Making our members heard

5481_PFB_Activists_Guide_Final:PFB 20/12/2012 12:44 Page 1 Unite s Political Fund Making our members heard A C T I V I S T S G U I D E

5481_PFB_Activists_Guide_Final:PFB 20/12/2012 12:44 Page 2 Unite s Political Fund making our members heard On 1 May 2013 Unite members will receive a ballot paper about our Political Fund. All unions are required by law to hold a full postal ballot of all members every ten years to confirm that they want to keep the Political Fund. Winning the biggest Yes vote on the biggest turnout in the forthcoming ballot is our common objective. Your union s Executive Committee, composed of working men and women from across our nations, urge that all members vote Yes to retain the fund, to retain a political voice for our union. This guide is designed to help you, our activists, explain the background to the vote. It will help you explain the importance of this vote to our membership; our future as an independent campaigning union is a stake. This is not a ballot on affiliation to the Labour Party. It is about whether we can spend any money on political purposes at all. We must win so that the union can continue to campaign for decent pensions, for our NHS, against cuts and sackings in the public services, against attacks on employee rights and trade union rights at work. Many members and activists find politics a turn-off. They don't identify with politicians of any party. But they are passionate about our health service. They are proud of our union, and the role that collective action plays in the workplace. They want a fighting union that can do battle for our members, for the NHS, for workers rights. 2

5481_PFB_Activists_Guide_Final:PFB 20/12/2012 12:44 Page 3 Unite is not and never will be a do-nothing union, happy not to campaign, happy to stay silent, under the thumb of the employer, and cowed by politicians. Your union leadership urges that you now make that case to members. In solidarity Len McCluskey General Secretary What happens next? Postal votes will be sent to every member s home. The ballot opens on 1 May 2013 and closes on 22 May 2013. The real campaign will be in the workplace. Workplace reps, shop stewards, branch officers will have a crucial role to play you are the vital link to our members at work. Your work as a Unite activist begins now. Your union needs you to talk to your members, make them aware of the vote and the importance of a Yes vote. This Pocket Guide is designed to help you make that case, by asking and answering the questions members may put, but if you need more information, please email the Unite political team at steve.hart@unitetheunion.org or ben.richards@unitetheunion.org Political Fund Ballot the history and the law In the early years of the last century, courts ruled that unions could not spend any money on political campaigning. 3

5481_PFB_Activists_Guide_Final:PFB 20/12/2012 12:44 Page 4 Unions wanted to campaign for reforms of all kinds for pensions, votes for women, the right to strike. No matter how many individual victories could be won with employers at workplace or national level, it was always clear that real progress required participating in the political process. So when the courts made this ruling there was a big outcry from trade unionists. The Trade Union Act of 1913 provided that trade unions could engage in political activity funded from a separate Political Fund provided they set out relevant aims in their rule books, which had to be approved by the membership, and provided that members could opt-out of paying into it. This was the position for most of the twentieth century, during which union campaigns succeeded in introducing the National Health Service, health and safety legislation, the minimum wage, employment tribunals, redundancy payments and so many more. Unions political campaigning, including with the Labour Party, provided a counterbalance to the rule of the wealthy and vested interests. During the eighties, as Margaret Thatcher unleashed a major onslaught against unions and working people, she sought to make the laws around union campaigning tougher still. Not content with attacking the working class economically, through the deliberate creation of mass unemployment and the destruction of manufacturing, she also lashed out: Industrially, through introduction of draconian antiunion legislation to tie unions up in legal knots and shift the balance in favour of employers, and the defeat of key industrial groups like the miners; Politically, through Political Fund Ballot legislation, to outlaw union involvement in any kind of political campaigning. 4

5481_PFB_Activists_Guide_Final:PFB 20/12/2012 12:44 Page 5 The Trade Union Act of 1984 required unions to ballot its membership every ten years if it wished to continue with its Political Fund. This was a blatantly partisan measure by the Tories to undermine opposition to their programme for the nation. The scope of Political Funds was also widened. It now included the production of any material whose main impact is to persuade people to vote, or not to vote, for a particular party or candidate. What this really meant was clarified by the courts in 1987. Nalgo now part of Unison organised a campaign in support of Public Services, under the theme Make People Matter. Just like today, services were facing massive cuts so the campaign was critical of the Conservative Government of the day, but was not overtly party political. However, it still landed Nalgo in court. The judges ruled that the main purpose of the campaign was to persuade people not to vote Conservative in elections, and ruled that any expenditure must come from the Political Fund. So since 1984, if unions want to have any kind of political voice, to campaign for changes for working people or against government policies, we must ballot for a Political Fund every ten years. What happened in previous Political Fund ballots? Unions wishing to have a Political Fund have balloted three times before. The first time, in the 1980s, was especially tense but union members united to defeat the political objective of Thatcher and her government. With turn-outs of around 50 percent, and Yes votes of 77 percent and above, this ballot was a resounding success. 5

