![Unite building, Waterford](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/26/Unite_building%2C_Waterford.jpg)
Unite the Union, commonly known as Unite, is a
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
and
Irish
Irish may refer to:
Common meanings
* Someone or something of, from, or related to:
** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe
***Éire, Irish language name for the isle
** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...
trade union
A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ( ...
which was formed on 1 May 2007 by the merger of
Amicus and the
Transport and General Workers' Union
The Transport and General Workers' Union (TGWU or T&G) was one of the largest general trade unions in the United Kingdom and Ireland – where it was known as the Amalgamated Transport and General Workers' Union (ATGWU) to differentiate its ...
(TGWU). Unite is the second largest trade union in the UK (after
Unison
In music, unison is two or more musical parts that sound either the same pitch or pitches separated by intervals of one or more octaves, usually at the same time. ''Rhythmic unison'' is another term for homorhythm.
Definition
Unison or per ...
), with over 1.2 million members across construction, manufacturing, transport, logistics, and other sectors.
The general secretary of Unite is
Sharon Graham
Sharon M. Graham (born 1968) is a British trade unionist who has been the general secretary of Unite the union, Unite since 26 August 2021. She is the first woman to hold the position. She previously served as the union's executive officer and ...
, who was elected on 25 August 2021 with 46,696 votes (approx 3% of Unite's claimed membership) on a turnout of 124,127 (approx 9% of claimed membership), with her term beginning on 26 August 2021.
History
Merger and early years (2007–2010)
Unite the Union was formed on 1 May 2007 by the merger of
Amicus, a general private sector union, and the
Transport and General Workers' Union
The Transport and General Workers' Union (TGWU or T&G) was one of the largest general trade unions in the United Kingdom and Ireland – where it was known as the Amalgamated Transport and General Workers' Union (ATGWU) to differentiate its ...
(TGWU). The general secretaries of the previous unions,
Derek Simpson and
Tony Woodley
Anthony Woodley, Baron Woodley (born 2 January 1948) is a British trade unionist who was the Joint- General Secretary of Unite, a union formed through the merger of Amicus and the Transport and General Workers' Union, from 2007 to 2011. Despite ...
respectively, served as joint general secretaries of the new union. The executive councils of the predecessor unions became a joint executive council which served until elections could be held for an executive council of Unite. The new council took office on 1 May 2008. They put a new rulebook for the union to a postal ballot of members during July 2008, which was accepted.
In 2008, there was a rooftop
hunger strike
A hunger strike is a method of non-violent resistance in which participants fast as an act of political protest, or to provoke a feeling of guilt in others, usually with the objective to achieve a specific goal, such as a policy change. Most ...
at Unite's Transport House building in
Belfast
Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...
. The participants were formerly
shop steward
A union representative, union steward, or shop steward is an employee of an organization or company who represents and defends the interests of their fellow employees as a labor union member and official. Rank-and-file members of the union hold ...
s of the
Transport and General Workers Union
The Transport and General Workers' Union (TGWU or T&G) was one of the largest general trade unions in the United Kingdom and Ireland – where it was known as the Amalgamated Transport and General Workers' Union (ATGWU) to differentiate its ...
, now a section of Unite. The dispute was over legal fees and compensation for an unfair dismissal action against the workers' employer, arising from a 2002 strike at
Belfast International Airport
Belfast International Airport is an airport northwest of Belfast in Northern Ireland, is the main airport for the city of Belfast. Until 1983, it was known as ''Aldergrove Airport'', after the nearby village of Aldergrove. In 2018, over 6.2 ...
, and the related actions of a full-time union official employee.
In October 2009,
British Airways
British Airways (BA) is the flag carrier airline of the United Kingdom. It is headquartered in London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a populati ...
announced that it would cut 1,700 cabin crew jobs. Unite, which represented 12,000 of the company's cabin crew, said that it had been in talks with British Airways about the company's plans to reduce costs, but that the announcement had not been shared with them in advance. British Airways suspended staff for sharing lists of pilots who had agreed to break a potential strike. Unite's assistant general secretary,
Len McCluskey
Leonard David McCluskey (born 23 July 1950) is a British trade unionist. He was General Secretary of Unite the Union, the largest affiliate and a major donor to the Labour Party. As a young adult, he spent some years working in the Liverpool Do ...
, said that some members had been suspended for being friends on
Facebook
Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin M ...
with other attendants being investigated. In a strike ballot, more than 80% of cabin crew members of Unite voted to strike. The
High Court of Justice
The High Court of Justice in London, known properly as His Majesty's High Court of Justice in England, together with the Court of Appeal of England and Wales, Court of Appeal and the Crown Court, are the Courts of England and Wales, Senior Cou ...
granted an injunction against the strike on the basis that Unite had not informed its members about the number of spoilt ballots in a previous dispute. In total, there were twenty-two days of strike during the dispute.
In November 2009,
Kraft Foods Inc.
