Thread by @kiritunks

A thread on women and trade unions. Following my blog on #TUC2020 women have been asking what’s the point of being in a union and whether they should leave. Stay. If you are not a member, join. womansplaceuk.org/2020/09/16/the… 1/n

I’m a committed trade unionist. I believe in the power of the union. Women should be in a trade union. Women who are members of a trade union are better paid and have better working conditions than women who are not. newstatesman.com/politics/stagg…

Trade unions have been key in fighting for equality and against discrimination. Trade unions and their members have won significant battles and made the world a better place.

Union organisation has been key in winning better pay for women - from the women at Ford’s in Dagenham to the women working for Glasgow Council (@unisontheunion) and Samira Ahmed’s equal pay claim against the BBC supported by @NUJofficial.

Many unions have done great work challenging discrimination and sexism. Here’s a resource produced by my own @NEUnion but there are plenty more examples produced by trade unionists serious about addressing the inequality of women’s lives. neu.org.uk/advice/its-jus…

Women (and men) in trade unions are still fighting hard for women’s rights - the reason we know about the situation in GMB is that the union commissioned a report into its own affairs. This demonstrates a union willing to reflect, to listen & to do better. gmb.org.uk/sites/default/…

This is what we need from our trade unions. There is no question in my mind that women should join and stay in unions but there is also no question that unions need to change to work better.

That means more democracy, better representation, more honest debate and less virtue signalling.

Unions work best when they are confronting the facts on the ground and working with members to make things better. They cannot make things better if they are not working with members.

There are lots of unions doing great things to address the discrimination & oppression women face (maternity rights, equal pay, domestic violence policies, sexual harassment, flexible working etc). Go to your union website & see what they are doing. (If it’s nothing, ask why...)

There are unions already working hard to change their structures - the NEU has rules about representation for women on the Executive and speaking at conference for example). This has happened because women (and men) have worked to make it so.

So this is a plea to women. Stay in your unions. Make them better. We now make up 57% of the trade union membership. We are the majority. These are our unions. gov.uk/government/sta…

And a plea to unions. Listen to women. Make sure we have our rightful place. Respect and learn from our experiences. Address our concerns. Do better.

The question for me isn’t whether women should leave their union - unions still protect workers, still improve workers’ lives. The question is how do we, as members, intervene to ensure they are working properly for women.

Join a union. Work with others to build for change. It can - and must - be done.