Head of education, campaigns and organising for the General Federation of Trade Unions HENRY FOWLER explains why it is launching a fund to support trades councils and give them access to a new range of courses and resources

THE THEME of the 2021 Scottish Trade Union Congress was once again based on its People’s Recovery manifesto. The focus was on carrying forward its three stages: Immediate — response to the crisis; Action — the People’s Recovery; Vision — a Scotland Fit for the Future.
Scotland’s trade unionists have come through a grim winter with the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic hitting working-class people the hardest.
We have seen the premature deaths of the elderly, especially in care, the economic disaster inflicted on our youth with precarious work or indeed no work and employers exploiting the situation to fire and rehire — or just fire.

From Workers’ Memorial Day to May Day rallies, TOM MORRISON examines the real challenges facing the labour movement as Reform UK’s glossy literature exploits legitimate grievances in traditional left strongholds


