I am often asked how I became involved in unions, especially when I was easily the youngest full-time officer in most unions I worked for for nearly 10 years. How is it that I saw the worth and value of unions when I came from a working-class family in the south who have no history of being union members or active in politics at all? Did it come from my studies? No. Was it because I knew a few people who were active? No.
I worked in retail, like most young adults do, while I was doing my A-Levels. I enjoyed it, I enjoyed the camaraderie among the staff, I liked how we would all muck in together and have a bit of a laugh while doing our daily work. Working with colleagues not just my own age, but people the same age as my mum, and even grandparents, I began to see the world and the impact of work beyond it enabling me to get some nice stuff at the weekend.
Originally I was hired on an eight-hour contract. This was the most amount of hours that anyone was given in the business and required complete flexibility on behalf of the worker. It was sold to me as, ‘You’ll most likely get regular hours and you can ask for more if you want. It’s a win-win’. Being at home, it suited me fine but the more I worked with older colleagues, the more I started to question how on earth they were able to manage their lives on no more than a guaranteed eight hours a week. Bearing in mind that the majority of these people actually regularly worked 30+ hours it seemed a nonsense to me that people had this agreement. Around the same time I was getting into the Industrial Revolution part of my history course and unions were mentioned. How amazing, I thought. Why can’t we have these now?
Research by the TUC suggests that my experience is not an isolated one. Young workers nowadays have neither negative or positive images of unions – they just don’t know whey exist, which is why weeks like #heartunions is so important. It is not just about framing unions as positive (which they are), but also explaining to workers what unions are.
If we had had a workplace union in my first job, I think the lives of my colleagues would have been much better for themselves and their families, which is why, having spent a large chunk of my working life organising workers and helping unions to organise, I hold the same view I did all of those years ago. We know that when workers come together to form unions they are able to bargain for better conditions and wages in their workplace; there is health and safety, and pay gaps can be eliminated. Unions are a force for progress and for good, and the volunteers that spend their time inside and outside of work helping colleagues should be applauded for the contribution they make. So, during this week, get involved. If you are a union member go to your workplace meeting and chat to your rep. If you are not a member, join one.
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Becky Wright is director of Unions21. She tweets @BeckyUnions21