5481_PFB_Activists_Guide_Final:PFB 20/12/2012 12:44 Page 6 For Unite, this is our first Political Fund Ballot but each time the main predecessor unions of Unite have been required to ballot, the vote has been consistently between 70 percent and 90 percent in favour. Union members have therefore united to say Yes to a Voice regardless of the individual politics of union members and activists. With the formation of Unite, our members also approved our own Rule Book, setting out the clear political objectives of our union, which are that we are affiliated to the Labour Party, the party found by working people for working people. But this ballot is much wider than our union s attitude to the Labour Party. It is about a voice. Without a political voice, without a Political Fund, a union is like a fish without water. How serious would it be if we lost our Political Fund? The purpose of the law was to undermine trade unions, to substantially reduce our power, so losing this ballot would be very serious. We would be barred from spending any money at all on national campaigning activity which criticises the government of the day. Much of the campaigning we currently take for granted would no longer be permitted: Recently, Unite members in the Police Service were threatened by plans to privatise their jobs. Front-line police staff could be outsourced to G4S. Disastrous for jobs, terms and conditions but also for the public as policing is weakened Unite campaigned against this. We polled the public. We organised demonstrations. We made it an issue during the Police Commissioner elections, asking candidates to sign a pledge against privatisation. We asked 6

5481_PFB_Activists_Guide_Final:PFB 20/12/2012 12:44 Page 7 members to send postcards to candidates. We won. The plans to sell off the service were abandoned. Without a Political Fund this would be illegal. In our NHS, Unite is fighting to defend pay and services, uniting workers and the public against government plans. We are surveying members, gathering case studies, organising street stalls and petitions. We are determined to make the defence of our NHS a central issue at the next general election when we fear that plans to further privatise will be part of the Coalition manifesto. Without a Political Fund, Unite can do nothing to defend our NHS. In Barking, east London, in 2010, the extreme right BNP was waging a well-resourced campaign to win a Parliamentary seat for their leader Nick Griffin. Unite believed that a racist, Hitler-supporting party would be bad for our society and communities, bad for Barking and bad for our members. We campaigned against the BNP, mobilising our activists, and defeated Nick Griffin. This meant spending small amounts of money from the Political Fund to support the campaign. We could not mount this fight against racism if as a union we had not previously voted Yes to a Political Fund. What about future issues? Political Fund legislation also prevents trade unions from campaigning to encourage voter registration. This will become a very important issue for our people. In the US, Republicans have spent a lot of time introducing laws to make voter registration and voting much more difficult, demanding ID such as driving licences at the polls for example. In the UK, individual voter registration, instead of by household as previously, has been introduced. This is 7

5481_PFB_Activists_Guide_Final:PFB 20/12/2012 12:44 Page 8 likely to mean less working people are registered. This is disenfranchisement of working people. We need to work hard to prevent this. Without a Political Fund, Unite would not be able to urge our members to ensure that they have the right to vote by getting registered. Contemplate the next General Election. A rampant Conservative Party proposes the privatisation of the NHS, banning strikes in all public services, ends collective bargaining and wants to outlaw equality legislation including maternity rights. Unite will need to speak out against all these attacks. Without a Political Fund, we cannot speak up for our members at the next General Election. Prime Minister David Cameron has appointed Lynton Crosby, an Australian election specialist, to head his 2015 general election campaign. This man was the main adviser to the Australian PM John Howard who introduced anti-union legislation, Work Choices, in 2001. This law ended collective bargaining, grossly reduced all worker rights and forced a reduction in trade union membership. The UK Government may attempt similar here; faced with a dire economic a situation they may look for scapegoats as they have in the past. It is worth noting that in Australia, the unions worked together to defeat these regressive laws, and in doing so defeated PM Howard too. Without a Political Fund, Unite would not even be able to oppose laws to destroy us. 8

