A series of proposals will be tabled at the Trade Union Congress (TUC) in September, calling on unions to work together to increase the impact of their industrial action. The TUC’s head of public services, Kevin Rowan, told Sky News they would “support and encourage” the unions in the move so that the strikes are “as effective as possible”. The plan, which has the backing of two of the UK’s biggest unions, Unison and Unite, comes just days after the latest figure for the energy price cap was announced, confirming that average bills will reach £3,549 per annum this winter. Inflation has also hit a 40-year high of 10.1% and is expected to jump to 13.3% when the energy bill takes effect in October. “You don’t see the work we do until we stop” The proposal put forward by Unite would see the TUC ensure a co-ordinated timetable for strikes “so workers in dispute can more effectively use their union power to win”. Meanwhile, the move by Unison points to a “low pay crisis”, demanding the TUC rally union action to campaign for pay rises “at least in line with inflation”. Eddie Cassidy, Scotland’s spokesman for Unite, said the industrial action plan could be seen as a general strike – although the text of the TUC’s proposals does not go that far – saying co-ordination would increase their effectiveness. “You don’t see the work we do until we stop doing it,” he told Sky News from the workers’ blanket line. “The only real tool workers have in their arsenal is to withdraw their work, and when they do that they highlight to everyone exactly what they’re handing you in.” He added: “If there’s another way to get what we’re trying to achieve, I’m happy to explore it, but at the moment nobody seems to be listening.” Read more: Who suggests what to tackle rising energy bills? Who’s on strike this summer – and for how long Use Chrome browser for more accessible video player 10:09 Energy bills: Will they get worse? “People want a decent pay rise” The TUC’s Mr Rowan echoed the sentiment, saying workers would prefer a solution other than strike action. But, he added: “The fact is we’re seeing energy costs going up 35 times faster than wages, food bills going up, housing costs going up. “The only thing that doesn’t go up is people’s pay.” Labour’s shadow general secretary to the Treasury, Pat McFadden, said his party would not support a general strike, despite its relationship with various unions. But he told Sky News: “We understand why people are pushing for pay rises. “Our appeal to government ministers would be to stop being an absentee government and help resolve these disputes to ensure people get a decent pay rise, but to do that around the negotiating table . “Nobody wants to see industrial action, but it’s understandable why workers want a decent pay rise given the inflationary pressures they’re feeling right now.”
The new prime minister must fix a country that many feel is broken
From buses to bins, industrial action has an impact on ordinary people. A woman (who is abandoning plans to see her daughter due to bus strikes) told me today “this country is broken”, and she certainly feels there are some fixes to be made for the next PM. The day the new leader is announced, the criminal lawyers will walk out, and soon after we could see civil servants, nurses and teachers lined up to buy and sell. While unions do not have the membership or power they had in the 1970s, we are looking at months of industrial unrest. Pressure is mounting on the next prime minister to deliver a substantial support package to help with rising bills, but labor action threatens to make day-to-day governance – getting things done – very difficult. Both leadership candidates have said they are ready to fight the unions. Campaigner Liz Truss says the country “will not be held to ransom”. Part of the problem for the government is that too much wage growth could be inflationary, but with day-to-day costs skyrocketing, public sector workers are really worried. A bus driver told me he had a £5 pay rise in 16 years. With the two biggest unions now proposing concerted action, the next Prime Minister has their work cut out for them if they are to avoid a winter of industrial unrest. Subscribe to the Daily podcast for free on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Spreaker Downing Street has insisted it will be up to the next prime minister – either front-runner Liz Truss or former chancellor Rishi Sunak – to decide what cost of living is needed. Neither Tory leadership candidate has outlined their exact plans, with Ms Truss’s team saying it would “not be appropriate for her to announce her plans before she is elected prime minister or has seen all the facts”. But reports suggest he is considering a “nuclear” option that could cut VAT from 20% to 15% – a plan Mr Sunak’s team has branded expensive and “incredibly regressive”.
