini-mum wage began to do at the very bot-tom of the labour market.Alex Bryson is head of the employment group at the National Institute of Economic and Social Research

Half of the 13 million people living in pov-erty in the UK are from households where

at least one person is in paid work. How-ever, many people earning low incomes fail to meet basic standards of living. New research by the Joseph Rowntree Foun-dation polled 5,000 low-income house-hold employees and conducted in-depth focus groups to ask about working lives and what employers could do to make work better.

Many reported that they had to go to work to make ends meet even when they were sick, saw little chance of promotion and didn’t always receive training. Oth-ers said they worked long hours, didn’t always take their breaks and felt their em-ployment was precarious. Few were paid the living wage and many had more than one job. Some employees said that not being able to meet their household living costs had a direct impact on their perfor-mance at work. These people are unlikely to be as productive as they could be.

Crucially, this research also looked at the things employers are doing that make a significant difference to low-paid work-ers, such as discounts on goods in store, having a say at work and free meals at

STOP THE ATTACK ON WORKERS’ RIGHTS

STOP THE CUTS

work. Being paid a living wage was con-sidered the most valuable benefit of all. Just last month, Ikea became the first ma-jor retailer to announce that it will pay the Living Wage, saying it was “not only the right thing to do for our co-workers, but it also makes good business sense”.

Increasing productivity at this end of the labour market does not have to re-move the personal touch from customer service or slice care packages to the point of being meaningless and possibly harm-ful. Businesses that offer better-paid jobs with well-designed progression schemes (including for those who work part-time), flexible working, good-quality training and good benefit packages can help make a big difference to the living standards of employees and their families, as well as improve productivity.

The evidence that a revolution for workers in usually “low-cost” settings will increase productivity is stacking up. The time is now. lLouise Woodruff is a policy and research manager for the Joseph Rowntree Foundation

Better-paid jobs can lead to higher productivityLouise Woodruff

Untitled-8 17 18/08/2015 13:04:28

18 | NEW STATESMAN | 21-27 AUGUST 2015

EMPLOYEE RELATIONS

It might sound like a tautology, but perhaps the most important part of “employee voice” is not necessarily

voice at all: it’s the listening that counts just as much. This involves employees listening to what the business has to say, and the business listening to employees.

It sounds simple enough. But making it happen often involves three things that can be difficult: acknowledging common sense; asking for a helping hand to change mindsets when needed; and continu-ally revisiting the business case for what makes employee voice so fundamental to good employment relations.

Let’s start with the evidence. “Good voice” arrangements have been shown to help employees feel more engaged and en-joy better well-being, but also have a pos-itive impact on the bottom line. The 2015 European Company Survey highlighted “win-win” benefits of employee involve-ment in day-to-day decision-making, and confirmed that this is a phenomenon shared across countries. Nor is it a coinci-dence that in a new publication issued by Acas, employee voice comes out as one of the “seven levers of productivity” (for more on productivity: see pages 15-17).

Good intentions and the right proce-dures can get you so far, but employee voice only thrives if it is nurtured in an environment of trust. When parties come to Acas, the symptoms they present are often to do with breakdowns in commu-nication, but the underlying cause usually relates to a loss of trust.

To create an environment where em-ployment relations are positive and trust is maintained, communication needs to

be a regular feature of working life, rather than an exception. This might take place via reps, some kind of forum or through direct contact. The important point is keeping the channels open and not letting the issues stack up for a rainy day – keep agendas clear and not onerous, and allow time for consideration when it comes to the big issues.

There’s a mantra that tea and toilets are the death knell of genuine communica-tion and consultation. In fact those hum-drum issues round the edges at work can turn into the emotive ones; issues such as car parking or the office redesign can descend into conflict if not given air. But communication has to go deeper. Matters on the agenda should include everything from terms and conditions to the strategic plan, and from people policies to oppor-tunities for innovation. It may be a cliché, “from small acorns . . .” and all that, but discussions about tea and toilets can often lead to creative dialogue about how to im-prove working practices and job design.

Effective consultation assumes a cer-tain mindset. All those involved must recognise the benefits (and parameters) of sharing information, and collaborative working and consultation must involve deep listening to concerns. Writing off em-ployee suggestions without consideration creates the wrong atmosphere. Making informed decisions and providing feed-back on suggestions is more productive.

Research suggests that consultation is becoming narrower in scope. Acas analy-sis of the 2011 Workplace Employment Relations Study found the proportion of managers who said they use committees mainly to seek feedback had fallen from 45 to 39 per cent, while those saying they seek feedback on a preferred management option had risen from 9 to 28 per cent.

Finally, who are the key players? In face-to-face meetings, the benefits come from getting a range of employees at the table, representing a good cross-section of staff, including senior managers. An occasional visit from the leaders of the or-ganisation can also have a positive impact.

With a long background in the trade union movement, I have seen many times how union representatives can be the “right players”. This was particu-larly evident during the recession, when many agreements were reached to keep businesses afloat. But as the trade union movement would be only too quick to acknowledge: unions are a conduit. They can help to safeguard the voice, but it’s the quality of engagement that counts. lBrendan Barber is the chair of the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas)

The quality of engagement is what drives results when negotiating on employee welfare

By Brendan Barber

Not just tea and toilets

Share, listen, feed back

RE

X F

EA

TU

RE

S

Untitled-9 18 18/08/2015 11:14:32

We are proud to specialise in property services for Trade Unions. Now with 80 years of experience, we can help with all aspects of your property strategy.

From a single property to an entire portfolio

Relocation Studies - Search and Selection Advice

Acquisitions and Disposals

Rent Reviews and Lease Renewals

Valuations

Rating Appeals

Property Management - Rent and Service Charge Collection

Surveys, Design, Refurbishments, Fit Outs

Trade Union Property Services

Head Office: 72-75 Marylebone High Street, London W1U 5JW Tel: 020 7224 2222Fax: 020 7224 4644 Email: info@keningtons.com

Contact: Tim PoulstonTel: 020 7224 2222 Mob: 07775 782 623Email: timpoulston@keningtons.com www.keningtons.com

Chartered Surveyors

Part-time Postgraduate Courses in Industrial Relations and Human Resource ManagementKeele Management SchoolKeele Management School (KMS) is a well-established provider of Industrial Relations and Human Resource Management courses taught by experienced adult educators who are also active researchers. We attract students from a wide range of backgrounds and institutions (ACAS, trade unions, public and private sector organisations and educational establishments) providing useful and interesting networking opportunities.

