Trade unions are about solidarity. The very name of our movement is symbolic of the fact that we are bound together by ties that go beyond nationality or location.
By John-Paul McHugh, Scottish officer at Community Trade Union
Trade unions are about solidarity. The very name of our movement is symbolic of the fact that we are bound together by ties that go beyond nationality or location.
We stand together with colleagues across the UK, campaigning as much for fairness in Scotland as we do in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
At a time of economic turmoil across the world now more than ever we need to stand together in the pursuit of social justice. Putting up barriers between workers in the rest of the UK makes no sense at all.
And workers across the whole of UK stand united in solidarity. Whether we are from Glasgow, Grimsby or Glamorgan, we know that by working together we can achieve so much more than we could apart.
Where is the social justice argument in abandoning colleagues south of the Border?
I am proud that Community members from across the UK have come together to say with a clear voice that we are better together and will campaign against Alex Salmond’s plan to break up the United Kingdom.
Working together with trade unionists across the UK we have achieved so much. From the National Minimum Wage, which the SNP failed to support, to health and safety legislation, pooling our resources across the UK has resulted in significant improvements for our workers.
Things are far from perfect, but the suggestion that workplace rights would be infinitely better in a separate Scotland is risible.
The complete failure of the SNP to support the Scottish steel industry when contracts were being handed out for the Forth Road Bridge replacement was a taste of what life would be like in a separate Scotland.
The SNP’s economic case for breaking up Britain appears to rest on cutting corporation tax for big business. When companies like Starbucks, Vodafone, Apple, Google and npower stand accused of avoiding tax on a grand scale, Alex Salmond wants to reduce their burden even further.
We are promised Scandinavian style public services and investment but Irish style levels of low taxation. It simply doesn’t stack up.
One area of significant concern to steel workers in Scotland is the impact of separation on pensions. Campaigners fought long and hard to establish the Pensions Protection Fund (PPF), the UK wide scheme which supports workers whose pension schemes go bust. What will happen to this if Scotland breaks away?
The failure of the SNP to provide any credible assurances on the PPF’s future is indicative of the flimsiness of their case.
Working together and pooling our resources is what the trade union movement, and Community in particular, is all about. Creating divisions on the basis of nationality is contrary to our whole world vision. We are so much stronger and better together as part of the UK.
49 Responses to “Trade unionism is not about creating even more divisions based on nationality”
Eilif
And another thing:
“The complete failure of the SNP to support the Scottish steel industry when contracts were being handed out for the Forth Road Bridge replacement was a taste of what life would be like in a separate Scotland.”
Similarly the war in Iraq, the billions wasted on WMDs, the prospective privatisation of Royal Mail, the oil revenues wasted by the UK treasury not investing in a sovereign wealth fund, the bedroom tax to name but a few is a taste of what life would be like if we stuck with the Union. If the UK state was working in a way that ensured a much fairer society there would be little point in me arguing for independence.
And your unionist colleagues had the chance to provide the people of Scotland with the opportunity to choose more powers within the UK. A two-question referendum would have meant a Yes vote to independence had little or no chance of winning and it was perfectly workable. But the unionist politicians rejected this offer with unbelievable antagonism leaving many in Scotland completely unimpressed. Now the unionists want to wait until after the referendum before even considering a debate about more powers whilst at the same time expecting answers about the long-term currency arrangements of an independent Scotland when that is only something you can put to the people of Scotland when Scotland is independent.
And if that isn’t enough we have Alistair Darling daring to create an atmosphere much like you are of cultural blackmail, daring to dictate the terms and conditions of our very identities – ‘Thou shalt call thyself British if thy voteth for independence.’ We are human beings with a free will we will not take orders about our identities from politicians!
If the Westminster government wants to strengthen the bond someone from Glasgow has with someone from Glamorgan then they should be making plans to build Hi-speed 2 as far north as the border so then the Scottish government can provide the rest of the journey. Then it will be easier to meet more often. But that will take many years of course. Until that point perhaps it would a good idea if the Scottish Government had control over Air Passenger Duty to make it cheaper for someone to fly to Cardiff. Only by shrinking this island will we be able to strengthen our relationships with our family south of the border.
I’m afraid you will have a hard job Mr McHugh of convincing the people of Scotland that there really is a better alternative under the union.
dougthedug
John, you said, “From the National Minimum Wage, which the SNP failed to support…”
Since the SNP voted for the UK National Minimum Wage Bill on 16 Dec 1997 in Westminster and committed to a £7.45 Scottish Living Wage on 05/11/2012 for employees working in parts of the public sector under the Scottish Government’s pay policy perhaps you could clarify this.
dougthedug
“When companies like Starbucks, Vodafone, Apple, Google and npower stand accused of avoiding tax on a grand scale, Alex Salmond wants to reduce their burden even further.”
Since Labour and the Conservatives (The Better Together Alliance) wrote the tax legislation with loopholes so big that Starbucks, Vodafone, Apple, Google and npower have just driven a coach and horses through them then reducing the rate of taxation will matter not one whit to companies who simply avoid paying anything anyway.
Of course an independent Scotland would have the power to close these loopholes without the encumberance of the Labour and Tory hero worship of big business.
ross
The ‘social justice’ argument is based on Scotland abandoning the Westminster elite, not our fellow workers. Current economic turmoil is caused by neolib governments bowing down to demands of the markets & big business! A smaller more representative Scottish government would represent the more communitarian, egalitarian Scottish politics (with a small p) something utterly devoid in the Westminster profit over people perspective. This article is shockingly poor from the author, editor & left foot forward. Left foot forward – try to raise the level of debate next time please.
StewartW
The John Paul McHugh article says more about current Labour
Party philosophy than it does about the independence issue. To seek to deny the
people of Scotland the
opportunity to elect a left wing government simply to preserve the Labour
Party’s Westminster
ambitions illustrates how far the party has stumbled to the right.
There are many on the left in Scotland who see the
referendum next year as a once in a lifetime chance to ditch the outdated
political orthodoxy of Westminster, start with a clean slate and elect a
government based on social justice, equality and fairness. Forget the SNP’s
policies. Two years after a YES vote, we can elect the government we want. Far
from abandoning our colleagues south of the border, I believe that once they
see the benefits of a socialist government, they will demand the same of Westminster.