Unite Policy Conference 2021 – day three

Photo of Jayne Taylor, Tony Woodhouse, Len McCluskey, Sharon Graham and Susan Mathews together

Below is an update on Wednesday’s business. #UPC2021 finished off the remaining motions on Covid-19 and the Coronavirus Crisis then debated Equalities, heard from Andy McDonald MP – the former Labour Shadow Secretary of State for Employment Rights – about his resignation from the front bench and the fight against Fire & Rehire, said farewell to Len McCluskey – who gave an emotional speech, and debated Rights for Workers and their Unions, and Pensions & Retirement. See previous posts for Monday and Tuesday.

Covid-19 and the Coronavirus Crisis

Motion 154 Covid-19, Cash and Bank Branches – agreed

Motion 161 Care in the Community – agreed

Equalities

Composite 5 (motions 39, 40, 41) Migrant Workers – agreed

Motion 38 Migrant Workers – agreed

Motion 42 Migrant Workers – agreed

Motion 22 Unite and Equalities – agreed

Motion 23 + A1 + A2 Unite and Equalities – agreed

Motion 24 + A Equality Reps – agreed

Motion 25 Paternity Leave – agreed

Motion 26 Domestic Abuse – agreed

Motion 27 Unite Women’s Network – agreed

Motion 28 Abortion Rights – agreed

Motion 135 BAEM Employment with Unite – agreed

Motion 82 Growing Unite and BAEM members – agreed

Motion 29 Independent Living – agreed

Motion 30 Jobs for those with Disabilities/Scotland – agreed

Motion 31 Disabled People / Buses – agreed

Motion 32 TUC Disability Passport – agreed

Motion 33 Social Model of Disability – agreed

Motion 34 Disability Related Absence – agreed

Motion 35 Commercialisation of Pride – agreed

Motion 36 LGBT+ Sexual Harassment – agreed

Motion 37 LGBT+ Education – agreed

Rights for Workers and their Unions

Composite 16 (motions 99, 100, 101) Anti-union laws – agreed

Motion 98 + A1 + A2 Anti-union laws – agreed

Motion 102 Agency Worker Regulations – agreed

Election results

The following were elected as the Standing Orders Committee (SOC) for the 7th Policy Conference (2023): Lorraine M (East Midlands), Frances H (Ireland), James M (London & Eastern), John K (North East, Yorkshire & Humber), Trevor V (North West), Isabella S (Scotland), Naomi G (South East), Tracy D (South West), Lisa H (Wales) and Vanessa W (West Midlands).

The following were elected as the Appeals Committee 2021-3: Dean C (East Midlands), Keith R (Ireland), Kingsley A (London & Eastern), Angela M (North East, Yorkshire & Humber), Pat C (North West), John G (Scotland), Gaynor W (South East), Caroline B (South West), Ivan M (Wales) and Caroline F (West Midlands).

Unite Policy Conference – day two

Tuesday of UPC2021 was dominated by a presentation and Q&A session with Sharon Graham, the new General Secretary. Conference also discussed motions on Economy & Industry, and Covid-19 and the Coronavirus crisis. Most of the key documents were published here. The texts of Composite motions are here and the accounts are here.

Sharon Graham’s presentation

There’s a copy of Sharon Graham’s presentation here.

Economy & Industry

Motion 16 Working Time – agreed

Motion 17 Modern Industrial Nation – agreed

Motion 18+A Trade Union Facility Time – agreed

Motion 19 Employment Charter – agreed

(Amendment fell – no mover)

