THE trade union festival which takes place in the little Dorset village of Tolpuddle every year is always a time to remember and reflect on those farmworkers who took a brave stand nearly 200 years ago against further cuts to their pay.

They paid a heavy price for simply swearing an oath of secrecy and were arrested and sentenced to seven years’ transportation by vindictive landowners and biased courts. 

They only won their freedom following massive protests which swept across the country as workers organised petitions and protest meetings.

The story of the Tolpuddle martyrs’ arrest, trial, punishment and the ensuing freedom campaign is worth remembering as it led to the foundation of modern-day trade unionism.

It remains a touchstone for trade unionists today as we debate, protest, march and strategise for how we continue fighting for workers’ rights here and internationally.

The trade union movement in this country has been under attack for decades and if the Tories had won a further term in the recent general election that vicious and vindictive anti-working-class campaign would have continued unabated.

However, thanks to the growth in trade union militancy over the last 12 months, workers have found a new confidence to stand up against austerity and injustice. This has imbued our movement with a renewed fighting spirit. 

As a result, after nearly 15 years in power, the Conservatives were thrown out of office by the voters. The end of a Tory government is always good news for working-class people, but they will now rightly expect the incoming Labour government to make real quantifiable changes to improve their lives.

When living standards are falling and the world continues to inch along towards global conflict, it is even more vital that Labour takes the bold steps required to uplift the lives of working people and to promote peace in the world.

Britain is the sixth-largest economy in the world and Labour has an opportunity to have at least 10 years in government to make profound changes for working people.

Therefore, my union is already in constructive dialogue with the government which would have been unimaginable just weeks ago under the Tories.

As a transport and maritime union these include pushing back on anti-trade union laws, implementing the public ownership of the railways, securing a deal in our national rail dispute, pushing for the New Deal for Workers, the insourcing of jobs from ruthless private contractors and finding a resolution on the Royal Fleet Auxiliary pay dispute.

All these things are achievable, and Labour has a mandate to make it happen within its first term in office. If Labour wants to secure a second term it will have to make concerted interventions in the economy that they are claiming are not possible due to the dire state the previous Tory government left the country in.

Over the last century Labour governments looked at what was needed to be done in terms of policy and then made the necessary changes to the economy to make their objectives a reality.

That was how the welfare state was created and that is how you build a strong economy where we look after those in need and create the foundations of a society that is more equal and playing a role on the international stage that promotes peace and co-operation between nations.

Under this Labour government, we must build a strong independent trade union movement capable of uniting workers from all backgrounds, and one which is strong enough to push the government in the right direction with a pro-working class agenda.

Mick Lynch is general secretary of RMT.