Unions & Equalities

Tackling sexism with solidarity

An admin worker in a male-dominated industry spoke to Women’s Fightback about her experiences of challenging workplace sexism. The following text is adapted from an interview. I’m an administrator working in an office sited in a bin depot that provides refuse, recycling, and street cleaning services for a local authority. Our workplace is very male-dominated, with only a small number of women working here. Sexism is rife, ranging from leering over pornography in communal areas, and offhand “jokes” and comments (i.e. mother-in-law or wife jokes, or instructions to “get the teas in darlin’” etc...

Perfunctory, shallow, formulaic

The 17 July 2013 issue of The Socialist (paper of the Socialist Party) carried a feature “End Violence Against Women”. The feature included an extract from a booklet by Christine Thomas about the social attitudes which underpin violence against women, an account of the Campaign Against Domestic Violence (a 1990s campaign set up by the Socialist Party’s forerunner the Militant Tendency), and a list of demands to tackle violence against women. There are some problems with Thomas’s book (Women and the Struggle for Socialism) which are worth debating (for instance her attitude to sex workers...

Which side is the left on?

At Unison National Delegate Conference 2013, we discussed a motion about creating “a safe space for women in the labour movement”. We also discussed an amendment about male violence against women. I am still angry about the discussion around the amendment and upset by the fact it was defeated. The original, uncontroversial, motion was about organising women in the labour movement, actively supporting young women, buddying systems and many other ways. The amendment on male violence against women should have been uncontroversial. Sadly, it wasn’t. This is the text of the amendment: “We believe...

Tackling DV in the workplace

Domestic abuse and violence has been taken up as a workplace and trade union issue since the 1990s, under the impact of feminist-inspired campaigning and practical work of organisations like Women’s Aid. Unison was at the forefront of these initiatives. In 2002 the TUC published a guide on domestic violence for unions and employers. In terms of formal union policies DV has correctly long been seen as a social issue that can not be confined to the “private sphere”. It impacts on our ability to work. In most workplaces someone will have experienced it directly or indirectly. Unions need to...

Solidarity is not just for men!

The concept of solidarity in the labour movement is still too often seen as a male preserve. It reflects the view in wider society of political authority as commonly male, and the exercising of political power as a male activity. This prevailing view is the norm in the media, in education, in sport and in wider civil society. Political sexism is backed up by, and from the same misogynist root as, heterosexism, from which also stem homophobia and transphobia. Yet the unity of the working class is necessary to challenge the bosses. Our movement has to be inclusive to be strong and therefore must...

How to fight sexism

Challenging sexism as part of the fight to end women’s oppression should be a central part of the left’s activity, in the labour movement and in society. Unfortunately the problem of sexism is sometimes poorly understood and met with indifference or dismissal by labour movement activists and even socialists. When was the last time you saw the male general secretary of a UK trade union make a “barnstorming” speech about violence against women and sexual harassment in the workplace? Such issues are not considered central to the union organisation. Yet these are critically important social issues...

LGBT transport workers discuss solidarity

In a show of solidarity with Uganda’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community and activists, delegates to this year’s RMT LGBT Member’s Conference (Blackpool, May 18th) linked up via Skype video with one of the most prominent and courageous advocates for LGBT rights in Uganda, Frank Mugisha. In an inspiring and moving question and answer session, the winner of the 2011 Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Award and 2011 Rafto Prize spoke about the advocacy work of Sexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG) and the relentless determination of the LGBT community in Uganda, who continue to...

Discussing autism at work

[img_assist|nid=19580|title=cartoon by Landon Bryce, thAutcast.com|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=400|height=192]In October and November, trade unionists from a variety of different unions will attend a one-day seminar on “Autism in the Workplace”, hosted by the Workers’ Educational Association London Region. Working with the WEA, and with RMT’s sponsorship, I have put together this seminar to enable trade unionists to mobilise around this issue, effectively representing autistic workers and those who care for autistic dependants, tackling discrimination, and engaging with political debates...

For anti-capitalist politics at Pride

An estimated 25,000 people attended London Pride on 7 July, including delegations from many trade unions. The march was lively and colourful, and despite (or perhaps because of) the fiasco around its organisation, there was an atmosphere of political discussion about the nature of the event and the direction of LGBT politics in London. Workers’ Liberty held a “Proud to be Radical” meeting in central London following the march, with speakers including RMT member and LGBT activist Paul Penny, sex worker activist Thierry Schauffhauser, and Unison rep Lynne Moffat. The meeting discussed the work...

Firefighters discuss cuts battles

The Fire Brigades Union (FBU) met in Blackpool last week for what (with one exception) was a fairly quiescent special conference, with the union’s Executive Council carrying all the motions it proposed. Delegates discussed the continued loss of frontline firefighter jobs – over a thousand a year — and the impact these would have on emergency fire cover in local communities. There are a number of local disputes brewing over cuts. The union announced dates for five strikes in Essex, starting from 28 June in a long-running dispute about cuts to the service. The threat from privatisation and...

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