Our part-time courses are all suitable for those in full-time employment and fl exible enough to allow completion by students from anywhere in the UK. All courses are delivered through a combination of short residential teaching sessions at Keele supported by distance learning.

Courses off ered:

• University Certifi cate in Industrial Relations• Postgraduate Masters (or Postgraduate Diploma) in either:

Industrial Relations, Industrial Relations and HRM, Industrial Relations and Employment Law, European Industrial Relations and HRM

Further information: www.keele.ac.uk/kms/pgparttimeCourse Director: Dr Steve French: 01782 733609, s.r.french@keele.ac.ukCourse Administrator: Claire Butters: 01782 734367, c.l.butters@keele.ac.uk

Keele and kenningtons.indd 1 18/08/2015 13:10:30

Trade unions are bigger, older, stronger and more popular than all of the political parties

put together. There are nine times more trade unionists than political party members. Add our families and those who benefit from our work, and it is fair to say we repre-sent the entire workforce.

For every job there is a relevant and informed union. Some such as the Public and Commercial Ser-vices Union are bigger than the La-bour Party. Unions are the largest voluntary organisations in Britain. We exist because of the voluntary commitment of active members.

Our roots go back long before the formation of the Conservative and Liberal Parties. And of course in 1900, unions, including the GFTU, created the Labour Party to cam-paign for trade union rights in par-liament and for accountable MPs.

These roots go deep into the democratic struggles not just for social justice, but for the extension of the franchise; to ensure that it was not only the few property own-ers who could vote, but, as of 1928, all men and women over the age of 21. Trade unions are insepara-ble from the age-old struggle for democracy, equality and liberty.

This struggle for the universal franchise was associated with an extension of the public sphere, ac-tive citizenship, public services and free education, and was eventually joined by free health care, nation-alised industries and utilities, a col-lective caring culture and a welfare state. It was a hard, generational struggle opposed all the way by big business. The famous phrase “there is no such thing as society” was code for break up the unions, break up the public good and break up democracy.

Trade unions were central to the creation of more extensive demo-cratic participation and power at the workplace and in government. They helped civilise the country from rulers content to keep the ma-jority of the population in poverty, disease and ignorance.

We now demand the fulfilment of the democratic struggle, votes for all at 16 years of age and con-trol of our country through a new, clear and written constitution that

supports the people and not profit.At the high point of trade union-

ism in the late 1970s, when collec-tive bargaining extended to more than 70 per cent of workplaces, in-equality was at its lowest and there was a sense of national pride that the public ownership of key areas of the economy gave purpose and direction to the national culture.

Our unions pioneered religious and political tolerance and anti-racism. Unions united workers in Scotland, Wales and England when employ-ers wanted to divide and break up the nation.

We have been at the forefront of the struggles for peace and have given strong assistance to thousands of just causes around the world. When there is suffer-ing overseas – a disaster such as the Bhopal gas tragedy in India, or a reign of terror as in Colombia or the former apartheid South Africa – or when there is genuine progress as in Venezuela, trade unions here have been in the forefront of inter-national solidarity.

Unions are also massive providers of adult education; we raise skills, offering unique chances for mem-bers to return to learning, as well as to develop political and economic

Doug Nicholls argues that the most astute politicians are the 99 per cent of the population who are working people

SPONSORED BY THE GENERAL FEDERATION OF TRADE UNIONS

The value of trade unions

We remain a determining voice, the largest social

force in the country

Untitled-10 20 18/08/2015 11:16:36

21-27 AUGUST 2015| NEW STATESMAN | 21

understanding for active citizen-ship. Few politicians appreciate an educated, organised working class – they prefer a superfi cial appeal on the doorstep.

Television programmes are brought to us by Bectu technicians through communications tech-nology engineered by Prospect members. The actors we applaud are in Equity, the footballers in the PFA, the cricketers in the PCA, the reporters in the NUJ, the musicians in the MU. Our children are taught by teaching union members, our services are staffed by union mem-bers, and our planes are fl own and crewed by union members. Who administers your contact with local and national government? Union members.

Strength in the face of adversityYet trade unions have been the number-one target for the forces of reaction that have ruled this coun-try since 1979. Heavy industry and engineering were sacrifi ced to try

to destroy the NUM (National Union of Mineworkers), the AUEW (Amal-gamated Union of Engineering Workers), print and steel workers. Utilities and public services were privatised to weaken collective social obligations, boost the rate of profi t and weaken public-sector unions. And so the list of vandalism goes on; the country sold to the highest bidder against the constant warnings of the unions.

Despite membership loss, despite the most anti-trade-union and anti-worker legislation in the western world; despite the continual lies and distortions about us in the media; despite a complete lack of education about trade unions in schools and universities; despite food banks for the working poor; despite the daily attacks on collec-tive bargaining; despite the loss of the intelligence of manual workers in the leadership of the movement, we are not just still here, we remain a determining voice, the largest so-cial force in the country.

Our values put the rulers of our country to shame. The most as-tute politicians are working peo-ple – 99 per cent of the popula-tion – and we should have greater power. Those genuinely committed to the majority will fi rst and fore-most remove the legal shackles on the trade unions, and enable the people to end the madness of the market.

As long as there are workers there will be trade unions and pro-fessional associations. We are here for the duration. By contrast, politi-cians and pundits are here today, gone tomorrow. The voice of the people, the democratically agreed policies of the unions for manufac-turing renewal, renationalisation, public investment and regulation of the fi nancial sector will win through. Unions make democracy and all of us much stronger. Our voice and vision will prevail.Doug Nicholls is the general secretary of the General Federation of Trade Unions (GFTU)

Campaigning for adult education since 1903 www.wea.org.uk

Facts about orthoptists(eye health professionals)...they are part of the 130,000 strong Allied Health Professionals workforce and...

• Provide value for money (without a drop in quality) by replacing more costly medics in primary, community and acute eye care services

• Improve quality of life and people’s independence by correcting eye movement disorders and double vision

• Mainly work in the NHS, are best placed to ensure the delivery of comprehensive children's vision screening with no post code lottery.

The British Orthoptic Society Trade Union supports and represents the majority of orthoptists in the UK.

www.orthoptics.org.uk

Untitled-10 21 18/08/2015 11:16:36

Greetings to all delegates attending TUC 2015 from all at TUFI.

