Unions & politics

Trade Unions and politics

Union members vote to keep political funds

On Friday 12 November 2004, eight unions closed their political fund review ballots - ASLEF, BECTU, CATU, CWU, FBU, GMB, TSSA and USDAW. All achieved overwhelming yes votes, with an average 77% affirmative vote. This brings the total number of unions to achieve massive yes votes, in this the third round of review ballots, to 16. ASLEF - 80% yes on 49% turnout BECTU - 75% yes on 29% turnout CATU - 67% yes on 19% turnout CWU - 73% yes on 33% turnout FBU - 74% yes on 42% turnout GMB - 88% yes on 19% turnout TSSA - 78% yes on 26% turnout USDAW - 81% yes on 18% turnout. The RMT's political fund...

Labour Party conference debates Iraq

At this year's Labour Party Conference there was a collective amnesia about the split in the party on the issue of the War in Iraq. Delegates who opposed the war got up to say that we must all leave this behind and all pull together to rebuild Iraq. Unions that had opposed the war agreed an NEC Statement, carried overwhelmingly, that firmly shut away the destabilising aspects of Blair's decision to go to war on Iraq. A critical motion that called for a date to be set for an early withdrawl of troops was defeated approx 80% to 20%, with the vote in the Union section even higher: 90% to 10%...

Grassroots challenges FBU leaders

By Nick Holden Fire Brigades Union (FBU) leaders are claiming a victory in the final stages of their two year long pay dispute. They say management are finally paying previously-agreed pay increases from the 2003 pay deal. However, as the rank and file body Grassroots FBU point out, “the employers were able to delay payment of the 3.5% and 4.2% because of the vague and inadequate pay deal negotiated by the FBU leadership in 2003”. The whole history of the FBU pay campaign is one of continual retreat — right at the beginning of the dispute at the end of 2002 the leadership called off strike...

Going back to the roots

At a packed Labour Representation Committee fringe meeting, union leaders Jeremy Dear of the NUJ (pictured), Mark Serwotka of the PCS and Tony Woodley of the TGWU all spoke. The theme of the meeting was “rebuilding Labour”. This will mean rebuilding political trade unionism from the bottom up. Unions have to make the case for the involvement of ordinary working people in politics. Union political structures should represent members’ concerns and be part and parcel of internal union democracy. As Kate Ahrens from Unison, speaking on behalf of the LRC, put it: co-ordination between union leaders...

Pottage off the menu?

Having sold the unions’ souls for a mess of pottage — or rather, a promise from the Blair leadership that the next Labour manifesto will include a promise of a mess of pottage — the big union leaders are now worried that they will not even get that. Tony Blair has appointed Alan Milburn as his “general election coordinator” and chair of the “election campaign planning committee”. “Milburn’s manifesto” was summed up by the Financial Times on 10 September: “Where it is feasible for users to exercise individual choice... that should be the norm” [code for more marketising, and letting money make...

TUC Congress: Big Four batten down hatches

By a delegate OVERALL this year’s TUC congress (13-16 September, in Brighton) was reasonably militant – Blair was not given a warm reception, delegates voted in favour of repealing all anti-union laws. But is there really a willingness to fight? The main debates were on employment rights, the situation in Iraq, public services, pensions, the economy and working time. On every issue there was near-unanimity. One possible area of disunity — over Europe – was avoided when the more “pro-Europe” amendments were withdrawn in favour of a bland General Council statement supported by everyone. The euro...

Pottage off the menu?

Having sold the unions' souls for a mess of pottage - or rather, a promise from the Blair leadership that the next Labour manifesto will include a promise of a mess of pottage - the big union leaders are now worried that they will not even get that. Tony Blair has appointed Alan Milburn as his "general election coordinator" and chair of the "election campaign planning committee". "Milburn's manifesto" was summed up by the Financial Times on 10 September: "Where it is feasible for users to exercise individual choice... that should be the norm" (code for more marketising, and letting money make...

We need a working-class voice

Unite the socialists for the general election! Some union leaders are claiming that they have won significant concessions from Blair and reshaped New Labour's manifesto for 2005. But even they cannot seriously deny that John Cridland of the bosses' federation, the CBI, was basically right when he said that New Labour's deal with the unions at its 23-25 July Policy Forum "left things roughly where they were". Tony Woodley of the TGWU concedes that "the argument between new Labour, with its pro-business and warlike tendencies, and the left will continue" and that "the argument about the nature...

Unions and politics

The unions, Labour and politics


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The Labour Representation Committee movement

Labour Representation Committee website

Blair speaks for the rich: We need a workers' voice: interview with John McDonnell, Solidarity 3/38

For rank and file Labour Representation Committees!, Solidarity 3/38

Unions launch a drive to "put Labour back into the party", Solidarity 3/38

Organise the union rank and file. Ditch Blair!, Solidarity 3/37

Rix calls for a Labour Representation Committee, Wednesday, 1 October 2003

RMT opens up debate on working-class representation, Saturday, 5 July 2003

What we say: Fight for labour representation!, Solidarity 3/32

Organise the "awkward squad"!, Monday, 14 October 2002

For workers' representation, against the apparatchiks, Wednesday, 6 March 2002

AWL National Committee resolution on LRC movement: 14 December 2003


Text for use when drafting trade union branch motions:

The AWL argues:

  • for independent working-class political representation
  • for the unions to assert themselves politically and break with Blair
  • for organising the revolutionaries to revolutionise the broad labour movement
  • for a workers' government.

"Workers' government": what it means. 1. Britain today

"Workers' government": what it means. 2. Trotsky and the Comintern

"Workers' government": what it means. 3. From Shachtman, The Fight For Socialism

The case for a workers' government


Debate

Buy online:

Debate with the Weekly Worker on revolutionaries and the transformation of the labour movement, May 2001

Trade Unions

Text for union motions on the union/Blair "pact"

Suggested text for trade-union motions on the union/Blair-Brown 'pact'. Please adapt and reword as suitable for your union. This branch: 1. Notes the decision by the representation of the trade unions at the Labour Party National Policy Forum of 23/25 July to strike a pact with the New Labour leadership, dropping numerous trade-union demands for commitments in the next Labour manifesto in return for very limited concessions from the New Labour leadership. 2. Notes the verdict on those concessions pronounced by John Cridland, deputy director-general of the Confederation of British Industry, who...

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