5481_PFB_Activists_Guide_Final:PFB 20/12/2012 12:44 Page 9 How much does Unite s Political Fund cost members? A full-time Unite member paying at the core rate pays 66p per month into the Political Fund. Every member has the right to opt-out of this payment to the Political Fund. It is a tiny amount of money from each member, around 2p per day, but it all adds up to a considerable sum which the Unite can use to support the membership in campaigning. What about the Labour Party? Less than half our Political Funds are spent on our affiliation fee to the Labour Party. The Political Fund is about much more than supporting the Labour Party. It is about campaigning for the membership on anything which a court can construe as political. It really is about the union having a voice. The alternative is to gag our union; to reduce our power, to reduce our ability to campaign together for our objectives, to attack our existence. Whether you support the Labour Party or not, Unite needs need all our activists to campaign for a Yes vote. Unite does support the Labour Party it is in our Rule Book. This support is regularly, overwhelmingly, endorsed after debate by lay delegates at our National Policy Conference. We are proud that our unions created a party to represent working-class interests over a century ago. We are proud that much has been achieved for working people. From the health service to working tax credits, from maternity rights to minimum wage, the Welsh 9

5481_PFB_Activists_Guide_Final:PFB 20/12/2012 12:44 Page 10 Assembly and the Scottish Parliament, many of the best features of modern society came from Labour Governments. Yes, Unite is also frustrated with the failure of Labour to achieve more. We seek to get Labour back on track, to remember its roots, get back clearly on the side of working people. We believe that Labour needs to continue to change, as it has started to under Ed Miliband, if it is to win back millions of working people to vote Labour. Our Political Strategy is based on supporting and changing Labour for the better. As Labour s biggest affiliate, we have a powerful voice in Labour a voice we have often failed to use effectively. We are proud of our affiliation, and we are proud to use our influence and funds for change. Without a Political Fund, not only would Unite be banned from political affiliation and campaigning, but British politics would be dangerously unbalanced. A YES vote to a Political fund is not a vote for Labour it is a vote for a voice You don t need to be a Labour supporter to recognise that over the last century, Labour and the unions have provided a political balance to the Conservative Party and the rampant interest of big business. 90 percent of the current funding of the Tory party comes from big business. 23 of the current cabinet are millionaires. Let s be clear: none of the advances for working people of the last century would have come about without Labour and without trade union influence. If Unite and other unions were banned from using a political voice, British politics would see a sea change. In whose interests would it be to have unbridled rule by 10

5481_PFB_Activists_Guide_Final:PFB 20/12/2012 12:44 Page 11 the millionaires, for the millionaires? For all Labour s shortcomings, it has provided a counterweight. Even if you are not a Labour supporter, please work to safeguard the balance provided by a union voice. Many, probably a majority of Union members, currently would support Labour at a General Election. For those who don t support Labour, Unite asks that they don t deny others the right to a collective voice. If our membership continues to support affiliation to Labour at conferences, permit those decisions to be implemented. Those who disagree with a Political Fund may opt-out. But if the Political Fund ballot is lost, those who support it can no longer opt-in. Without a Political Fund, the majority who vote Labour have no opportunity to support Labour through their union. We are gagged. So we appeal to all in our union; support the rights of others by voting Yes to a Political Fund. What can activists do to win the Yes vote? You are our link to members. You understand their daily concerns. You understand that our Political Fund allows us to act on these concerns. You understand that we need a big Yes vote so that Unite and our members have a voice. Now you need to campaign. Make sure your branch, shop stewards committee, workplace committee and regional sector committee debates the Fund. Get more copies of this guide from your Regional Office and pass them around your workplaces. Promote the ballot to your members. Put up the posters on union noticeboards wherever possible. 11

5481_PFB_Activists_Guide_Final:PFB 20/12/2012 12:45 Page 12 Circulate the leaflets available from your Regional Office and Officer. Ensure that your work colleagues understand the issues. Emphasise it is about the union and its members having a voice. Talk about campaigning for the NHS, about union rights, about the key issues in your workplace. Explain how without a Political Fund your members would be gagged. Make clear that this is not a referendum on the Labour Party. Good colleagues, who may be Tory, Plaid or SNP voters, still need their union to have a Political Fund as much as any other member. LMake sure that your members can vote. Anyone who joined the union before 31st January 2013 is eligible to vote. But make sure that all members have their correct details on the Unite database. Discuss this, and how you can campaign effectively until the ballot is won, with your regional officer. Work with fellow activists to get out the vote strategy at your workplace. A telephone tree or e-mail tree of members to speak to are easy to set up and really help maximise a positive turn-out Be proud argue the case Political fund ballot Question and Answer for members What is the political fund? The law says that unions must have a separate political fund to spend on political campaigning. This could include lobbying for jobs and a future for your children, an advertising campaign to defend our NHS or a rally for better workplace rights to gain the support of a political party. Without the political fund your union would not be able to campaign effectively on issues that affect you. 12

