Next week, hundreds of activists from across the public sector are meeting in Brighton for this year’s Unison national delegate conference. Young members rep Lilly Boulby looks at the challenges ahead for Unison and the trade union movement.
Our class, and our union members, are facing almighty challenges – almost too many to list. Rampant inflation. Energy bills rising. Falling real wages. Escalating rents. The devastation caused by the crisis of capitalism is on the scale of a natural disaster.
The billionaires and bankers, however, have been popping bottles of bubbly, shared liberally with their Tory pals, as they report record profits – profits made off the backs of our labour.
More than ever, it is vital that our union, Unison, rises up to the tasks before us.
Click here to read the latest bulletin from Unison Marxists – Socialist Appeal supporters inside the union – which will be distributed at the upcoming national delegate conference in Brighton.
Our latest bulletin is below – featuring articles on the battles ahead for Unison as a union, the lessons from strike action in Leeds, and the challenges that face our comrades in the Water, Environment and Transport sector. Read it here! https://t.co/nCekw6bpRq
— UNISON Marxists (@UnisonMarxists) June 7, 2022
Crisis and cuts
At the same time, the Tory government – a bosses’ government of criminals and crooks – continues to attack the public sector, with public sector workers seeing pay cuts, worsening conditions, and redundancies.
The NHS is in a permanent state of crisis, with a record backlog of patients: a crisis created by more than a decade of cuts and privatisation by the Tories.
With 100,000 vacancies across the country’s healthcare system, a dwindling number of workers are being left to handle an ever-increasing workload. Adding insult to injury, health workers have received a pathetic below-inflation pay deal.
No wonder six out of ten nurses are considering exiting the profession, or are already on their way out.
The situation isn’t much better for local authority workers, who are experiencing a real squeeze, with a 1.75% wage increase in the latest pay claim.
Class war
Enough is enough! This is a class war. And at the moment, the bosses are winning.
In times of war, armies must build their forces. Similarly, it is time for Unison to open the doors and launch a mass recruitment drive to expand our ranks – particularly in health.
This campaign should be especially targeted towards young workers. This will revitalise our ranks with new activists willing to fight for a decent future.
Fighting unions
There have been inspiring struggles across the labour movement recently. From bin workers and hospital cleaners, to school teachers and delivery drivers: workers are winning pay increases and decent conditions on the basis of militant action.
These show the way forward. Militancy pays. Through bold action, we can win what our members deserve.
Unison must now follow suit. This means putting our reps on a war footing, and backing them all the way.
As the largest union in the country, we should be playing a leading role. We must unite with sister unions, and push for coordinated action across the public sector, to strike a blow against the Tories, and make the bosses pay for this crisis.
We must prepare for battle, and transform our unions from little more than insurance providers, into truly fighting organisations – weapons that can be wielded by the working class in the struggle for socialism.
The role of Marxists in this process is vital: to forge a militant leadership across the labour movement. We have no time to waste. Join us in this urgent task!
