This week’s Trades Union Congress conference is a chance for trade unions to resist the urge to simply ‘bang on about Labour’ and for us to focus on the challenge of representing and empowering working people right across the United Kingdom’s rapidly evolving work places.

We have valiantly but, ultimately, unsuccessfully fought the decline of the traditional workplace and practices. At the same time we have not updated our method of representing members and providing services to attract working people across the modern economy, including the self-employed, managers, portfolio professionals and agency workers.

All is not lost. While the traditional model of shared representation at work may be too inflexible to deal with the new forms of work steadily emerging, the concept of working together to get the best for ourselves and our families is not as stricken as some fear and others hope.

There is a rising tide of consumer power in Britain. Its strength is fuelled by new technology, intense company competition and the growing awareness that short-term profit is by far the most important thing for most companies today, above staff, the environment and the society in which they operate. Also, weaker bonds between companies and people have led to a more vociferous demand for high levels of customer service and responsiveness, particularly from a new terrier like breed of engaged consumers.

As we fail to influence government or industry on behalf of working people, consumer campaigns and groups like Which? are making a direct difference to government policy, corporate behaviour and the lives of British people, including our current and potential members.

Which? has gone from reviewing washing machines to becoming arguably the most influential non-governmental organisation in the country at this point in time. This is as much due to skilful campaigning as it is to the recognition by political parties of the growing power of organised consumers.

The new nature of work and consumer activism poses three challenges and opportunities to trade unions.

First, can we channel the rising energy of consumer campaigning into working life and what should be a two-way contract between an employer and employee, whatever the working arrangement. Just as householders expect to be able to take steps to reduce their energy bill or reclaim the costs of delayed flights, a working person should expect an agreed standard of respect, treatment, security and reward from their employer or contract provider.

Second, can we harness a ‘consumer’ attitude to work to bring together similar groups of workers, across employers and contract type, to help give them a greater voice and influence. This space will not look or feel like a traditional trade union, just as coffee shops and shared work spaces do not compare to traditional work places. We may need help from consumer groups and other organisations to imagine and create these spaces and services.

Third, and the most immediate challenge that we and most other organisations and companies face, is ensuring our services to our own consumers, our members, meet the increasing level of service they too expect from us.

Whether it is direct emails to head office or texts to workplace representatives or tweets and Facebook messages, we are fielding requests for almost instant information and action from a myriad of channels. Members, tooled with new technology and a taste for the instant, expect and demand highly responsive and personal customer service, which can only be delivered through investment.

We need to invest in people and technology, work together and even pool resources, and learn from each other and organisations at home and abroad.

In the next few days commentators will no doubt focus on the political comments of the Labour-affiliated trade unions, but that’s not relevant to the working life of most people. To represent and draw together those striving to get on across the new world of work we will need to throw off the shackles of tradition and focus on the concerns and interests that connect working people.

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Jim McAuslan is general secretary of Balpa, the British Airline Pilots’ Association

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Photo: Toban B