Workers' Liberty

At TUC conference motions were passed calling for coordinated action, and use was even found for the old slogan that “unity is strength”.

Following the debate on trade union freedom, the other big debate at TUC conference [by the time Solidarity went to press] was on public services and public sector pay.

By Janine Booth

Following Monday's debate on trade union freedom, the other biggy of TUC congress week was on Tuesday afternoon [12th], on public services and public sector pay.

END TUBE PRIVATISATION
LOBBY THE TUC
12.00, TUESDAY 11th SEPTEMBER
The Brighton Centre, Kings Road entrance. Map here.

The TUC has written to non-unionised businesses, explaining to them that trade unions are "good for business".

There has been some talk in the RMT about parting company with the TUC, which seems to be based on three main factors:

• A looming dispute over RMT's forthcoming merger with OILC;

• Fear that the new merged T&G/Amicus super-union will dominate the TUC;
• The fact that the TUC is generally crap.

I want to argue here against those who have been advocating splitting from the TUC.

The TUC has still not deemed to post on its website the resolutions passed at Women's Conference over a month ago. Instead, we get a decidedly unhelpful "no documents available".

A blow-by-blow blog of TUC Women's Conference, which met in Scarborough on 14-16 March, by RMT delegate Janine Booth.

• TUC Women's Conference: Day One

• TUC Women Discuss Abortion Rights
• Women Fight Back Against TUC Childcare Sell-Out
• John McDonnell, Sexual Harassment, Sweatshops, Women's Representation and more
• Does Anyone Know Where The March Is?
• Trident: Taking The TUC Tops To Task
• Lone Working, Single Parents, TUC Women's Committee election

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(Make sure you are logged in to see pictures. Picture on this item: CWU delegate Maria Exall seconding the RMT motion on Sweatshop Labour)

This morning, we were treated to an address by TUC General Secretary Brendan Barber.

Thursday morning, down to the conference fresh and early, giving out John McDonnell's new women's manifesto and leaflets for the Labour Representation Committee fringe meeting at lunchtime. First business in conference was the NUT's resolution on Sexist Language, Sexist Bullying and Sexual Harassment. It was very ably seconded by RMT's Jackie Darby, who spelt out the range of sexist abuse that railway workers are subjected to in the course of duty. As Jackie rightly said, "The craven attitude of management to tackling sexual harassment is the single most serious obstacle to eliminating it from the workplace ... Our employers must be made to take sexual harassment seriously, as it seriously affects us in our working lives. It compromises us and oppresses us. We won't put up with it."

Here I am at TUC Women's Conference in Scarborough. Today, I moved RMT's emergency resolution on abortion rights. Here's my speech, plus a report on the debate that followed.

(Pic: The RMT delegation pose in front of the Conference banner in defence of abortion rights)

TUC Women's Conference should be accessible to any woman trade unionist elected to respresent her union. But how can it be, when childcare is provided only during formal conference hours and only for pre-school kids?!

Read RMT delegate Janine Booth's session-by-session blog from 2006 TUC Congress here:

• TUC Blogging

• Warming up or selling short?
• Assaults at work
  
  

Apologies for the delay in posting the final TUC Congress blog. I've been laid up all weekend with PMT. I get it very badly every month, but this month could have been made worse by a dose of Post Margaret Tension, after the quite dreadful speech by Foreign Secretary Beckett.

It's groundhog day on equalities representation, as Congress once again debates and rejects the dangerously revolutionary proposals that the TUC's Women's, LGBT, Black Workers' and Disabled Workers' Conferences should have the right to:

1. submit two resolutions to Congress rather than one as at present;

2. elect the women's etc seats on the General Council.

Actually, the proposal was not even to do these things, but to consider doing these things. But no - even that was too much for those union leaders determined to defend at all costs their control over the TUC's General Council and its Congress agenda.

By guest blogger Maria Exall

The Monday evening fringe meeting organised by the United Campaign for the Repeal of the Anti-Union Laws and the Institute of Employment Rights on the Trade Union Freedom Bill was packed. Over 200 delegates and visitors met to hear the latest reportback on the Trade Union Freedom Bill campaign.

I have spent today held captive by a ballot box. I was appointed as a scrutineer for the General Council election, which entails sitting next to a box all morning, counting votes for about an hour-and-a-half, then being banned from Congress floor and penned in by bodyguards for four hours to prevent you telling anyone the result (which you will have to read to the end of this blog entry to find out).

Yesterday, a posse of RMT activists came down from London to make a noise about East London Line privatisation (pictured, but you have to be logged in to see pictures). Wearing T-shirts, holding a big banner and handing out leaflets and stickers and helped for a while by TSSA delegates, they succeeded in making sure that everyone at the Congress now knows about the issue. In the evening, they went to Ken Livingstone's reception to point out to his guests that he is attacking workers and passengers by privatising the line, and is pretty much unfit to be a guest at a trade union event.

Dr. Abdul Bari, new leader of the Muslim Council of Britain gave a speech to Congress on Monday afternoon, and the General Council presented us with a joint statement with the Muslim Council of Britain. There was no opportunity to propose amendments to it, just a take-it-or-leave-it vote, and little time to explain or organise around what was wrong with the statement.

After the formalities and back-slapping that mark the start of Congress, the first big debate was on Pensions. As I reported yesterday, we had a long and uncontroversial composite motion on the subject.

Congress starts tomorrow, so today is the day for going to your delegation meeting, unpacking your undies, blogging in the hotel bar and checking out some social functions later.

At the RMT delegation meeting, we got to the see the composited motions for the first time.

I'm off to Brighton for TUC Congress, and will be blogging several times a day - just as I did last year. So check back on a regular basis between tomorrow and Thursday for the

As the fight against East London Line privatisation goes on, RMT activists will be taking a trip to the seaside to make a big splash about the issue at TUC Congress.

On the Monday evening, Ken Livingstone is hosting a social event at Congress, rather cheekily for a bloke who is not only privatising the East London Line but also encouraged Tube workers to cross picket lines a couple of summers ago.

By a delegate

The 2006 TUC Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered conference gave the chance to discuss many of the most controversial issues facing LGBT activists from a working-class - or at least trade-union - perspective.

A fringe meeting on the Trade Union Freedom Bill was held at Women’s TUC.

The concept of a such a Bill has won the support of over 100 Labour MPs since the Trade Union Congress 2005 called for a campaign to free our unions.

From a report by Pauline Bradley

About 320 delegates, from all the major unions and some of the smaller ones, attended the Women’s TUC Conference this year.