Trades Union Congress

Uh, and when we break that number down, it suggests households have paid an average of $6,500 more each year on mortgages, loans, energy, uh, and water bills since 2021.

Uh, the TUC says working people are bearing the financial burden of major crises like the pandemic, uh, and ongoing wars in Ukraine and the Middle East.

But with less than a fortnight to go until John Healey announces his first budget as Chancellor here, there is some hope, uh, with Healey promising to give households some breathing space.

So we'll wait and see what comes out, uh, in that on the 28th.

So in 1914, on the eve of that First World War, which was to sweep millions of British workers into the armed forces to kill or be killed by their fellow workers of other lands, there was a profound contradiction, one which remains, in my opinion, within the British Labour movement.

On the one hand, there were great mass organizations, the trade unions, the TUC, the cooperative movement with all of its manifold societies, the Labour Party, the Independent Labour Party, which, uh, for those of you who don't know about it, was the left social democratic wing of the socialist-- of, of the Labour Party, and it maintained a, an autonomous existence within the Labour Party.

Together, these organizations embraced millions of working people, but without a socialist outlook.

That's the key thing.

The CPGB, as the British section of the Communist International, was committed, of course, to implementing the decisions of that higher body to which it was affiliated.

In the general strike of 1926, it played a very major role, a very honorable role.

It called, I think perhaps naively, on the leadership of the TUC to take a revolutionary position.

That failed to happen.

In the UK, about 27% of women are disabled compared to 22% of men.

According to the TUC 2020 research, the employment gap between disabled women and non-disabled men was 32.6 percentage points, and the gap between disabled paying workers and non-disabled white people was 34.7 percentage points.

The overall disability employment gap was 28.4 percentage points.

According to last year's ONS annual population survey, some 1.4 million women who are economically inactive said they are looking after a family of home.

Um, Whapple did not win.

Unison has now gone into a huddle to discuss its response.

A disappointing initial reaction, especially since Conrathey has written to the TUC to ask it to release the entire trade union movements.

Quotes, "As the umbrella body of-- for the trade union movement, it can ensure affiliated unions understand that sex-based rules, reserved seats, representative structures, and a guidance must now be reviewed against the Supreme Court's ruling.

And that's why we're in the state we're in.

Now, how did the Russians do it? Well, the remain camp, remain in the European Union, had the Confederation of British Industry, the Trade Union Congress, the Labor Party, the Conservative Party, the Liberal Democrat Party, the Scottish Nationalist Party, the Welsh Nationalist Party.

It had the BBC, ITV, Channel 4.

It had The Times, The Sunday Times, The Observer, The Guardian, the Daily Mail, the Mail on Sunday, The Daily Telegraph, every radio station, every television station, every newspaper.

Our conversation steered into the trade union support after talking about solidarity.

Our friend Jussa, who's an equity counselor and spoke at the trade union congress, uh, the previous week, was telling us about how they voted on the HRC.

So he shared a comment as follows: "The trade union Congress last week voted on the Equality and Human Rights Commission, EHRC, and there was a motion that the Congress unequivocally condemns the EHRC's proposed code of practice as a direct attack on LGBT plus equality.

I was privileged to be in the hall at the time it was voted on and carried, and it was the entire trade union movement.

There's a lot to criticize of the TUC and its effectiveness, but there is something deeply affirming and inspiring and reassuring to be in a room full of people from so many different walks of life, all standing in solidarity with LGBT plus people.

Daisy joined the socialist movement, appointed socialist vicars, and stood as a Labour candidate against the future Prime Minister, Anthony Eden.

She even attempted to give Eastern Lodge to the Labour Party and then the Trade Union Congress.

They both declined.

Apparently, overthrowing the ruling classes was one thing, but paying to maintain their enormous houses was another.

Bonus episode: AI on the Agenda, a Day at Labor Conference.

So I'm reminded of the good old days, so the first person I walk into is Paul Nowak, who's General Secretary of the TUC, and we used to work together a- about a thousand years ago.

A thousand years ago.

And I've been coming to Labor Party Conference since 1994, the infamous Clause 4, [laughs] uh, conference.

How much does AI matter to you, and how concerned or where, where are the positives? What do you think?

I think it matters to a- all of our unions and all of our members, all five and a half million, uh, of them.

And the TUC's been around since 1868.

I haven't been quite around, uh, for all of that time.