5481_PFB_Activists_Guide_Final:PFB 20/12/2012 12:45 Page 13 Why are we having a ballot? Your union, Unite, is obliged by law to hold a ballot every ten years to keep its political fund. This will be the first such vote since the predecessor unions Amicus and the Transport and General Workers Union (TGWU) came together to form Unite. Both Amicus and the TGWU had political funds and conducted ballots in which members of both unions gave a resounding yes vote to a political fund. Shouldn t Unite just concentrate on defending members rights at work? That is exactly what Unite does seeking wage improvements, negotiating better terms and conditions, defending jobs, representing members at legal, medical and disciplinary hearings. But the decisions and laws made by politicians affect your interests at work too. We all rely on decent public services and a healthy economy for our livelihoods. So Unite must be able to campaign in the political arena to defend your interests. How much does the political fund cost a Unite member? Contributions to the political fund in the form of a levy are only a small percentage of your union subscriptions. On average it works out at 66p per month, around 2p per day. It s a small amount but collectively it adds up to a significant contribution and helps your union be effective in standing up for you. Who decides how the political fund is spent? Unite s elected Executive Council controls how the money is spent. The Executive is accountable to members through conference and ensures that, when money is spent, a clear benefit can be seen for Unite members. 13

5481_PFB_Activists_Guide_Final:PFB 20/12/2012 12:45 Page 14 Doesn t all the money go to the Labour Party? No. Unite spends some of its political fund money to affiliate to the Labour Party to ensure your voice is heard within its policy making structures and to bring influence to bear. This ballot is not about affiliation to the Labour Party, nor is it about what we do with the fund. You are voting on the basic right to keep it and have a political voice. If we don t have a political fund your union will not be able to effectively campaign for you and your colleagues. If I vote yes does it mean I have to pay more? No. Each member has the right to opt out of paying into the political fund whenever they want. A yes vote means that your union keeps it political fund and you keep you right to choose whether you pay the political levy. If I don t want to pay the political levy, why should I vote yes? Voting yes means that those members who want to pay into the political fund can continue to do so. Every Unite member, whether they pay the political levy or not, has a vote on whether to keep the political fund and a campaigning political voice for members. If you don t want to contribute to the political fund you don t have to and can opt out. But it is important that you vote yes, so that all members can benefit from Unite s political campaigning. I m not really interested in politics. Why should I vote yes? You may not be interested in politics, but you re interested in your living standards, having a safe place to work or even your right to be in a trade union. All of these things are influenced by politics and governed by laws. Without a political voice your union can have little input when these issues are being 14

5481_PFB_Activists_Guide_Final:PFB 20/12/2012 12:45 Page 15 debated. You should vote yes so that all Unite members keep their right to a voice. Who can vote in this ballot? All members of the union in England, Wales and Scotland, whether they pay the political levy or not. The ballot does not apply to members overseas but does in Northern Ireland, which is covered by separate government legislation. How do I vote? Your ballot paper will be sent to your home, unless you ask for it to be sent to another address. Make sure you read your ballot paper carefully and vote yes if you agree to keep Unite s political fund. It must be posted back to the independent scrutineer. A pre-paid return envelope will be included with your ballot paper. What if my ballot paper doesn t arrive? If you have not received a ballot paper by mid May 2013 contact the Independent Scrutineer on 0800 783 3856 or email: enquiries@electoralreform.co.uk Is it a secret ballot? Yes What happens if Unite loses the ballot? Unite will lose the ability to campaign effectively on issues that matter to you like, a better future for you and your kids, better rights in the workplace, and a better NHS, one that is publicly run in the interests of you and not of shareholders. What can I do to help the campaign? Make sure your colleagues know about the ballot, are eligible to vote and urge them to vote yes. Organise a briefing session for your workplace or union branch. 15

5481_PFB_Activists_Guide_Final:PFB 20/12/2012 12:45 Page 16 A C T I V I S T S G U I D E Unite The union, 128 Theobalds Road, Holborn, London WC1X 8TN www.unitetheunion.org