Your questions answered - Week One

08.06.10 - Helen Symons

What do you see as the role of trade unions in the 21st Century?

Diane Abbott:

In one way the role of trade unions in the 21st century is the same as it was in the 19th century – to represent workers and to pursue their interests. Historically by bringing workers together, the trade union movement was able to empower them in relation to management. But it is also the case that the world has moved on since the setting up of our trade unions. The number of people actually organised in the unions has dropped. In the private sector, only fifteen percent of workers are in a union. There is a rising generation of young people who have no tradition of trade unionism in their family or in the community, who only realise the point of trade unionism when they are in a crisis at work.

So the challenge for trade unions in the 21st century is how do you reach out to those people who do not see the point of the trade union movement, and do not come from communities with a history of trade union activity?

First of all there is a lot that government can do to help and the next Labour leader must commit to doing away with a legal situation where courts can halt strikes on a technicality about the trade union’s ballot.

Also, for too long there have not been any role models in the trade union movement – we need more women and ethnic minority officers and more diversity at the top.

We must prove to potential members what we have to offer them and show that the British trade union movement wants a leadership that looks like Britain.

It is not a coincidence that with the decline in organised trade unionism there has been an increase in inequality. That is why the role of trade unions is as vital as ever.

Ed Balls:

Those who argue that the days of unions are numbered could not be more wrong. The old smokestack industries no longer employ millions. Blue-collar have given way to ‘new-collar’ jobs. Jobs for life have ended. But workers still need to act together to pursue their rights.

As old demarcations dissolve, unions like Unite, Unison, GMB and Community have widened their scope. But ‘niche unions’ like the teaching and musicians’ unions show members still value individual service.

Today’s workers suffer new forms of insecurity and new pressures as we live longer and must balance family life and work, and global competition is intensifying by the day. Labour also need to respond quicker - we introduced the minimum wage but were too slow to legislate for equal treatment for agency staff.

The union link is as important as ever. We need each other. Unions know the fight for justice cannot end at the factory gate or office door. Labour needs the real time connection with the concerns of millions of working people.

Modern democratic unions must be responsive to the more sophisticated needs of their members, similarly a modern Labour Party must be more responsive to those members. New forms of communication and organising to match more fluid employment and politics are essential across the whole Labour movement. Today’s trade unions must have a political voice arguing for sustainable growth and a fairer society.

With a modern agenda of respect, fair pay and progression, 21st century unions are needed as much as ever before.

Andy Burnham:

Trade unions, like the Labour Party, have a proud past and a bright future. They are at the heart of the Labour movement and, under my leadership, I want them to be at the heart of the Labour Party too.

The work that union members did during the General Election campaign was tireless, getting Labour candidates elected across the country. That unity, that sense of purpose, that fight for what is good and just inextricably links the Party and the union movement.

The progress made on union learning was one of the big achievements of the Labour Government and I’m really proud of the thousands of opportunities to get on at work that were provided through the union learning fund, by working with the TUC and with trade unions across the country. Under my leadership, I will work with the unions to promote and support projects like this to give people the opportunities that they otherwise may not have.

There were times in the recent past when the Party seemed to put the interests of big business before the interests of individuals. We should be pro-business, but we should never lose sight of ordinary people, those who feel that, despite doing everything right, the odds still feel stacked against them. I want to work with the unions reconnect Labour and put fairness back at the heart of Britain.

David Miliband:

Unions can play a leading role in shaping the new economy in the aftermath of the financial crisis, and helping Labour reconnect with the voters we have lost.

New economy: Trade unions can be the champions of a more balanced, more equal and more sustainable economy. They stand up for a fair deal for employees, securing improved terms and conditions and being a trusted friend at work. By promoting good work in good workplaces, unions are central to shaping a new era of shared prosperity. Workplaces where employees have a voice and a stake in their firm – who feel trusted, involved, respected and fairly rewarded – are those that will prosper in the new economy. I want to work with unions to ensure we have an economy with fair rewards at the top and the bottom, including through a living wage.

Winning back voters: It was the TUC in their work on the ‘real middle Britain’ back in 2009, who identified those on incomes of £20,000-£30,000 as the group under real economic pressure in the recession. They felt squeezed by stagnant incomes and higher living costs, and insecure about their future prospects. These are precisely the voters Labour lost at the general election. We need to return to the ‘bread and butter’ issues that affect people’s daily lives – jobs, pensions, housing, transport and childcare. in particular, time and money are real pressures for many families. They need an effective partnership between Labour and the trade unions to stand up for them and make their lives better.

Ed Miliband:

Trade unions defend and promote the interests of working people and their role is as important now as it ever was. They are at the heart of the fight against injustices in our society, leading the campaign for some of Labour’s proudest achievements like the minimum wage, stronger parental leave rights and legislation on gangmasters.

It is clear to me not enough people who are employed in the private sector benefit from trade union membership. The future of modern trade unions must be in increasing membership from the current level of less than one in five. That will require union reps having the right to enter non-unionised workplaces to offer membership and organsiation. I would support such a move.

I have seen as energy secretary the way trade unions can organise with other campaigning groups to mobilize people for action on climate change. I have seen green reps make a change in their workplaces helping win the arguments for shifting to a low carbon economy and ensuring working people reap the benefits. This is the kind of effective campaigning - rooted in the working lives of their members, focussed on the challenges of the age, committed to values of social justice - that will make trade unions effective in this century.

As a symbol of the kind of party and kind of country I want to see, I have launched a campaign for the living wage, learning from the efforts of trade unions, which I want party members and others to sign up to.

We need to put our values of equality, social justice, dignity at work, at the heart of what we do. The Labour Party stands for this and so do trade unions. We need to fight for this common purpose and stand up for working people.