Back in November, as the G20 gathered in London, Prime Minister Gordon Brown led the world in calling for ‘global solutions to global problems’. The unprecedented problems of what is largely being viewed as the greatest financial crisis of a generation demands that governments work together on regulation, reform and resolution.
Gordon Brown has been and continues to be, a powerful advocate for a coordinated global response to problems such as climate change, poverty and social justice. He has long promoted both the rebuilding of international institutions and the advancement of global ethics as the way forward.
But effective global governance, and government action and intervention is not the sole route out of this far-reaching recession. There has never been a greater need for organisation on an international scale – from grass roots to government. Workers across the world are, in growing numbers, becoming the innocent victims of the worst global recession in nearly a century as the economic downtown claims millions of jobs and livelihoods.
The time is now for unions to internationally develop a coherent and coordinated agenda. Working together to protect jobs, pay and benefits in the face of the ever increasing power of multinational companies and the uncertainties created by this financial crisis. The UK is not alone in experiencing a steady stream of lay offs and cut backs and the unions welcome much of the action that the Labour government in the UK has already taken. For example, the automotive assistance programme, an extension of train to gain and we must not forget the support for the long term infrastructure projects that will bring with it skilled jobs and training. There is however much more that needs to done. Greater support for apprenticeships, implementation of temporary short time working schemes, more effective regulation in the finance industry and the UK roll out of similar programmes to the Welsh Assembly’s Pro-Act and Re-Act to name but a few.
But in this grave new globalised working world, the rules of the game have shifted somewhat. The rise of global corporations has resulted in the systematic erosion of pay and conditions of workers in every country and the outsourcing of work to areas with minimum labour standards. The economic crisis has not only eroded the standard of living of working people and undermined workers’ rights, it has diluted the ability of governments and global institutions to regulate economic activity – making the current crisis more difficult to crack.
It is at this point, that I should, as they say in Westminster “declare an interest”. The UK union Unite has formed a partnership with the largest private sector union in the USA and Canada, United Steelworkers (USW) to form the world’s first international union – Workers Uniting. This new partnership seeks to combine and share expertise and knowledge in collective bargaining and political action to protect and advance members interests in the workplace and wider world.
This example of an international union shows how we can turn a by-product of globalisation – greater and more accessible communication and global movement – and use today’s shared aims and issues to develop a common approach and response to international challenges. We can work together to confront the key contemporary challenges of poverty, unemployment and job security, climate change and the economy.
Workers Uniting is advocating an international recovery plan that incorporates the following core principles: full employment, fair wages, decent working conditions and economic security in retirement; retaining and creating jobs in manufacturing; strong and more transparent regulation on financial institutions; freedom for workers across the world to join a trade union and bargain collectively; effective and sustainable public services, health care, education, housing and childcare.
The international role of trade unions in the current climate is all the more pivotal when we consider that sustainable economic growth is driven by worker prosperity. An organised workforce has been proven to be a happier more productive workforce and union members enjoy better terms and conditions than their non-unionised counterparts. It is not simply the individual that suffers when their rights are exploited or indeed their job undercut. The economic prosperity of society as a whole is dependent upon the prosperity of working people and their families.
The G20 made clear that much of the world is united in a belief that co-ordinated action is needed to right the wrongs of a few in order for the many and society as a whole to prosper. To coin a phrase, international solidarity and international unions can bring “global solutions to global problems.”