Want a career? Call your union

By Liz McCarten

Trade unions remain relevant and useful for their members and those representing professionals and specialists in both the private and public sectors have sought new ways to enhance the services and support they offer. Unions which innovate in this way, whilst also providing high quality negotiation and representation services, retain members and can increase their membership.

In recent years the trade union movement has coined the phrases ‘union for life’ and ‘membership from the cradle to grave’, but work still needs to be done to flesh out these sometimes nebulous, though laudable, ideals. Trade union benefits and services now often include car insurance, will writing, credit cards and even sickness benefit. Unions have only now started to add professional career support to the services on offer and to make these relevant to someone in a first job through to those nearing retirement thereby not only protecting members’ existing jobs but their future careers too.

Some of the smaller unions have seen the link between retention of members and the range of professional support services they should provide. The role of the government-backed Union Learning Fund in developing and promoting learning for trade union members continues to be invaluable. There are now frameworks of Union Learning Reps across the trade union movement engaging members in learning from the basic levels to post-graduate. The next step must be to develop a strategic link between Union Learning Reps and specialist career support.

What support should unions offer?

Whether the career support offered is based on seminars, individual support or a combination of these services, there is a clear need for help for union members, particularly in the current economic climate. Services may cover a broad spectrum including dealing with redundancy and other changes at work, reviewing CVs, provision of practice interviews, job searching and understanding how to manage the organisational landscape.

Provision of career support around employer initiatives, such as competence frameworks, has additional benefits in terms of the bargaining agenda and raising a union’s profile. Members are encouraged to take control of their working lives and issues are surfaced and addressed. Organisers and reps are equipped with new ways of bringing members together with a service proven to increase and retain membership. Using professional coaches or career specialists from within the union has a clear advantage in terms of understanding the situations that members are facing. As part of a wider, more integrated approach to providing support in the workplace, careers services are invaluable.