Motion 20 Road from Casualisation – agreed

Motion 21 Fair Tips – agreed

Covid-19 and the Coronavirus crisis

Motion 145 A New Deal in the Post Covid World – agreed

Motion 150 A New Deal in the Post Covid World – agreed

Motion 151 A New Deal in the Post Covid World – remitted

Motion 152 A New Deal in the Post Covid World – agreed

Composite 21 (motions 146, 147) Organising Post Covid – agreed

Motion 162 Organising Post Covid – agreed

Composite 22 (motions 147, 153, 155) Covid-19 Sick Pay and Support – agreed

Composite 23 (motions 149, 156) Covid-19 and Mental Health – agreed

Composite 24 (motions 157, 158, 159) Covid-19 and Equalities – agreed

Motion 160 Covid-19 and Equalities – agreed

Motion 144 New Ways of Communicating / Meeting – agreed

Get your motions in for Unite Policy Conference 2018

Unite will be holding its next Policy Conference in Brighton 2-6 July 2018. This is the opportunity for every member to shape our union’s policy. The process is already under way, with branches and committees sending in motions for the conference agenda. If you want to get a motion onto the agenda, you need to act now. Motions have to be agreed by a branch or committee and sent in to Unite HQ no later than 9 February 2018.

Delegates at Unite Policy conference 2016
Photo: @bluegreen_cathy on Twitter

Step one is to draft your motion. There are full guidelines here. If you’ve never done it before, don’t be put off, but do ask for help if you need it.

Each branch and each constitutional committee (i.e. Regional & National Industrial Sector Committee; Regional & National Equality Committee, Regional Committee, Area Activist Committee) can submit one motion on any general policy topic (i.e. not about a particular sector and not requiring a change to Unite’s rules). The National Retired Members’ Committee and each Regional Retired Members’ Co-ordinating Committees can also submit one motion each, but these can only be on about matters solely pertaining to members in retirement.

The meetings held round the country before Unite Rank & File launched came up with lots of ideas, including areas where we can campaign to improve union policy. Note that there’s no need to submit motions to restate existing policy – motions should change existing policy or add to it.

Here are some suggestions to get you thinking – feel free to comment with your own ideas or what you’ve already submitted:

Organising / industrial action:

  • Disputes unit support, focused on winning, not just legal compliance, for all disputes from an early stage
  • Improve support for company and sub-sector combines
  • Increasing lay member involvement in organising
  • Response to the Trade Union Act 2016
  • Review / overhaul Unite education in the light of government funding cuts
  • Facility for levies (e.g. for strike funds) by workplace / employer, not just branch – for many members branch doesn’t directly match employer / workplace
  • Recruitment and organising of migrant workers and refugees

Democracy / accountability:

  • Review of Unite structures to better support members in multi-region employers
  • Investigate the role of union officials in blacklisting, and support the Blacklist Support Group
  • Policy against officers approaching employers over the heads of reps / branch officers
  • Tackle non-functioning branches so members aren’t left without a functioning branch for long periods
  • Improve Unite grievance and complaint procedures
  • Change General Secretary elections to Single Transferable Vote
  • Ban branches passing member data to campaigns or third parties during Unite elections
  • Ban Unite employees (other than candidates) from campaigning in Unite elections
  • Official videoed hustings for Unite elections
  • Limit the General Secretary’s wage
  • Facilitation and control of communication with members during union elections
  • Require disclosure / control over fundraising and expenditure during union elections

Equality:

  • Put equality on the agenda of all branch and constitutional committee meetings
  • Make regional women’s and equality officer roles full time (or job share)
  • Review equality structures to ensure they are effective in representing each equality group, championing its issues, and promoting participation
  • Extend the recommendations from the report on women officers in Unite to all employees
  • Improve equality training for lay and full-time officers, reps and members
  • Including impact on members without UK citizenship and members working overseas in materials about impact of Brexit on workers’ rights
  • Workers’ rights to live and work where they want
  • Trans rights and Gender Recognition

Miscellaneous:

  • Cuts and privatisation
  • Councils implementing cuts
  • Diversification from destructive projects to good, socially useful, jobs
  • Trump visiting the UK
  • Housing after Grenfell
  • Automation and Artificial Intelligence
  • Brexit
  • Labour Party
  • Universal Credit