Academy marks new era for union organising

Fifteen Usdaw reps have got off to a flying start, recruiting more than 500 new members in their first few weeks with the union’s new Organising Academy.

The specially selected reps chosen for the Academy are known as Organising Officers and have become part of the team of officials working across the union's seven divisions.

This new initiative marks a significant development within the union's education and training approach, and could well be the shape of things to come. Initial training has concentrated on building strong and effective union organisation in workplaces together with intensive training on recruiting new members to Usdaw. This has been followed by further training to develop the organising officers' union organising skills and speaking at inductions for new starters.

Paul Pike, one of the fifteen, based in the North West division said: "The training has proved to be invaluable preparation for our time out recruiting. We are all looking forward to getting stuck into our new roles making a real difference to the working lives of those in Usdaw workplaces."

At the time of writing, the Organising Officers had spent a total of two weeks out and about in their divisions, and between them had recruited more than 500 new members and identified over 50 potential shop stewards. In addition, they have also been strengthening union organisation in the workplaces they have visited.

"This is the best possible start we could have hoped for the Organising Academy," said Deputy General Secretary John Hannett. "The Organising Officers have shown a tremendous commitment to this pilot of the Academy, both in the training room and out in the field. We are already seeing the results of their work both in terms of their own personal development and in the stronger membership in the workplaces they've visited. I'm delighted with the progress so far."

This pilot of the Organising Academy has seen 15 reps seconded to the union for a six-month period. Their time will be split between training and working in the divisions, where they will be supported by coaches from the permanent members of the organising staff. The project concludes in November and will be evaluated to judge its success.

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