It was great to see Jeremy Corbyn and senior Labour figures making the case for trade unions and the rights of working people this morning.
Today Jeremy launched the Workplace 2020 consultation, and I look forward to UNISON playing a major role in the debate about the future of work in this country.
It’s fair to say that there have been times in the party’s past when party leaders were shy about making such arguments. But in Jeremy Corbyn the Labour Party is led by a former NUPE official – and UNISON member – who understands the value of unions not just for those they represent, but in building better workplaces too.
At times it has felt like the debate about the world of work has been stuck in the past – both on celebrating our achievements and defending them against a rapacious Tory government.
But the labour movement doesn’t deliver for people by standing still. Jeremy has rightly identified the issues that we’re fighting to eliminate each and every day – massive wage disparity between those at the top and the bottom, poverty pay and insecure work. But he’s also looked ahead to the kind of country we need to build together:
“full-employment, high-skilled workforce, with decent pay, rights for employed and self-employed, and a voice at work through collective bargaining”.
That’s the sort of agenda we can get behind – I look forward to UNISON members being part of that conversation.
