Labour-Only Closed Shops


Here are two post from the blog site archive on the way in which trade unions in Scotland act as Labour-only closed shops.

Now for organisations that claim to be 'representative' of their members, that really takes the biscuit if you ask me,

Labour-Only Closed Shops (9 June 2011)

Trade union are experts at telling everybody else what to do.

But there comes a time when even the most tribal of trade unions need to take a long hard look in the mirror - and ask some tough questions about the state of trade union democracy.

And given the outcome of the recent Scottish elections, the issue of trade union democracy is coming under the spotlight as never before.

Because the simple truth is that the trade unions in Scotland are not reflecting the views of ordinary union members - when it comes to politics and elections.

Instead the trade unions are representing the views and prejudices of a small number union leaders and union activists.

The irony being that this is a complete denial of representative democracy on which the trade union movement claims to be built.

Given that the trade union conference season is now well underway, here's a draft Emergency Motion which calls a spade a spade - and calls upon trade unions to stop behaving like Labour-only closed shops.

The GMB union is meeting in Brighton this week - with Unison's national delegate conference taking place in Manchester later in June.

The reality of trade unions in Scotland today is that a great figure like Jimmy Reid would not be welcome in their senior ranks - because ultimately he belonged to the wrong party.

And the great challenge facing Scotland's trade unions today is that they should employ people in the senior ranks based purely on merit - and from a wide range of political views.

Let's hope that some independent thinkers take up the challenge because at the moment the trade unions look like the industrial equivalent of the Freemasons.

Emergency Motion on Trade Union Democracy

"Conference notes the outcome in the recent Scottish elections which resulted in the SNP (Scottish National Party) winning an overall majority of seats - and the Labour party suffering a disastrous and historic defeat.

Conference agrees that the current practice of our union affiliating to just one political party (i.e. the Labour party in Scotland) makes a mockery of our claim to be a democratic organisation - because the outcome of the Scottish elections means that our union is clearly not reflecting the views of ordinary, rank-and-file union members.

Conference therefore agrees that the present situation is undemocratic and untenable and instructs the Executive Council to suspend the practice of affiliating only to the Labour party - pending a wide ranging consultation with union members in Scotland on how best to reflect their views and wishes.

Conference also agrees that the senior ranks of our employed staff must reflect the union members that we serve - which means ending the Labour-only closed shop which has operated up until now.

Conference further agrees that if we are to maintain the confidence of rank and file members in Scotland, then the senior officials of the union must be drawn from all political outlooks - not just the Labour party."


Labour-only Closed Shops (15 June 2014)

Here's a selection of comments posted on the Newsnet Scotland web site - in response to my recent article on the trade unions as Labour-only Closed Shops.

# Lord Snooty 2011-06-11 12:41 

Somehow Mark, experience tells me not to expect pigs to sprout wings.

They are part of the channels of individual career advancement within the Labour Party and thus will defended until the beast is slain, being "scottish" Labour or even the TUC movement in Scotland.

Sad either way but maybe offers a new dawn.

# Astonished 2011-06-11 15:40

Great proposal - Bet it gets nowhere.

Further this will not be reported by the BBC.

# Mad Jock McMad 2011-06-11 17:16

Without the two super Unions - Unison and Unite - affiliation fees and the deep pocket of these two unions there would be no Labour Party. Unite keeps Millbank going and Unison John Smith House.

The Labour Regional Branch in Scotland is in effect bankrupt with out Union affiliation fees.

That is the opposition this motion will face at the Scottish Congress.

# Gill 2011-06-12 00:10

I paid in for years and years and when I asked for help it was pathetic. Experience tells me don't expect anything from this, especially when you need it.

# clootie 2011-06-11 18:41

Have you every tried to get the form from your union that allows you to be exempt from labour party contribution.

This indicates how difficult it would be to pass this motion.

# dillond666 2011-06-11 19:34 

I got the form to opt out of the Unite political fund. I had to phone the head office myself as the local officials were obstructive and unhelpful. The "return to" address on the form was also out of date and required editing from me. I know there are many who would like to opt out but can't be bothered with the hassle, undemocratic indeed!

# mudfries 2011-06-11 20:41

If you are a union member ask for a "Political fund exemption form" and fill it in, they must give you one if you ask, myself and other workers are members of uccatt and have done this, we all vote SNP, the peoples party! as our politics are to the left and we are working class we could never vote new labour, or should I call them the red tories.

# mudfries 2011-06-11 23:08

Well said clootie, unions were founded by good people for the right reasons, down the years men and women organised themselves and stood up for a decent standard of living for themselves and their family's, its terrible now that there are tinpot stalin types running most of them with their own agendas, how they can slavishly follow the labour party no matter what it stands for and still use things like block voting is insulting to union members, I hope more and more union members wake up and ask themselves "Do I want a union that stands for the rights of the worker or one that stands for the wrongs of a political party?" we can live in hope clootie!

# peter,aberdeenshire 2011-06-12 09:48

I was a member of GPMU and we had a workplace dispute, we had some high official dinosaur came up to address our meeting and all he could speak about was fighting Thatcher. That was all we were to him, a tool in the attack on Thatcher.

When I changed jobs, sickened after that incident I joined I think it was Amicus and used to get the quarterly magazine which being a pro Labour journal i found did not represent my views especially regarding the SNP. I left the union many years ago and have no regrets in doing so.

Maybe in years gone by the unions did reflect the views of the working man but to me they are now for many the first step on the greasy pole of life in the Labour party, and the leadership often use the members as political cannon fodder.

Read more from Newsnet Scotland at: http://www.newsnetscotland.com/ 

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