General secretary of the General Federation of Trade Unions GAWAIN LITTLE calls for support and participation in the national partnership organised to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the 1926 general strike
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Unions have risen to the challenge of the coronavirus, from saving jobs to keeping those jobs safe — it is no wonder our membership is growing rapidly too, writes PAUL NOWAK
Paul Nowak
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THESE are hard times to be upbeat. But in pulling together the programme for Organise 2020, the TUC’s three-day organising festival, I’ve been inspired by examples of trade union successes and struggles from around the globe. That sense of inspiration and optimism has never been more important, because these past few months have been incredibly hard for us all.
In Britain alone, tens of thousands of people have lost their lives to Covid-19. Hundreds of thousands more have suffered ill health. And millions have seen their jobs and livelihoods threatened.
The pandemic shone a light on the fragile state of our public services, battered after a decade of relentless cuts. It exposed how fragile and unfair our labour market is, with the lowest paid and least secure workers hit hardest — and yet depended on most too. And it highlighted other injustices, with racial injustice and inequality meaning the virus has taken a greater toll on Black and minority ethnic communities.
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The annual celebration of all that trade unions do for us comes at a time when we have real reasons to be optimistic about the recent growth of our movement, writes PAUL NOWAK
