Usdaw pilots the role of the Mobile Union Learning Rep

Kathy Davies, Usdaw MULR, Liverpool

An innovative way of making learning accessible to members in the retail sector has been piloted by Usdaw with the help of the TUC's Equal project.

The project involves mobile ULRs (MULRs) who make a sweep of supermarkets in their area to get across the learning message.

"It's been extremely difficult so far to fully engage retail employers in the learning agenda," says Ann Murphy, national learning co-ordinator for Usdaw. "And because there is not a high level of organisation, or trained ULRs, within retail, members have missed out accessing those learning opportunities that so many take for granted."

To address this, Usdaw has been piloting the concept of MULRs, who in the main are seconded from various retail employers.

MULRs travel around stores in a local geographic area where Usdaw has membership, promoting and engaging members in learning and where possible recruiting and supporting in-store ULRs.

So far the union has experimented with two types of MULR:

• Company-specific MULR - This model works where the company is supporting the initiative and agrees to second a MULR to co-ordinate learning across a number of stores within their own organisation. A successful pilot with Sainsbury's in the South-West is ongoing.

• Multi-Company MULR - This model has worked very successfully in the Merseyside and Norfolk areas, in partnership with Liverpool Community College and Norwich City College respectively. As the name suggests, the MULR operates across a range of companies organising learning for members, usually with the help of local shop stewards or ULRs. Limited company support is necessary to make this model work as most of the learning is arranged off site at a local college venue and done in members' own time.

"Working with a good local provider is crucial to the success of the initiative," says Ann. In Norwich, Usdaw has become the biggest single provider of students to its City College, through the local MULR.

Usdaw has 12 MULRs working on various pilots across the country, but this is only the beginning. The union is hoping it can persuade employers to commit fully to learning initiatives in the long term.

Says Ann: "Results from pilots are already impressing employers, with Sainsbury's currently in discussions regarding a joint learning policy and Tesco now committed to discussing learning at a strategic level.

"Other unions have since adopted the concept of the mobile which lends itself very easily to sectors which have members in smaller and geographically spread workplaces such as the care sector and small manufacturing companies."

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Last Modified: Tuesday, 20-Sep-2005 20:27:14 EST