• Bringing together Israeli, Palestinian and UK trade unionists

• Supporting a two-state solution

100 years of the best and boldest writing on politics

and culture

www.newstatesman.com/century

Edition 1 & 2 now available on the ipad edition

Quarter page vertical century.indd 2 18/08/2015 11:36:39

www.eis.org.uk/join

Representing over 80% of the profession in Scotland we are not only the largest, but also the most inclusive professional

association. The EIS includes teachers and lecturers across all grades and sectors –

nursery, primary, secondary, special, further and higher education.

p22 tufoi house ad and eis.indd 1 18/08/2015 13:10:02

21-27 AUGUST 2015 | NEW STATESMAN | 23

DIRECTORY

TUC head officeTrades Union Congress (TUC)Congress HouseGreat Russell StreetLondon WC1B 3LS020 7636 4030info@tuc.org.ukwww.tuc.org.ukPress line: 020 7467 1248Press office email: media@tuc.org.ukGeneral secretaryFrances O’GradyAssistant general secretaryPaul Nowak

TUC regional officesTUC Midlands24 Livery StreetBirmingham B3 2PA0121 236 4454lbarron@tuc.org.uk

TUC NorthCommercial Union House39 Pilgrim StreetNewcastle upon TyneNE1 6QE0191 232 3175bfarhat@tuc.co.uk

TUC North-west4th floor Jack Jones House1 IslingtonLiverpool L3 8EG0151 482 2710lcollins@tuc.org.uk

TUC South-eastCongress HouseGreat Russell StreetLondon WC1B 3LS020 7467 1220mdobney@tuc.org.uk

TUC South-westGround Floor,Church HouseChurch Road, Filton,Bristol BS34 7BD0117 947 0521ncostley@tuc.org.uk

TUC WalesTransport House1 Cathedral RoadCardiff CF11 9SD029 2034 7010 wtuc@tuc.org.uk

TUC Yorkshire and the HumberRoom 101, West One114 Wellington StLeeds, LS1 1BA0113 242 9696badams@tuc.org.uk

TUC servicesUnionlearnCongress House,Great Russell StreetLondon WC1B 3LS020 7079 6920unionlearn@tuc.org.uk www.unionlearn.org.ukDirectorTom WilsonTrade union education managerLiz Rees

Scottish trade union servicesScottish Trade Union CongressSTUC Centre,333 Woodlands RoadGlasgow G3 6NG0141 337 8100info@stuc.org.ukwww.stuc.org.ukGeneral secretaryGrahame Smith

Affiliated trade unions

Advance Union2nd Floor, 16/17 High StreetTring, Herts HP23 5AH01442 891122info@advance-union.orgwww.advance-union.orgMain trades and industriesStaff of SantanderGeneral secretaryLinda Rolph

Association of Educational Psychologists (AEP)4 Riverside Centre,Frankland LaneDurham DH1 5TA0191 384 9512enquiries@aep.org.ukwww.aep.org.ukGeneral secretaryKate FallonPresidentSean O’Donoghue

Association of Managers in Education Merged with the ATL

Association of Flight Attendants (AFA)United Airlines Cargo CentreShoreham Road EastHeathrow AirportHounslowMiddlesex TW6 3UA020 8276 6723afa@unitedafa.orgwww.unitedafa.orgMain trades and industriesAirline cabin crewInternational PresidentSara Nelson

Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL)7 Northumberland StreetLondon WC2N 5RD020 7930 6441info@atl.org.ukwww.atl.org.ukMain trades and industriesTeachers, lecturers and support staff in nursery, primary, secondary schools, sixth-form and further education collegesGeneral secretaryMary BoustedDeputy general secretaryPeter PendlePresidentMark Baker

The guide

Bakers, Food and Allied Workers’ Union (BFAWU)Stanborough House,Great North RoadWelwyn Garden City,Herts AL8 7TA01707 260150info@bfawu.orgwww.bfawu.orgMain trades and industriesFood industry workersGeneral secretaryRonnie Draper

Britannia Staff Union (BSU)Court Lodge,Leonard Street, LeekStaffordshire ST13 5JP01538 399627bsu@themail.co.ukwww.britanniasu.org.ukMain trades and industriesStaff of Britannia BuildingSocietyGeneral secretaryJohn Stoddard

British Air Line Pilots Association (Balpa)BALPA House,

AccordSimmons House46 Old Bath RoadCharvil, ReadingBerkshire RG10 9QRinfo@accordhq.orgwww.accord-myunion.orgMain trades and industriesStaff of HBOSGeneral secretaryGed NicholsPresidentChris Goldthorpe

Associated Society of Locomotive Engineers and Firemen (Aslef)77 St John Street,ClerkenwellLondon EC1M 4NN020 7324 2400info@aslef.org.ukwww.aslef.org.ukMain trades and industriesRailways (drivers,operational supervisorsand staff)General secretaryMick WhelanNational organiserSimon WellerPresidentTosh McDonald

p23 directory new.indd 23 18/08/2015 13:43:52

DIRECTORY

24 | NEW STATESMAN | 21-27 AUGUST 2015

5 Heathrow Boulevard 278 Bath Road, West DraytonUB7 0DQ0208 476 4000 balpa@balpa.org www.balpa.org Main trades and industries Airline pilots and flight engineers General secretary Jim McAuslan Head of industrial relations John Moore President Tim Pottage

British Dietetic Association(BDA) 5th floor, Charles House 148-149 Great Charles Street Birmingham B3 3HT 0121 200 8080 info@bda.uk.com www.bda.uk.com Main trades and industries Science of dietetics in the private and public sector Chief executiveAndy Burman Head of employment relations Debbie O’Rourke

Community456 Caledonian RoadLondon N7 9GX0800 389 6332info@community-tu.orgwww.community-tu.orgMain trades and industriesSteel, textiles, footwear,betting shops, social care,voluntary sector, logisticsGeneral secretaryRoy RickhussDeputy general secretaryJoe Mann MBE

Community and Youth Workers’ UnionNational Section of T&G/Unite the UnionTransport House211 Broad Street,Birmingham B15 1AY0121 643 6221kerry.jenkins@unitethe union.org.ukwww.cywu.org.uk

Main trades and industriesYouth workers, mentors, play workers, per-sonal advisersGeneral secretaryDoug Nicholls

CWU – ALGUS National BranchCarlton Park,Building 3Ground floor,NarboroughLeicestershire LE19 0AL0116 200 3620info@cwualgus.org.ukwww.cwualgus.org.ukMain trades and industriesStaff of Alliance and LeicesterSecretaryDebbie CortChairpersonPete Greenwood

EquityGuild HouseUpper St Martin’s LaneLondon WC2H 9EG020 7379 6000Info@equity.org.ukwww.equity.org.ukMain trades and industriesPerformance workers in theatre,film, television and radioGeneral secretaryChristine PaynePresidentMalcolm Sinclair

