There is power in the union – it’s how we choose to use it that counts

By Johanna Baxter

May Day Weekend Guest Editor, UnionList.org / LabourList.org

George Loveless. James Loveless. James Brine. James Hammett. Thomas Stansfield. John Stansfield. Do you recognise these names?

These are the Tolpuddle Martyrs, those who gave of their freedom in 1833 so that we could have ours, in forming and belonging to a trade union.

Are things any better today? In other parts of the world, sadly not. In December 350 workers for Sinter Metal ÔÂmalat Sanayi AÅž (located in the Dudullu Organized Industrial Zone, Turkey) were sacked for belonging to a union. Their struggle for reinstatement has been going on for over 3 months. For the past two years Iranian trade unionists seeking to celebrate May Day have been sentenced to public whippings. Mohmed Salehi, leader of an independent bakers union in Iran’s Kurdistan province, served one year in prison for attempting to organise a public rally in May 2004.

You literally take your life in your own hands if, as a Columbian trade unionist you seek to exert your rights; according to data obtained directly from the United Workers’ Federation [CUT] of Colombia, in the last 20 years, 2,562 trade union leaders have been assassinated in Colombia. The perpetrators go unpunished and the Colombian government of President Alvaro Uribe Velez has done nothing to stop the genocide that is being committed against the union movement.

And on Tuesday of this week a Serbian trade union official cut of his own finger and ate it in protest at unpaid wages! His colleagues had threatened to follow suit, one at t time, but further DIY amputations have been put on hold until talks are held with the government on Tuesday.

Here in the UK we don’t suffer anywhere near this degree of victimisation but the life of a union official is nevertheless not an easy one.

In the UK we are accused of selling our members down the river if we dare develop a good working relationship with a company that employs any of our members, of being responsible for the downfall of the UK economy if we dare stand up for the workforce we represent – in short caught between a proverbial rock and a hard place, judged by a media that likes to deal in absolutes. Unfortunately the world of trade unionism is not so black and white and the most effective trade unionists are those well versed in the grey colour chart.

Most people measure the strength of a union by the number of members it has and, whilst it is true that members need to be representative of the workforce they represent it would be naive to suggest that simply having a large number of members allows you to get whatever you want from an employer.

The right to withdraw your labour is rightly fundamental but the world of work has changed and unions cannot simply rely on creating constant waves of industrial action.

The modern trade unionist has to employ a larger weaponry. Principle amongst these is being truly representative. Companies now have an obligation to consult their workers and most would prefer that process to be as simple and speedy as possible. Whilst some change will always be necessary unions need to focus their efforts on ensuring that it is the right sort of change, not simply opposing change just for the sake of it.

Pragmatism and a genuine interest in the future of the companies with which we negotiate also make it more difficult for employers to argue that unions are simply obstructive. And this is surely in the best interests of our members too because the quickest way for members to lose their jobs, and their livelihoods, is for their employers to go out of business.

And unions also need to modernise some of their ways of doing things. Postal ballots returns for internal elections are regularly embarrassingly low. Not only does this demonstrate a serious lack of engagement amongst the membership but also a lack of innovation and use of the lay structure to communicate with members.

So let us celebrate this May Day the freedom that we have to join and participate in our vibrant movement and remember the greater potential that exists for us to be even better than we are.