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Network Journal 2006 Issue 4 Nov/Dec |
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Non-union firms – our biggest fight
By John Hannett – General Secretary
Some of the best known companies in the UK do not have a union presence and this is one of the biggest challenges Usdaw faces as we move into 2007.
Our campaigns to recruit and organise in Marks & Spencer and MFI are well-documented. Other companies, for example, B&Q, John Lewis, Debenhams, Top Shop, Bhs, and many other well-known high street retailers have thousands of staff but very few union members.
We all know that workers in these non-unionised companies have exactly the same problems as our members. Unfortunately these workers have no-one to turn to when they need help and advice.
Contrast this with our presence in the supermarkets, big distribution companies, and food manufacturers, where we have hundreds of thousands of members.
It's up to all of us to offer Usdaw membership to these workers.
As a union with members across all sectors of the retail industry we are best placed to maximise our potential. With teams of talented reps in manufacturing, transport, retail and home shopping I'm confident we can meet the challenges of the unorganised sector.
Travelling around the country I've met many members whose lives have been transformed by Usdaw either in a big or small way. If we can demonstrate this to non-members we can begin to make inroads into the unorganised companies.
Our union depends on its hard-working and committed activists and you have never let us down. We can all look back over the year with a real sense of pride in what we've achieved and we can look ahead with confidence.
We have scored some big victories this year in particular in seeing off attempts to totally deregulate Sunday trading. But we are also winning everyday on those smaller, but no less significant victories, for our members in terms of legal cases, disciplinary hearings and job security.
These victories very rarely hit the headlines but they are a vital part of the work we do for our members. That's all down to people like you and our full-time staff.
Thank you for being part of Usdaw, have a very happy Christmas and a prosperous New Year.
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