GMB22 Stephenson Way,Euston, NW1 2HD020 8947 3131info@gmb.org.uk

www.gmb.org.ukMain trades and industriesLocal government, NHS,education, retail, security,distribution and utilitiesGeneral secretaryPaul Kenny

Hospital Consultants and Specialists Association (HCSA)1 Kingsclere RoadBasingstoke,RG25 3JA01256 771777conspec@hcsa.comwww.hcsa.comMain trades and industries

Broadcasting Entertainment Cinematograph and Theatre Union (BECTU)373-377 Clapham Road London SW9 9BT020 7346 0900info@bectu.org.ukwww.bectu.org.ukMain trades and industries Backstage, technical, production and support workers in broadcasting, film, theatre cinema, live events and digital media.General secretaryGerry MorrisseyAssistant general secretar-iesSpencer McDonald Luke CrawleyPresidentJane PerryTwitter@bectuFacebook/bectuoffical

British and Irish Orthoptic Society (BOS)Salisbury HouseStation Road Cambridge CB1 2LA01353 665 541bios@orthoptics.org.ukwww.orthoptics.org.ukChairLesley-Anne Baxter

Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (CSP)14 Bedford RowLondon WC1R 4ED020 7306 6666enquiries@csp.org.ukwww.csp.org.ukMain trades and industriesChartered physiotherapists, physiotherapy students and assistantsDirector of employment relations and union servicesClaire SullivanChair of national industrial relations committeeJill Barker

The Communications Union(CWU)150 The Broadway, WimbledonLondon SW19 1RX020 8971 7200info@cwu.orgwww.cwu.orgMain trades and industriesPostal and telecommunications workersGeneral secretaryDave WardSenior deputy generalsecretaryTony KearnsPresidentJane Loftus

Educational Institute ofScotland (EIS)46 Moray PlaceEdinburgh EH3 6BH0131 225 6244enquiries@eis.org.ukwww.eis.org.ukMain trades and industriesTeachers, lecturers and associatededucational staff inScotlandGeneral secretaryLarry FlanaganPresidentTommy Castles

Fire Brigades Union (FBU)Bradley House68 Coombe RoadKingston Upon ThamesSurrey, KT2 7AE02085411765office@fbu.org.ukwww.fbu.org.ukMain trades and industriesLocal authority fire brigadesGeneral SecretaryMatt WrackAssistant General SecretaryAndy DarkPresidentAlan McLean

p23 directory new.indd 24 18/08/2015 13:43:52

21-27 AUGUST 2015 | NEW STATESMAN | 25

Medical specialists andconsultantsGeneral secretaryEddie Saville

NAPO – Trade Union andProfessional Associationfor Family Court andProbation Staff 4 Chivalry Road, LondonSW11 1HT020 7223 4887info@napo.org.ukwww.napo.org.ukMain trades and industriesProbation and family court staffGeneral secretaryIan LawrenceAssistant general secretaryDean Rogers

National Association of Colliery Overmen, Deputies and Shotfi rers (Nacods)Wadsworth House130-132 Doncaster RoadBarnsley, S70 1TP01226 203743natnacods@googlemail.comwww.nacods.org.ukMain trades and industriesMiningGeneral secretaryRowland SoarPresidentTerry Fox

National Association of Co-operative Offi cials (NACO)6a Clarendon PlaceHyde, CheshireSK14 2QZ0161 351 7900info@naco.coopwww.naco.coopMain trades and industriesManagers and professionals in the co-operative movementGeneral secretaryNeil Buist

National Association of Schoolmasters Union of Women Teachers (NASUWT)Hillscourt Education Centre, Rose Hill, RednalBirmingham B45 8RS0121 453 6150nasuwt@mail.nasuwt.org.ukwww.nasuwt.org.ukMain trades and industriesEducationGeneral secretaryChris KeatesDeputy general secretaryPatrick RoachPresidentGraham Dawson

National Union ofJournalists (NUJ)Headland House308-312 Gray’s Inn RoadLondon WC1X 8DP020 7843 3705info@nuj.org.ukwww.nuj.org.ukMain trades and industriesJournalismGeneral secretaryMichelle Stanistreet

National Union of Mineworkers (NUM)Miners’ Offi ces2 Huddersfi eld RoadBarnsley S70 2LS01226 215555www.num.org.ukMain trades and industries

Coal miningNational secretaryChris KitchenPresidentNicky Wilson

National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT)Unity House,39 Chalton StreetLondon NW1 1JD020 7387 4771info@rmt.org.uk www.rmt.org.ukMain trades and industriesRailways and shipping,underground and roadtransportPresidentPeter Pinkney

Nationwide Group Staff UnionMiddleton Farmhouse37 Main RoadOxfordshire OX17 2QT01295 710767ngsu@ngsu.org.ukwww.ngsu.org.ukMain trades and industriesStaff of NationwideBuilding Society Group

General secretaryTim PoilPresidentGill Grocott

Nautilus International 1-2 The Shrubberies,London, E18 1BD020 8989 6677enquiries@nautilusint.orgwww.nautilusint.orgMain trades and industries

Campaigning for secure jobs, fair reward, decent pensions

and dignity at work in the Lloyds Banking Group, TSB &

Equitable Life

visit www.accord-myunion.org

Ged Nichols General Secretary

Chris Goldthorpe President

I love being part of a friendly union

that makes a positive difference.

email: info@accordhq.org call: 01189 341808

FDA8 Leake StreetLondon SE17NN0845470111102074015555info@fda.org.ukwww.fda.org.ukMain trades and industriesSenior managers and professionals in public service. The FDA UnisonJoint Venture Managers in Partnership represents senior managers in the NHS.General secretaryDave Penman

Musicians’ Union (MU)60-62 Clapham RoadLondon, SW9 0JJ020 7582 5566info@theMU.org.ukwww.musiciansunion.org.ukMain trades and industriesMusic professionGeneral secretaryJohn SmithAssistant general secretar-iesDavid AshleyHorace Trubridge

National Union of TeachersHamilton House,London WC1H 9BD020 7388 6191enquiries@nut.org.ukwww.teachers.org.ukMain trades and industriesTeachersGeneral secretaryChristine BlowerPresidentPhilipa Harvey

p23 directory new.indd 25 18/08/2015 13:43:53

DIRECTORY

26 | NEW STATESMAN | 21-27 AUGUST 2015

Maritime professionals at sea and ashoreGeneral secretaryMark Dickinson

Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA)20 Oxford Court,Manchester, M2 3WQ0161 236 0575info@thepfa.co.ukwww.thepfa.comMain trades and industriesProfessional football Chief executive Gordon Taylor

