Let me run a few stats by you:  £104 million in recovered back pay, £41 million in members’ pay per year going forward, 5000 new members recruited and 164 days of Industrial action with employers who refused to engage.  They are the results, so far, of Unison's campaign to recruit and organise Health Care Assistants in the NHS.  National officer Louise Chinnery tells us how it was done - and what she and the union of learned in the process.  First broadcast as an Organising For A Change episode in November 2024. More backgound/links/signposting in this blogpost

10 years in the making and anti-apartheid docu-drama-thriller movie London Recruits premieres in November.  In this special episode, Director and writer Gordon Main chats about the making of the film and the vital role unions and trade unionists have in making it the UK's most successful independent movie launch ever! Companion blog here. Running time 26m07s. A Makes You Think production

in this episode we sit down with Gawain Little, General Secretary of the General Federation of Trade Unions which this year celebrates it’s 125th birthday.  The Federation is possibly best known for its phenomenal education and training programme but that is by no means the only string to its bow.

Glasgow Univesity’s Professor of Work and Employment, Melanie Simms also has education on her mind as she ponders new academic new work on understanding the importance of effective employment law, in her #thought4theweek

Run time 39m50s.

Companion blog for links, signposting, backgroound here

Music by Scott Holmes. A Makes-You-Think production.

In the latest UnionDues episode, Musicians’ Union General Secretary Naomi Pohl talks us through the big issues facing her union’s 34,000 members.

Working in a sector worth £7bn,  there should be some scope for everyone to get a reasonable share of the spoils – but of course, the world’s not like that. So the union is keeping the pressure on with their #FixStreaming campaign.

Naomi also discusses the Work Not Play and Fair Play campaigns, and the increasingly successful efforts to get the better venues to publicise their bona fides in terms of prompt and fair payment to musicians.

In a top-drawer #thought4theweek  Glasgow University’s Professor of Work and Employment Mel Simms reflects on being taken out of her comfort zone in the search for new understandings on the future of work – and how the Musicians’ union and others are  in front of the curve by some way. 

Companion blog here. You can buy us a virtual coffee at ko-fi/uniondues

Timestamps:  Mel – 1m37s, Naomi 6m24s, Total runtime 32m42s

In this special “toolkit” episode, we look in detail at the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act – where it has come from, and why it is disproportionate, non-consensual and dangerously ill-conceived.  As the Act moves into the implementation phase,  Simon and leading union lawyer Richard Arthur dissect the issues, place the Act in context, and point out why government hopes for union disempowerment are fundamentally flawed. 

Ioannis Katsaroumpas’ article on why the Act crosses the Rubicon of authoritarianism is here.  The report from the Parliamentary Transport Committee is here.

Run time 14m11s.  Music by Scott Holmes.  A Makes-You-Think production.

StrikeMap is undoubtedly a slam-dunk success.  The brainchild of Rob Poole and Henry Fowler, it is a real time on line map showing industrial action.

Now over 230 thousand strike actions have been mapped and StrikeMap’s data is sought out by journalists, academics and researchers.

But how did it all start.  What is the story of Rob and Henry’s journey that led them to StrikeMap? Where did the idea come from and what did it take to put it into practice?  What needs to happen just to keep the project going?

From being "monstered" by the Daily Mail to an innovative partnership with the GFTU, this is a story not to miss.

Plus, of course, Professor Mel Simms and her #thought4theweek

Timings

• #thought4theweek - 1m42s,

Companion blog with links, signposting etc at bit.ly/MYTStrikemap.

Feel free to buy us a virtual coffee to support the podcast at

ko-fi.com/uniondues

A Makes-You-Think production

Unions21 Executive Director Becky Wright on why good governance matters to unions,  the role "User Experience Design" (UXD) plays in making things better, forthcoming work on unions and AI and the lessons learned from recent industrial action.  Also, Prof Melanie Simms on why knowledge and social partnership are key ingredients for union effectiveness.  Companion blog at bit.ly/3QznZpe

Timestamps - Becky 1m31s, Mel 30m52s Total runtime 37m17s.

A Makes-You-Think production. Music by Scott Holmes. If you like what you hear, buy us a virtual coffee at ko-fi.com/uniondues

In the new UnionDues episode, Alan Jones reflects on what it’s like to be the “last man standing” amongst industrial correspondents, why the Miner’s strike of 1984-5 was a turning point for unions, how the present unrest “is not just about strikes”, and why Julian Assange should be decorated rather than demonised. In her #thought4theweek, Mel Simms urges more public discourse on the role and function of unions – and so say all of us! Companion blog here

In the first episode of season 6, Glasgow university's Prof Mel Simms on why we need to talk about use of social media in industrial disputes, and Simon chats with leading US labor podcaster Chirs Garlock about the 200-strong Labor Radio Podcast Network, and why Joe Biden standing on a picket line with a bull-horn is a game-changer.

Timestamps:  Melanie Simms 2m02s, Chris Garlock 7m06s, Discussion on the US labor movement starts at 17m40s.  Total running time 27m18s. A Makes-You-Think production. Music by Scott Holmes

In a special episode of the Union Dues podcast, we step into the fray of sexual harassment.  Guided by Andrea Oates, author of an excellent new LRD publication on sexual harassment, we drill down into questions of definitions, prevalence legal remedies, and effective union campaigns – on awareness, prevention, reporting, monitoring and, of course, representation.

Sadly union structures are not immune from misogyny and sexual harassment:  three successive reports by KCs showed how the GMB, RCN and TSSA unions had become delinquent with awful consequences for female staff and activists.  No surprise that the #meTUwomen came into being to give a voice to those denied one for so long.

We don’t ignore or minimise these matters, but place them in the context of the remedial and preventative work being done across the movement, with unions such as ASLEF and BFAWU being particularly pro-active.

We hear from Fliss Premru on how #meTU came into being, and what changes it seeks to achieve.  And Sarah Wooley, General Secretary of the Bakers’ and Food Workers’ union gives her unique and powerful perspective on the steps she has taken to strength the democracy and unity of her own union, why the movement needs to get its house in order, and how we can tell if we are making progress.

This podcast is not always comfortable listening – nor should it be.  But if you want the true and complete trade union view on sexual harassment, it is a must-hear event.

A companion blog with links, signposting and background is here