There is no doubt that Graham’s win will mean a major organisational shake up for Unite
Sharon Graham’s victory in the Unite election for general secretary, in which she has become the first woman to lead one of Britain’s most powerful trade unions, will mean major changes to the union and also its relationship with the Labour Party.
Although Graham’s win may have surprised many, with the contest being initially framed as a two-horse race between Steve Turner, who had received the backing of Len McCluskey, and Gerard Coyne, supported by many backers of Keir Starmer, Graham has put forward a message of change and vowed to prioritise the workplace rather than internal Labour Party politics. It’s a message considered to be a sharp break from her predecessor who has been a vocal critic of Keir Starmer.
Throughout the campaign, she resisted pleas from many to stand aside so that it wouldn’t lead to the Left’s vote being split.
So what does her victory mean for the union which has over 1.2 million members and also for the Labour Party?
Graham has published an in-depth manifesto, setting out her vision for the union and workers up and down the country. She has pledged to form a new Shop Steward Support Scheme, including 24-hour bargaining advice for night shift Reps and vowed to give shop stewards and reps a greater say in decisions, saying she would launch a democracy commission to make recommendations for positive change.
She has also made it a priority to ramp up the union’s organizing programme, targeting critical firms such as Amazon who ‘dictate poor standards throughout the Labour market’. Graham has also criticized what she says are the most ‘restrictive labour laws in Western Europe’ which have ‘no moral standing or public mandate’.
There is also a focus in her manifesto on Unite members in Ireland, Scotland and Wales, with a pledge to give ‘greater autonomy to all of our nations’. On Scotland Graham says activists will be given “full control of their political decision-making. It is not the role of head office to order what our Union should say or do with regard to the Scottish Parliament or the independence question”.
On Ireland Graham says she will work to make Ireland an equal partner and has vowed to ‘prioritise delivering a fully resourced, comprehensive industrial growth strategy’. On Wales she has said that she is willing to support rule changes to ensure that contributions made to the political fund by members living in Wales are spent in Wales.
Graham adds: “It is clear to me that our members in Wales are almost uniquely positioned to set new standards politically and drive forward a programme of renewal on behalf of workers.”
Transparency and accountability are also feature heavily in Graham’s manifesto and she has said that she will set up a Democracy Commission ‘to make concrete proposals on how best to deliver greater democracy and accountability throughout our Union’. In a bid to ensure that the general secretary and senior officials are accountable to members, there will be a monthly general secretary live Q and A with members via video link and regular workplace visits.
Included in the manifesto is also a pledge to put ‘equalities issues firmly on the bargaining table’. As the first woman to be elected general secretary, Graham says that she will launch and fully resource a dedicated equal pay campaign and offer greater support to BAME, LGBT+, young and disabled members.
Although Graham has vowed not to focus on internal Labour Party politics, she also has a stark warning for the Labour Party saying: “We have tried our political project within Labour – it has failed. A whole host of fronts have been set up – none has delivered power. We have waited for the ‘spontaneous’ struggle to emerge – it hasn’t.”
Graham has said that Unite will only support MPs or candidates for Parliament who are trade unionists and also said that Unite members’ money will not be used to support new candidates unless they have been a Union Shop Steward or rep.
There is no doubt that Graham’s win will mean a major organisational shake up for Unite but also a much more distant relationship with the Labour Party. She has already warned that there will be no more ‘blank cheques’.
Basit Mahmood is co-editor of Left Foot Forward
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