Society of Chiropodists and Podiatrists (SCP)1 Fellmongers Path,London, SE1 3LY020 7234 8620reception@scpod.orgwww.scpod.orgChief executiveJoanna Brown

Society of Radiographers (SoR)207 Providence SquareLondon SE1 2EW020 7740 7200info@sor.orgwww.sor.orgMain trades and industriesNational Health ServiceChief executive officerRichard Evans

Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association (TSSA)Walkden House,London, NW1 2EJ020 7387 2101enquiries@tssa.org.ukwww.tssa.org.ukMain trades and industriesWhite-collar transport workersGeneral secretaryManuel Cortes

Undeb Cenedlaethol Athrawon Cymru (UCAC)Ffordd Penglais,Aberystwyth SY23 2EU01970 639950ucac@athrawon.comwww.athrawon.comMain trades and industriesWelsh teachers’ unionGeneral secretaryElaine EdwardsPresidentElen Davies

Union of Construction, Allied Trades and Technicians (UCATT)UCATT House,London, SW4 9RL020 7622 2442info@ucatt.org.ukwww.ucatt.org.ukMain trades and industriesConstruction and buildingGeneral secretarySteve Murphy

UnityHillcrest House,Staffs, ST1 2AB01782 272755all@unitytheunion.org.ukwww.unitytheunion.org.ukMain trades and industriesCeramics industryGeneral secretaryHarry Hockaday

University and College

Union (UCU)Carlow Street,London, NW1 7LH020 7756 2500hq@ucu.org.ukwww.ucu.org.ukMain trades and industriesAcademics, lecturers, and related staff working in fur-ther and higher educationGeneral secretarySally Hunt

Writers’ Guild of GreatBritain (WGGB)134 Tooley StreetLondon, SE1 2TU020 7833 0777admin@writersguild.org.ukwww.writersguild.org.ukGeneral secretaryBernie Corbett

Prison Officers’ Association (POA UK)Cronin House, London, N9 9HW020 8803 0255general@poauk.org.ukwww.poauk.org.ukMain trades and industriesPrison, correctional and secure psychiatric workersGeneral secretarySteve GillanDeputy general secretaryAndy Darken National chairmanPJ McParlin

ProspectNew Prospect House 8 Leake Street, London SE1 7NN 020 7902 6600 enquiries@prospect.org.uk www.prospect.org.uk Main trades and industriesProfessionals, managers and specialistsGeneral secretary Mike Clancy Deputy general secretaries Garry Graham Dai HuddLeslie ManassehPresident Alan Grey

Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers (Usdaw)188 Wilmslow RoadManchester M14 6LJ0161 224 2804enquiries@usdaw.org.ukwww.usdaw.org.ukMain trades and industriesRetail and distribution sectorsGeneral secretaryJohn HannettDeputy general secretaryPaddy LillisPresidentJeff Broome

Public and Commercial Services (PCS)160 Falcon Road,London SW11 2LN020 7924 2727web@pcs.org.ukwww.pcs.org.ukMain trades and industriesCivil and public servantsGeneral secretaryMark SerwotkaAssistant general secretaryChris BaughPresidentJanice Godrich

UnisonUNISON Centre,130 Euston RoadLondon NW1 2AY0800 857 857www.unison.org.ukMain trades and industriesLocal government, healthcare, utilities, education,transport, voluntary sec-tor,housing associations,police support staffGeneral secretaryDave PrentisPresidentChris Tansley

Unite the unionUnite House,128 Theobald’s RoadHolborn,London WC1X 8TN020 7611 2500 www.unitetheunion.orgMain trades and industriesManufacturing, engineering, energy, construction, aerospace, civil aviation, health, IT, youth workGeneral secretaryLen McCluskey

United Road Transport Union (URTU)Almond House,Stanley Green Business ParkCheadle HumeCheshire SK8 6QL0161 486 2100info@urtu.comwww.urtu.comMain trades and industriesDrivers, warehousing,ancillary workers in thelogistics and food sectorsGeneral secretaryRobert MonksPresidentPhil Brown

p23 directory new.indd 26 18/08/2015 13:43:55

Yorkshire Independent Staff AssociationYorkshire HouseBradford, BD5 8LJ01274 472453kmwatson@ybs.co.ukMain trades and industriesYorkshire Building Society staffassociation

Confederations of unionsConfederation of Shipbuilding and Engineering Unions128 Theobalds RoadLondon, WC1X 8TN

Council of Civil Service Unions160 Falcon RoadLondon SW11 2LN020 7223 8340cc.su@which.net

Electricity Sector TradesUnion CouncilNew Prospect HouseLondon SE1 7NN020 7902 6600enquiries@prospect.org.ukwww.prospect.org.uk

21-27 AUGUST 2015 | NEW STATESMAN | 27

Non-affi liated unions and staff associations British Dental Association (BDA)64 Wimpole StreetLondon, W1G 8YS020 7935 0875enquiries@bda.org.ukwww.bda.org.ukChief executivePeter WardPresidentAlasdair Miller

British Medical Association (BMA)BMA HouseLondon, WC1H 9JP020 7387 4499enquiries@bma.org.ukwww.bma.org.ukChief ExecutiveKeith Ward

Lloyds TSB Group Union (LTU)St John’s Terrace,Bedford, MK42 9EY01234 26286824hours@ltu.co.ukwww.ltu.co.ukGeneral secretaryMark Brown

National Association of Head Teachers1 Heath SquareWest Sussex, RH16 1BL0300 30 30 333info@naht.org.ukwww.naht.co.ukGeneral secretaryRussell Hobby

National Union of Students (NUS)

Macadam House275 Gray’s Inn RoadLondonWC1X 8QB0845 5210 262nusuk@nus.org.ukwww.nus.org.ukChief executiveSimon Blake

Northern Ireland Public Service Alliance (Nipsa)Affi liated to the Irish Congress of Trade UnionsHarkin House,Belfast, BT9 6DP028 9066 1831info@nipsa.org.ukwww.nipsa.org.ukGeneral secretaryBrian Campfi eld

Off shore Industry Liaison Committee (OILC)106 Crown Street,Aberdeen, AB11 6NQ01224 210118oilc.rmt.secretary@gmail.comwww.oilc.orgRegional organiserJake Molloy

Passengers are fed up with the poorvalue they are being

offered by Britain’s privatised traincompanies and want the government

to do something about it. Becausethe privatised railway isn’t working

properly; the privatised train companies are ripping off the taxpayer and ripping off their

passengers.

