Unions have been working hard to limit the damage done by the recession to their members and to communities – that’s what they do. A Unions 21 survey of general secretaries found that eight in 10 are, above all, prioritising the protection of their members’ terms and conditions.
Faced with the immediate needs of their members, it might seem that for unions to divert resources to increasing participation in politics, or engaging in the debate over party and constitutional reform, would be a mistake.
But before long the country will be deciding on what kind of parliament should take the country out of recession. Will it be one that relishes the excuse to make cuts and hold back the workplace agenda? Or one that demands that those who have suffered share in the recovery?
Who is in the House of Commons when the country is on the up is important. So it’s right that unions should be concerned about the continued convergence towards professional or middle-class MPs drawn from the ‘communicating professions’ – law, education and journalism. This narrowing of the recruitment base could now be compounded by the expenses revelations, which have turned even more people away from politics.
There is the possibility brewing of a new parliament, with a huge turnover, but without a single MP who has themselves faced redundancy or seen their pay reduced, or suffered directly in this recession. It is necessary that we have MPs with this personal knowledge so that we are able to reverse the damage to people and communities. A diversity of economic background is not just important for our politics to be credible, but also effective.
Unions have over a century of experience in encouraging their members to vote, to campaign and to stand for election. Involvement in the union branch is a good apprenticeship for higher elected office. An elected shopsteward must care for all aspects of the working lives of his or her colleagues. They know how to access everything from sick benefits, to credit unions, to counselling. They must have the courage to work with managers who may not know, or may not wish to know, of problems in their workplace.
Such elected officers are arguably more accountable to their electorate than MPs or councillors, they are judged on their ability to deliver employment advice and negotiation skills, the results are transparent to their electorate and poor service can be ended annually.
Some unions which do not traditionally have an activist base are looking at ways to move their members up the participation ladder. Some are looking to follow the GMB and create a network for members who are councillors, and at least one is investigating the idea of a network for school governors.
The Professional Footballers’ Association ensures its members are active citizens by negotiating a few hours of weekly community work into every contract. Such a model, if emulated across the movement, would mobilise an army of volunteers.
Usdaw is bridging the gap between the trade union committee and the council chamber by working with the Leadership Centre for Local Government. And the union’s national campaigns always include a high level of involvement from individual candidates and elected representatives.
Unions may be leading in these areas, but a union case on constitutional reform has yet to be made clearly. Some are waiting for a clear policy to emerge from government before taking a view. Some have the policies but are not pushing them, others have policy from before the expenses revelations arose, which needs to be updated.
The joint Unions 21/Opt2Vote/Progress event at Labour party conference will start a debate, and I hope will enable unions to take more of a leading role in political renewal. Creating a fairer system to help restore trust in politics will be important in ensuring that their members are willing to participate and stand for election in future.