TRADE unionists across Wales celebrated today as employers signed up to the Twf Charter for Welsh-language learning in the workplace.

Gwynedd Council in north Wales and Carmarthenshire County Council in west Wales signed the charter after work from the trade unions.

TUC Cymru said the Welsh government and other organisations are planning for its adoption in workplaces across Wales.

The TUC Cymru Twf Charter (the Welsh Language at Work Charter) supports workers, unions and employers to work together to create bilingual workplaces.

Gwynedd Council union representative Gwawr Williams said: “I am proud that we are the first branch to work with our employer to be the first local authority to sign the Twf Charter.

“The Welsh language is part of our Welsh identity, culture and history in Wales and we treasure and cherish it.”

PCS Cymru national officer Sian Boyles said: “We are proud in PCS Cymru to be supporting the adoption of the Twf Charter in all workplaces across Wales. “We are also developing our own PCS ‘Welsh Offer’ and ‘Welsh Language Development Policy.”

Delegates to this week’s Congress heard from Torfaen Trades Council’s Richard Morse, who highlighted the shortage of opportunities to learn Welsh in local communities.

Prospect Union’s Jane Lancastle said: “As a Welsh learner, I am already using and promoting the value of my bilingual skills, and I am very excited about our developments, which include our Welsh Language Development Policy and Welsh Offer.”

Congress delegates also agreed that every trade union in Wales should develop their own bilingual policy in Wales.