Let’s help build a better railway for Britain in 2015

Mick Whelan, general secretaryTosh McDonald, president

Simon Weller, national organiser

For train drivers, tradeunions & the LabourParty since 1880

1508 aslef statesman party conf_1508 New Statesman party 87 wide x 127 1

The whole world loves the BBC and yet our own government is attacking the Corporation. Now’s the time for everyone who values BBC output to step up.

Sign the petition here:

bit.ly/1gXhoT2 Follow @bectu for campaign updates.

www.facebook.com/BECTUOfficial@bectu

www.bectu.org.ukThe media and entertainment union

BECTU_NewStateman_87x127_Aug15_aw.indd 1 10/08/2015 15:28

General Federation of Trade UnionsThe Lodge84 Wood LaneLeicestershire, LE12 8DB01509 410 853gftuhq@gftu.orgwww.gftu.org

p23 directory new.indd 27 18/08/2015 13:43:56

DIRECTORY

28 | NEW STATESMAN | 21-27 AUGUST 2015

Police Federation of England and WalesFederation House, Highbury Drive, LeatherheadSurrey KT22 7UY01372 352 000gensec@polfed.orgwww.polfed.orgGeneral secretaryAndy FittesChairmanSteve White

Retail Book, Stationery and Allied Trades Employees As-sociation (RBA)PO Box 3855, Swindon, SN4 4EB01793 855 786info@the-rba.orgwww.the-rba.orgPresidentDavid PicklesNational officerPaul Lee

Royal College of Midwives (RCM)15 Mansfield StreetLondon, W1G 9NH0300 303 0444info@rcm.org.ukwww.rcm.org.ukChief executiveCathy WarwickPresidentLesley Page

Royal College of Nursing (RCN)15 Mansfield StreetLondon W1G 9NH0300 303 0444press.office@rcn.org.ukwww.rcn.org.ukGeneral secretaryPeter CarterPresidentCecilia Anim

Scottish Police Federation5 Woodside PlaceGlasgow G3 7QF0141 332 5234gensec@spf.org.uk www.spf.org.ukGeneral secretaryCalum SteelChairmanBrian Docherty

Voice (the union for education professionals)2 St James’ Court, Derby DE1 1BT01332 372337contact@voicetheunion.org.ukwww.voicetheunion.org.ukGeneral secretaryDeborah Lawson

International organisationsEducation International5 Boulevard du Roi Albert IIB-1210 Brussels, Belgium00 32 2 224 0611headoffice@ei-ie.orgwww.ei-ie.orgGeneral secretaryFred van LeeuwenPresidentSusan Hopgood

European Economic and Social Committee (EESC)99 Rue BelliardB-1040 Brussels Belgium00 32 2 546 9011press@eesc.europa.euwww.eesc.europa.euGeneral secretaryLuis Planas PuchadesPresidentHenri Malosse

European Federation of Build-ing and Wood Workers (EFBWW)45/3 rue RoyaleB-1000 Brussels, Belgium00 32 2 227 1040info@efbh.bewww.efbww.orgGeneral secretarySam HagglundPresidentDomenico Pesenti

European Federation of Food, Agriculture and Tourism(EFFAT)38 Rue Fossé-aux-LoupsBoîte 3, B-1000 BrusselsBelgium00 32 2 218 7730effat@effat.orgwww.effat.orgGeneral secretaryHarald WiedenhoferPresidentBruno Vannoni

European Federation of Journalists (EFJ)Résidence Palace155 Rue de la LoiB-1040 BrusselsBelgium00 32 2 235 2200efj@europe.ifj.orghttp://europe.ifj.orgGeneral secretaryRicardo GutiérrezPresidentMogens Blicher Bjerregård

European Federation of Textiles, Clothing and LeatherMerged with IndustriALL

IndustriALLITUH, Boulevard du RoiAlbert II, 5 (Boîte 10) B-1210 Brussels, Belgium00 32 2226 0050info@industriall-europe.euwww.industriall-europe.euGeneral secretaryJyrki RainaPresidentBerthold Huber

European Public Services Union (EPSU)Rue Joseph II, Boîte 5B-1000 Brussels,Belgium00 32 2 250 1080epsu@epsu.orgwww.epsu.orgGeneral secretaryJan Willem GoudriaanPresidentAnnelie Nordstrom

European Trade Union Committee for Education (ETUCE)5 Boulevard du Roi Albert IIB-1210 BrusselsBelgium00 32 2 224 0692secretariat@csee-etuce.orgwww.csee-etuce.orgGeneral secretaryMartin RømerPresidentChristine Blower

European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC)5 Boulevard du Roi Albert IIB-1210 Brussels, Belgium00 32 2 224 0411etuc@etuc.orgwww.etuc.orgGeneral secretaryBernadette SégolPresidentIgnacio Fernandez Toxo

European Trade Union Institute for Research, Education, Health and Safety (ETUI- REHS)Boulevard du Roi Albert II,Boite 4, B-1210 Brussels,Tel: 00 32 2 224 0470Email: etui@etui.orgWebsite: www.etui.orgDirectorPhilippe Pochet

European Transport Workers’ Federation (ETF)Rue du Marché aux Herbes105, Boîte 11, B-1000 Brussels00 32 2 285 4660etf@etf-europe.orgwww.itfglobal.org/etf

General secretaryEduardo ChagasDeputy general secretarySabine Tier

International Federation of Building and Wood Workers (IFBWW)54 Route des AcaciasCH-1227, Carouge-GenevaSwitzerland00 41 22 827 3777info@bwint.orgwww.bwint.orgGeneral secretaryAmbet YusonPresidentPer Olof Sjoo

International Federation of Journalists (IFJ)International Press CentreBlock C, 155 Rue de la LoiB-1040 Brussels, Belgium00 32 2 235 2200ifj@ifj.orgwww.ifj.orgGeneral secretaryBeth CostaPresidentJim Boumelha

International Labour Office310 Nelson House,Dolphin SquareLondon SW1V 3NY020 7798 5681london@ilo.orgwww.ilo.org/london

International Labour Organisation (Geneva)4 Route des MorillonsCH-1211 Geneva 22,Switzerland00 41 22 799 6111ilo@ilo.orgwww.ilo.orgDirector generalGuy Ryder

International Trade Union Confederation5 Boulevard du Roi Albert IIB-1210 Brussels, Belgium00 32 2 224 0211info@ituc-csi.orgwww.ituc-csi.orgGeneral secretary (HQ)Sharan BurrowPresidentJoão Antonio Felicio

