THE Senedd election on May 7 will be the most important since the dawn of devolution — and workers across Wales are key to our nation’s success.

In just a few short weeks, the choice facing the people of Wales could not be starker: a future with Reform UK determined fan the flames of hate, or an ambitious vision for the Welsh economy, underpinned by fair work, social justice, workers’ rights and social partnership.  

In Plaid Cymru, the people of Wales have a party with a plan for a modern, confident Wales — where everyone can contribute to and share in our nation’s success.  

After years of managed decline under Labour, this election offers real hope for the future of Wales, detailed in our manifesto which offers tangible action from day one, and a promise to always stand up for Wales.

Make no mistake, we’re under no illusion of the scale of the challenge ahead of us, but together, we can unlock Wales’s potential and deliver a fairer, more ambitious future.  

Just as we stood with workers on the picket lines during the Tory austerity years, whose cuts decimated public services and eroded workers’ pay — we stood by the thousands of workers in Tata Steel facing job cuts because of the UK governments, both Labour and Conservative, who failed to protect primary steelmaking here in Wales.

That’s why, if we have the honour to lead the next Welsh government, we’ll do everything we can to support the Welsh workforce to help us deliver on our ambitions and build a fairer Wales.

Plaid Cymru’s plans to cut NHS waiting times, freeing up time, space and resources to build a sustainable and integrated health and care service for Wales, are made with the workforce in mind. After all, the NHS is nothing without its dedicated staff.  

We’ll support our NHS workforce with the best possible conditions in their contracts, with more flexible working and time for professional development, and implement a much-needed comprehensive NHS workforce plan — something unions such as the RCN have been calling for to develop and strengthen the workforce for the long-term.  

Our transformative new childcare offer — building towards 20 hours a week for all children aged nine months to four years, for 48 weeks of the year — will help families with the cost of living, help parents back into work or pick up extra hours, and give every child the best possible chance.

We’ll do this in partnership with childcare providers to build additional capacity across the sector and grow the workforce, ensuring decent pay for workers, and drawing on international best practice to make childcare a valued career with good opportunities for progression and professional advancement.  

With a new, bold and determined drive on numeracy and literacy skills, we will raise the bar on standards in our schools to give children the fundamental skills they need to succeed and empower our dedicated education workforce to do what they do best — teach.

That means cutting unnecessary paperwork, increasing flexibility in teaching contracts — including in professional development and Welsh language learning, improving terms and conditions for supply teachers, and offering greater incentives to attract and retain the next generation of teachers.  

And through our plans to unlock Wales’s economic potential, we’ll build on our strengths to create well-paid and secure jobs and spread prosperity to every part of Wales — undertaking a comprehensive national skills audit to gain a clear understanding of our skills requirements and what kinds of courses or training should be prioritised for the future workforce.

For too long, Wales has lacked a government with the vision and plans to match the needs of our future economy with workforce ambitions.

A Plaid Cymru government will give people the skills they need to access emerging opportunities in the Welsh labour market, to create more local jobs so people can stay in their communities and build an economy that works for people.  

As Plaid Cymru stands ready to form a new Welsh government with energy and a real determination to get to grips with the issues that matter to you — we know these priorities require government to work with workers and their unions, not around them.

It is in that spirit that we’ve recently strengthened our relationship with TUC Cymru by agreeing a Memorandum of Understanding — building on our constructive relationship over several years with our shared values around fair work, social justice, workers’ rights and social partnership in Wales.  

This agreement establishes a formal channel for dialogue and collaboration between trade unions and Plaid Cymru; engages them in our policy development; promotes shared values; further develops our constructive relationship; and helps prepare for the possibility of a Plaid Cymru government.  

Because if the people of Wales put their trust in us on May 7 to lead Wales to a better future, we absolutely must be ready to deliver for our communities — but we cannot do it alone.

The trade union movement is at the heart of building a fairer Wales. Together we can seize this historic opportunity — and bring new leadership, new energy and new ideas to Wales.

Rhun ap Iorwerth is leader of Plaid Cymru.