Why trade unions should not support the Morning Star

by Jim Denham, 22 pages, ISBN 9781909639645 This short pamphlet explains why trade unions should not be giving political and financial support to a newspaper which is not the "daily paper of the left" but the mouthpiece of the Communist Party of Britain: Introduction In August 2022 the executive of the Bakers Food and Allied Workers’ Union …

Meetings with Ukrainian trade unionists and socialists

Above: a previous trade union delegation to Ukraine. Report-back by Stan Crooke, Branch Officer, Unite the Union Glasgow Not for Profit Sector Branch In late August I visited Lviv and Kyiv as part of a trade union delegation. My thanks to the branch for providing a financial donation to help cover the costs of the …

John Keenan and the 1974 Pinochet boycott

By a member of Glasgow Unite Not for Profit branch John Keenan, best known for his role in organising a boycott of work on jet engines destined for Chile after the Pinochet coup of 1973, passed away in the early hours of 8 September 2023. John was a lifelong trade unionist, initially a member of …

Unite conference backs “OK-ish” statement on Ukraine

Today's Morning Star can barely conceal its disappointment that Unite's policy conference has endorsed what we at Shiraz would call an "OK-ish" statement on Ukraine. The increasingly anti-Ukraine Stalinist rag that purports to speak for the UK left and labour movement, omits the fact that the Unite statement supports "the right of Ukraine to defend …

Sharon Graham, Unite and the Labour Party

Graham ran in 2021 on the slogan "Back to the workplace" Guest post by Johnny Lewis Sharon Graham has been General Secretary (GS) of Unite for nearly two years and can claim some real achievements. Her strategy has been one of emphasing workplace militancy and downplaying "politics". The central dilemma for her is that if …

Will Unite stand with Ukraine?

By Sacha Ismail (on the Ukraine Solidarity Campaign website): If delegates to Unite the Union’s upcoming biennial policy conference (11-14 July, Brighton) want to support • withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine• Ukraine’s right to self-determination• strong links with Ukrainian trade unions and socialists• clear demands for strong rights for all refugees they must support …

Unite EC elections: ‘mixed bag’ results, not a left-right choice … abysmally low turnout

Above: one slate was simply those who supported general secretary Sharon Graham By Ann Field The results of the triennial Unite the Union Executive Council (EC) elections, announced on Thursday 27 April, were a mixed bag. The 62-strong EC is a mixture of geographical seats (representing the union’s ten Regions), industrial sector seats (representing the …

Trade unionists for refugee rights

From the FBU: The Fire Brigades Union is proud to have coordinated the following statement, which was passed as a resolution at our Executive Council last week: In recent weeks, we have seen an alarming rise in violence and intimidation organised by the far right against refugees and refugee accommodation. The government is complicit in …

Unite elections: a poor choice facing members

Sharon Graham (right) and her UL-backed predecessor, Len McCluskey (left) By Ann Field Unite the Union’s national Executive Council elections are underway. Union branches are currently nominating members who are wanting to stand as candidates. There are two slates in play: the United Left (UL) slate, and a slate best described as the Sharon Graham …

Unite, Sharon Graham and Labour: posturing and demagogy in place of struggle?

From the Workers' Liberty website: We supported Sharon Graham in last year's Unite the Union general secretary election. At the time, however, we sharply criticised her approach to labour movement political struggle and political representation (and this was among the reasons why a significant minority of our Unite group argued against backing her). Unfortunately those criticisms are being borne …