Irish Congress of Trade Unions31/32 Parnell SquareDublin 1, Ireland00 353 1 8897777congress@ictu.iewww.ictu.i

p23 directory new.indd 28 18/08/2015 13:43:56

21-27 AUGUST 2015 | NEW STATESMAN | 29

Usefu l contactsAssociation of Liberal Democrat Trade Unionists (ALDTU)London E10 6JHaldtu.blogspot.co.uk

Battersea and Wandsworth TUCLondon SW4 6DZ020 8877 7304carmelpollen@bwtuc.org.ukwww.bwtuc.org.uk

Centre for Local Economic StrategiesManchester M4 5DL0161 236 7036info@cles.org.ukwww.cles.org.uk

Centre for Policy StudiesLondon SW1P 3QL020 7222 4488tim@cps.org.ukwww.cps.org.uk

Certifi cation Offi ce for Trade Unions and Employers’ AssociationsLondon NW1 3JJ020 7210 3734info@certoffi ce.orgwww.certoffi ce.org

Child Poverty Action GroupLondon N1 9PF020 7837 7979info@cpag.org.ukwww.cpag.org.uk

Citizens’ Income TrustLondon SE10 0QQ020 8305 1222info@citizensincome.orgwww.citizensincome.org

Class: Centre for Labour & Social StudiesLondon, WC1X 8TN020 7611 2569info@classonline.org.ukwww.classonline.org.uk

Communist Party of BritainCroydon CR0 1BD020 8686 1659offi ce@communist-party.org.ukwww.communistparty.org.uk

Conservative PartyLondon SW1H 9HQ020 7222 9000www.conservatives.com

Co-operative PartyLondon SE1 3SD020 7367 4150mail@patry.coopwww.party.coop

Corporate Watch c/o Freedom Press,London E1 7QX020 7426 0005mail@corporatewatch.orgwww.corporatewatch.org.uk

DemosLondon SE1 2TU0845 458 5949hello@demos.co.ukwww.demos.co.uk

Department for TransportGreat Minster House,33 Horseferry Road,London, SW1P 4DR0300 330 3000www.dft.gov.uk

Department for Work and PensionsLondon, SW1H 9NA020 7712 2171www.dwp.gov.uk

Department for Business, Innovation and SkillsLondon SW1H 0ET020 7215 5000enquiries@bis.gov.ukwww.bis.gov.uk

Department of HealthLondon SW1A 2NS020 7210 4850dhmail@dh.gsi.gov.ukwww.dh.gov.uk

Disability Rights UKLondon EC1V 8AF

020 7250 3222enquiries@disabilityrightsuk.orgwww.disabilityrightsuk.org

Discrimination Law AssociationPO Box 63576,London N6 9BB0845 478 6375info@discriminationlaw.org.ukwww.discriminationlaw.org.uk

European Commission (UK offi ce)London SW1P 3EU020 7973 1992www.ec.europa.eu

Fabian SocietyLondon, SW1H 9EU020 7227 4900info@fabians.org.ukwww.fabians.org.ukwww.hse.gov.uk

Independent Police Complaints CommissionLondon WC1V 6BH0300 020 0096enquiries@ipcc.gsi.gov.ukwww.ipcc.gov.uk

Trade Union Friends of IsraelLondon, WC1N 3XX020 7222 4323info@tufi .org.ukwww.tufi .org.ukMain trades and industriesTUFI was established tostrengthen the links between the Israeli, Palestinian and British trade unions movement.TUFI aims to buildsupport for the Middle East peace process in the UK labour movement and promote efforts towards fi nding a just and lasting peace settlement for both Israelis and Palestinians.

UNI Global Union8-10 Avenue ReverdilCH-1260 NYONSwitzerland+41 22 365 21 00www.uniglobalunion.orgMain trades and industriesService sector, including;cleaning, security,commerce, fi nance,gaming, graphical andpackaging, hair andbeauty, information,communication and technology aervices,media, entertainment and arts, post and logistics, sport, temporary and agency workers, tourism.General SecretaryPhilip JenningsDeputy General SecretaryChristy Hoffman

p23 directory new.indd 29 18/08/2015 13:43:58

DIRECTORY

30 | NEW STATESMAN | 21-27 AUGUST 2015

Industrial Injuries Advisory CouncilLondon SW1H 9NA020 7499 5618iiac@dwp.gsi.gov.ukwww.iiac.org.uk

Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR)London WC2N 6DF020 7470 6100info@ippr.orgwww.ippr.org

Institute of Employment RightsLiverpool L3 8EG0151 207 5265offi ce@ier.org.ukwww.ier.org.uk

International Centre for TradeLondon SW4 9RL020 7498 4700ictur@ictur.orgwww.ictur.org

Labourstart.orgLondon N3 2LG07846 658571ericlee@labourstart.orgwww.labourstart.org

Labour PartyNewcastle upon TyneNE1 6PA0845 092 2299www.labour.org.uk

Labour Research DepartmentLondon SE1 8HF020 7928 3649info@lrd.org.ukwww.lrd.org.uk

Labour Women’s Networkcontact@lwn.org.ukwww.lwn.org.uk

Liberal DemocratsLondon, SW1P 3AE020 7222 7999info@libdems.org.ukwww.libdems.org.uk

Liberal Party41 Sutton Street,Liverpool L13 7EGnorthwestliberalparty@hotmail.co.ukwww.liberal.org.uk

London Coalition Against PovertyLondon E1 7QX07932 241737londoncoalitionagainstpov-erty@gmail.comwww.lcap.org.uk

Low Pay CommissionLondon WC1B 4AD020 7271 0450lpc@lowpay.gov.ukwww.lowpay.gov.uk

National Institute of Adult Continuing EducationLeicester LE1 7GE0116 204 4200enquiries@niace.org.ukwww.niace.org.uk

National Shop Stewards NetworkPO Box 54498,London E10 9DEinfo@shopstewards.netwww.shopstewards.net

New UnionismCheshire WA14 2PX00 64 27 8191 999enquiries@newunionism.netwww.newunionsim.net

NHS Support Federation113 Queens RoadBrighton BN1 3XG01273 234822info@nhscampaign.orgwww.nhscampaign.org

Pensions RegulatorBrighton BN1 4DW0870 6063636customersupport@thepensionsregulator.gov.ukwww.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk

PopularisSouthampton SO40 3LR 0116 254 2259 annehock@popularis.org www.popularis.org

Prison Reform TrustLondon EC1V 0JR020 7251 5070prt@prisonreformtrust.org.ukwww.prisonreformtrust.org.uk

Public Concern at WorkLondon SE1 9QQ020 7404 6609whistle@pcaw.co.ukwww.pcaw.co.uk

