Before the so-called Winter of Discontent 1978/9 which ushered in the Thatcher government – union membership in the UK stood at over 13 million but has declined since. It is approximately half that today. However, as a proportion of that decreased membership – women and black people are well represented in terms of membership. But, with a more fragmented workforce, the spread of zero hours contracts and the decline of any significant manufacturing base in the UK, overall union membership remains low compared to 1960s and 1970s. Of that reduced membership, according to TUC figures, the vast majority are over the age of 35. In the uncertainty of the post-covid, post-Brexit workplace, do we need to re-educate younger people about the benefits of unionisation or ask why they don’t see the point?
Many people will remember the decision hailed as a
victory when Uber drivers were deemed by the courts to be workers and therefore
entitled to basic rights. While most saw that as a positive outcome – is it not
rather depressing to be fighting for something as rudimentary as the right to
be considered a worker in 21st century Britain?
How do unions tackle the new online world and the
challenges of shrinking workforces? Many
traditional jobs that were being lost prior to covid are now haemorrhaging.
Discount supermarkets with staff-less tills. Banks where even those who will
lose their jobs badger you to bank online. These things are all presented as
progress – it just means more profit – less employment.
I’ve argued about this – and I mean literally – with
a store manager who told me nothing would change when self-service tills were
introduced. I’ve joked to you about being a Luddite – for lots of reasons – not
least I don’t own a smart phone – but, of course – The Luddites were a real 19th
century radical English movement centred on the textile industry who,
presciently, saw mechanisation as a threat to their labour rights.
In Britain, significant numbers of black and ethnic
minority workers have traditionally worked in the NHS – since the earliest days
of its inception and the time of Windrush – and a tradition of NHS service runs
in many families of Caribbean heritage including my own. Post covid, English
NHS workers were offered 1% pay increase after so many were on the front line
of covid and literally gave their lives – as against the 4% offered by the
Scottish government. As recently as 2014 Operation Black Vote suggested that
black and Ethnic minorities were significantly less likely to vote or be
registered to vote as their white counterparts. Which leads me to a singular point
- is it more important to encourage people to vote than it is to get them to
join a union?
Also, can union membership skew priorities? In the
1990s I was a city councillor in the NE of England. It was a time when
Thatcherite cuts were biting hard. One of the sectors suffering terribly were
council run homes for the elderly – all since privatised of course which led –
in my view – to so many early covid deaths in that poorly regulated,
uncoordinated sector. I recall an odd situation occurred because those employed
in the Works department were predominantly men and unionised – those jobs were
protected. Many homes where mainly non-unionised low-paid women worked – were
closed. So there was a lot of trauma for elderly people while the grass verges
were still getting cut. Is this one of the downsides of union influence?
Almost 100 years ago – the iconic 1926 General
Strike in support of miners, while a triumph of solidarity – ended in defeat
and division.
Closer to the present day, unions were – at best naïve
about Brexit? Ronnie Draper of The
Bakers, Food and Allied Workers Union, Mick Whelan of ASLEF, Mick Cash of the
RMT were pro Leave and Jeremy Corby – who was popular with the many union
leaders, barely left London during the EU referendum and, clearly anti-EU, sat
on the fence while Johnson was parading the big red bus of lies about and promising
xenophobic nirvana. As a group Farmers and Fishermen were broadly pro Brexit
and to say they’ve been shafted is a bit of an understatement...
So, what is the point of a strike? Workers have the right to withdraw labour.
These rights have ebbed and flowed since the formation of unions. It is broadly
accepted that as well as being remunerated for work, the right to withdraw
labour is fundamental and separates the worker from the slave, the indentured labourer,
the surf, the mediaeval peasant.
But…
From The General Strike 1926 to the miners’ strike
1984 have strikes ever been genuinely successful? Strikers and their families
suffer hardship as many did during The Miners’ strike. Strikes seem to have had
little effect on – for example – the privatised railways. Poor service and huge
hikes in prices are accompanied by massive government subsidies sucked up by
shareholders and chairmen while strikes seem to cause misery only to travellers,
commuters and their families.
Currently, unprecedented strikes in the NHS from
nurses to junior doctors have not lead to increases that come even near to
matching the damage to incomes done by Brexit, government mismanagement and,
for example, the catastrophic 49 day premiership of Liz Truss which left a dent
in UK economics to the tune of an estimated £30bn
Part of the decline in union membership is down to
the fragmentation of the work force and a greater emphasis on small scale
businesses in a febrile service driven sector. But how much of the decline is
the sense that Unions have just one arrow in their quiver - its blunt and
lacking flight…
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