Union conferences

Workers' Liberty bulletins at National Education Union conference 2022

You can download the 14-page bulletin produced by Workers' Liberty school workers for the National Education Union conference (11-14 April, Bournemouth) here . And here is the additional bulletin we put on the final day of the conference. We held a fringe meeting on Ukraine: Ukraine should decide its own future! Russian troops out now! Speakers from Ukrainian socialist / labour movement organisation Sotsialniy Rukh and from the Ukraine Solidarity Campaign 6pm, Tuesday 12th April Kennedy Room, Durley Dean Hotel, 28 West Cliff Rd, Bournemouth BH2 5HE

Highs and lows as RMT meets

The Special General Meetings (SGMs) of the rail union RMT, held in Leeds on 21 and 22 February, refused to withdraw default support for Labour candidates, added trans rights to the union’s rules, and addressed internal issues in a rather faltering way. The first of the two SGMs dealt with the motions that the 2021 Annual General Meeting (AGM) had not reached. It voted down a proposal moved by Socialist Party members that they union strengthen its ties with the Trade Union and Socialist Coalition (TUSC) and bar branches from backing Labour candidates without prior permission of the National...

Model Motions for NEU Conference 2022

Whether fighting for better representation for support staff, demanding collective action over testing or calling for greater accountability and democracy in our union Workers'Liberty education workers are taking arguments to NEU conference 2022. Help to pass motions you agree with in your union...

CWU calls for demonstration for New Deal for Workers

At the Communications Workers’ Union (CWU) virtual Special General Conference on 7-9 November, motions passed on the “New Deal For Workers” (published by Labour when Andy McDonald was shadow minister) called for a mobilisation in the Spring of 2022 for a New Deal demonstration with other unions. There was also confirmation from the leadership that the CWU would remain a stand-alone union (rather than merging into a bigger general union). There has been no national discussion of General Conference business (i.e. what affects the whole union, not the industrial policies of differing sectors...

Steps forward at RMT AGM

Daniel Randall was a delegate to the recent AGM of the RMT rail union. He reports here in a personal capacity. The annual general meeting of the National Union of Rail, Maritime, and Transport workers (RMT) took place in Leeds from 24-29 October. The AGM had held-over business from the truncated 2020 AGM, which took place online, as well the 2021 business. It took place against the backdrop of threats including big job cuts in Network Rail, a pay freeze across the rail industry, and cuts on Transport for London. Recent officer elections in the union have seen the Broad Left alliance between...

Unite strengthens policy on anti-union laws

At the Policy Conference in Liverpool (18-22 October) of Unite the Union, one of the most important composites passed was about the anti-union laws. Previous policy conferences decided for repeal of all the anti-union laws including the Thatcher ones. This conference passed some concrete policy about a campaign on those laws and on the threatened further “minimum service” legislation attacking transport workers. The composite referred to breaking these laws if necessary, and a special conference if and when the Tories introduce the “minimum service” legislation. It commits Unite to push the...

Issues behind CWU conference

The option presented by the Executive to the Communication Workers’ Union (CWU) Special Virtual Conference on 7-9 November , to maintain the union’s affiliation to the Labour Party, is right. But the detail it contains, a focus on lobbying and supporting the Labour metro mayors, makes no sense. Dave Ward, the CWU general secretary, has moved on a little, but essentially this is a reprise from when Dave Ward pushed disaffiliation to gain profile against Billy Hayes, whom he defeated for general secretary in 2015. He did that to appear more left-wing, though in fact Hayes, for all his flaws, was...

CWU to debate Labour links

The agenda for the 7-9 November Special Virtual Conference of the Communication Workers’ Union (CWU) has been released . Motions from branches were only permitted on subjects designated by the NEC. That said, this will enable activists the first opportunity in a long time to debate some key issues. The event will open with a section on Anti-Racism, which is unlikely to be controversial, followed by one on Politics, which certainly will be. Here the choice will be a complete break with Labour or a reduction in financial support to the party. The latter is the National Executive Committee (NEC)...

Link outsourced workers' disputes

The union has now made a formal complaint to the Cabinet Office about the treatment of our reps in the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) Swansea. It’s increasingly clear that the strikebreaking campaign is, if not originating with management, certainly endorsed by them. The anti-strike, back-to-work petition was even tweeted by the DVLA’s official Twitter account. I’m pushing for the union to coordinate three outsourced workers’ disputes which are developing concurrently. On 29 June, we’ll get the result from a ballot of outsourced workers in the Department for Business, Energy, and...

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