The TUC’s annual congress took place in Brighton this week, with delegates from across the trade union movement coming together to set the trade union movement’s agenda for the year ahead.
Prospect played a key role in the proceedings this year, with Principal Deputy General Secretary Sue Ferns presiding over the proceedings as TUC President. In his address to Congress, Ferns challenged the movement to “relentlessly focus on growing membership” and building for the future. Ferns also used his speech from the podium to express his pride in being part of Prospect and having the opportunity to “represent professionals and specialists on whom we all depend”.
Moving a vote of thanks for Ferns, Prospect General Secretary Mike Clancy said Prospect had “lent our most valuable asset to the TUC” over the past year” and praised the “wisdom, calm and the determination” that Ferns brought to a career spent delivering for workers.
The delegation played an active role in debates on the motions, with Prospect proposing motions on resources in the Health and Safety Executive and defending public service broadcasting.
Geoff Fletcher, NEC Member and HSE Health and Safety Inspector, stressed the fundamental right of workers to ‘be kept healthy and safe at work’ and highlighted the ‘alarming state’ in which the HSE was left after “more than a decade [of] long-lasting and damaging budget cuts that have undermined this system of regulation and enforcement. The motion, which was passed, called on the Work and Pensions Select Committee to undertake an inquiry into the resources, work and independence of the HSE.
Prospect’s motion on public service broadcasting was presented by Prospect’s Bectu sector manager, Philippa Childs. Stepping onto the podium exactly 100 years after the BBC was founded, Childs powerfully presented the principle of public service broadcasting and the “crucial role” played by the BBC and Channel 4 in the “creative industries ecosystem” of the UK, exposing their significant investment in regional skills and economies. Delegates passed the motion, which called on the TUC to campaign to keep Channel 4 in public hands and protect the BBC’s license fee funding model.
The delegation also spoke about a series of motions put forward by other unions regarding Prospect members.
Speaker Eleanor Wade has come to the defense of civil servants under attack, pointing to the impact of staff shortages on civil service departments and agencies and criticizing ministers who have ‘treated civil servants like a political balloon’. Wade pledged to organize members of the public service to oppose job cuts and the weakening of dismissal terms.
Deputy General Secretary Andrew Pakes backed a motion from the Musicians’ Union outlining the logistical and financial hurdles that musicians, performers and crews face when touring the EU, calling for a cultural exemption from such charges for touring artists and vehicles.
Speaking on a motion to protect public servants from bullying and harassment, Deputy Speaker Neil Hope-Collins described the appalling levels of sexual harassment faced by workers in Parliament and called on those working at the heart of our democracy to assert their rights confirmed.
Assistant Vice President Christine Danniell gave a personal and moving speech on the pension gender gap, expressing her hope that her nieces would not face the same disparities as her sister, whose pension pot is a decade old behind that of her male colleagues due to benevolence. responsibilities.
Potential delegates also spoke out in favor of manufacturing jobs, action on energy costs and the need to defend abortion rights.