Keele University Centre for Industrial Relations, Keele Management SchoolDarwin Building, Keele University Keele, Staffordshire ST5 5BG 01782 734367 c.l.butters@keele.ac.uk www.keele.ac.uk

Ruskin CollegeDunstan Road,Oxford OX3 93201865 554331enquiries@ruskin.ac.ukwww.ruskin.ac.uk

Moorish Solicitors Oxford House, Oxford RowLeeds LS1 3BE033 3344 9600 info@morrishsolicitors.comwww.morrishsolicitors.comSenior partnerPaul Scholey

Keningtons Chartered SurveyorsKeningtons Chartered Surveyors72-75 Marylebone High StLondon W1U 5JW020 7224 2222www.keningtons.comtimpoulston@keningtons.com

Fair pay for

Claire Sullivan Director, Employment Relations and Union Services

Jill Barker Chair, Industrial Relations Committee

Fair pay

Claire Sullivan Director, Employment Jill Barker Chair, Industrial

quality services001312-ad-NewStatesman.indd 1 12/08/2015 10:23

p23 directory new.indd 30 18/08/2015 13:43:59

21-27 AUGUST 2015 | NEW STATESMAN | 31

Scottish Women’s Aid2nd floor, 132 Rose StreetEdinburgh EH3 3JD0131 226 6606info@scottishwomensaid.org.ukwww.scottishwomensaid.org.uk

Shelter88 Old StreetLondon EC1V 9HU0808 800 4444info@shelter.org.ukwww.shelter.org.uk

Social Market FoundationLondon SW1P 3QB020 7222 7060info@smf.co.ukwww.smf.co.uk

Social Security AdvisoryCommitteeCaxton House,Tothill StreetLondon SW1H 9NA020 7412 1506 ssac@dwp.gsi.gov.ukwww.ssac.org.uk

Socialist Educational Association

6 Preston Avenue, E4 9ML020 8531 9836m.dore27@ntlworld.comwww.socialisteducation.org.uk

Society of Labour Lawyers12 Baylis RoadLondon, SE2 7AA020 7837 2808societylabourlawyers@gmail.comwww.societyoflabourlawyers.org.uk

Solidarity FederationPO Box 29, SW Postal Delivery OfficeManchester M15 5HW0161 232 7889solfed@solfed.org.ukwww.solfed.org.uk

StonewallLondon SE1 7NXTel: 020 7593 1850info@stonewall.org.ukwww.stonewall.org.uk

Thompsons SolicitorsLondon WC1B 3LW020 7290 0000enquiries@thompsons.law.co.uk

www.thompsons.law.co.uk

UK National Workstress Network9 Bell Lane, Syresham,Brackley, NN13 5HP07966 196033iandraper@workstress.netwww.workstress.net

Unions 217 Northumberland StreetLondon, WC2N 5RD020 7782 1535info@unions21.org.ukwww.unions21.org.uk

United Campaign to Repeal the Anti-Trade Union Laws 39 Chalton Street London NW1 1JD 0151 702 6927 ryates@unitedcampaign.org.uk www.unitedcampaign.org.uk

The Work FoundationLondon SW1H 0AD0207 976 3565partnership@theworkfounda-tion.comwww.theworkfoundation.com

The POA are the largest union in the UK representing uniformed prison, detention, secure escort staff inthe public and private sector, along with staff working in the field

of secure forensic psychiatric care.

The POA is restructuring to meet the challenges of the future. Our structures will be relevant to the needs of our members

wherever they work.

We want all our members to have a voice in their trade union. No member, irrespective of where they work or who their

employer is, will go unheard.

We are dedicated to serving and promoting the best interests of all our members.

As a specialised trade union we provide advice, support and representation.

For further information contact the POAThe POA The Professional Trades Union for Prison, Correctional and Secure Psychiatric Workers Cronin House 245 Church Street London N9 9HW

Telephone: 020 8803 0255

www.poauk.org.uk

Belfast, Cardiff, Edinburgh, London and all points in betweenWherever you are in the UK, you are never very far from a Prospect member. They work on our energy infrastructure, conserve our world-class heritage, make sure our flood defences are as good as they can be and provide logistic and maintenance support for our armed forces.

The outcome of the general election will produce political, social and workplace change across the UK. Prospect believes that progressive workplaces are key to solving the UK’s economic challenges.

www.prospect.org.uk

professionals working for a better Britain

Prospect_NS_TUCsup_ad_2015.indd 1 12/08/2015 16:36

Workers’ Educational Association4 Luke StreetLondon EC2A 4XW020 7426 3450national@wea.org.uk www.wea.org.uk

Working Lives Research Unit London Metropolitan University166-220 Holloway Road,London, N7 8DB020 7133 5132workinglives@londonmet.ac.ukwww.workinglives.org

p23 directory new.indd 31 18/08/2015 13:43:59

End Austerity Now

This government will divide our country and spread inequality. We need to stop them.You can help by getting involved:• Please support the People’s Assembly’s week of protest and creativity as we tell the people’s stories• And join us on the march at the TUC’s National Demonstration in Manchester on Sunday 4th October.

Watch out for the People’s Assembly events going on all week:Theatre performances, gigs, People’s cinema, comedy, tent cities plusdiscussions on privatisation, our NHS, climate change, education, TTIP,Europe, and real alternatives to austerity.

Participants throughout the week include: Jeremy Corbyn MP,Frankie Boyle, Charlotte Church, Sam Fairbairn, Frances O'Grady, LenMcCluskey, Mark Serwotka, Julie Hesmondhalgh, Owen Jones, JohnHillary, Terry Christian, Sam Duckworth, Kate Marlow, Mark McGowan,Kevin Maguire, Francesca Martinez, Mark Steel, Jeremy Hardy, DaveWard, Sara Pascoe, Lindsey German, Christine Blower, Kevin Courtney,Richard Burgon MP...and more to be announced!

Protest the Conservative Party

Conference!

Saturday 3rd October -Wednesday 7th October 2015

manchester

Affordable transport and accommodation will be available. These details and a full timetableof events will be available soon at www.thepeoplesassembly.org.uk

AGAINST

THE

ASSEMBLYPEOPLE S

AUSTERITY.

The Torygovernment isattacking therights of peoplein work, andimposing cutsthat will harmeveryone on alow income, in or out of work.They continue to punish themost vulnerablefor a crisis theydid not create –while rewardingthose that did.

7114_AntiAusterity_Ad_3_Layout 1 10/08/2015 16:12 Page 1

Unite.indd 1 18/08/2015 11:31:04