Kraft Foods Inc. was a Multinational corporation, multinational confectionery, food and beverage conglomerate (company), conglomerate. It marketed many brands in more than 170 countries. 12 of its brands annually earned more than $1 billion wor ...
bid to purchase the confectionary company
Cadbury
Cadbury, formerly Cadbury's and Cadbury Schweppes, is a British multinational confectionery company fully owned by Mondelez International (originally Kraft Foods) since 2010. It is the second largest confectionery brand in the world after Mar ...
. Unite represented its staff, and sought assurance about the status of jobs in the event of the purchase. Kraft went on to purchase Cadbury. In a Parliamentary committee, Unite representatives including deputy general secretary
Jack Dromey
John Eugene Joseph Dromey (29 September 1948 – 7 January 2022) was a British politician and trade unionist who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Birmingham Erdington from 2010 until his death. A member of the Labour Party, he was deput ...
and national food and drink officer
Jennie Formby
Jennifer "Jennie" Formby (' Sandle; born 12 April 1960) is a British trade unionist and political figure who served as General Secretary of the Labour Party from 2018 to 2020. She was previously political director and south-east England regiona ...
gave evidence to an inquiry about the takeover, saying that Kraft had delayed meeting union representatives. Formby later criticised the company for its compensation of £40 million to its outgoing chief executive
Todd Stitzer
H. Todd Stitzer (born 10 March 1952) is an American businessman who served as the chief executive officer of Cadbury plc from 2003 to 2010.
Early life
Stitzer was born in the United States, the son of a YMCA director and a nurse, and is a naturali ...
. The
Labour Party later announced an election proposal to raise the shareholder majority required to approve a takeover to two-thirds, which Unite had lobbied for.
During the
2010 United Kingdom general election
The 2010 United Kingdom general election was held on Thursday 6 May 2010, with 45,597,461 registered voters entitled to vote to elect members to the House of Commons. The election took place in 650 constituencies across the United Kingdom unde ...
, Unite were the largest donor to the
Labour Party, giving them £1 million.
McCluskey era (2010–2021)
The first election for a single general secretary of the union was held in 2010, with McCluskey, an assistant general secretary considered on the
left-wing
Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy. Left-wing politics typically involve a concern for those in soci ...
of the union, being elected. Former joint general secretary Derek Simpson received a payment of over £500,000. Due to the controversy this caused within the union, members voted in favour of new measures designed to limit future payments on departure in a policy conference in 2012.
The union began offering lower price membership to students, the unemployed and single parents in 2011. In the same year, the dispute with British Airways was resolved. In the wake of cuts to public spending made by the
Cameron–Clegg coalition
The Cameron–Clegg coalition was formed by David Cameron and Nick Clegg when Cameron was invited by Queen Elizabeth II to form a new administration, following the resignation of Prime Minister Gordon Brown on 11 May 2010, after the gene ...
, McCluskey threatened strike action to disrupt the
2012 Summer Olympics
The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...
in London. Also in protest against cuts, Unite supported a successful motion at the
Trades Union Congress
The Trades Union Congress (TUC) is a national trade union centre
A national trade union center (or national center or central) is a federation or confederation of trade unions in a country. Nearly every country in the world has a national tra ...
in 2012 to consider holding a
general strike
A general strike refers to a strike action in which participants cease all economic activity, such as working, to strengthen the bargaining position of a trade union or achieve a common social or political goal. They are organised by large co ...
.
In 2013, leaked documents alleged that Unite was running a covert campaign to ensure its candidates were selected to represent the Labour Party in the
2015 general election. Steve Hart, the union's political director, stated that Unite was supporting 41 candidates. There was particular controversy over the
2013 Labour Party Falkirk candidate selection
In 2013, Eric Joyce, member of the House of Commons of the United Kingdom for Falkirk, resigned from the Labour Party and announced he would not seek reelection. The process of nominating a replacement candidate for the 2015 general election ...
. Unite claimed that it had not broken any Labour Party rules or the law with its selection campaign.
Ed Miliband
Edward Samuel "Ed" Miliband (born 24 December 1969) is a British politician serving as Shadow Secretary of State for Climate Change and Net Zero since 2021. He has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Doncaster North since 2005. Miliband ...
, then Leader of the
Labour Party, referred the matter for police investigation, however Police Scotland found there was 'insufficient evidence' to launch an investigation. An
Information Commissioner's Office
The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) is a non-departmental public body which reports directly to the Parliament of the United Kingdom and is sponsored by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS). It is the independe ...
investigation took place, as did internal Labour disciplinary proceedings.
McCluskey was re-elected in an early general secretary election in 2013, defeating Hicks. In 2014, the union achieved a legal ruling by the
Employment Appeal Tribunal
The Employment Appeal Tribunal is a tribunal in England and Wales and Scotland, and is a superior court of record. Its primary role is to hear appeals from Employment Tribunals in England, Scotland and Wales. It also hears appeals from decisions o ...
that employers need to account for overtime when calculating holiday pay. In April 2014, McCluskey threatened to disaffiliate Unite from Labour and launch a new workers' party if Labour lost the
2015 general election. In July 2015, Unite endorsed
Jeremy Corbyn
Jeremy Bernard Corbyn (; born 26 May 1949) is a British politician who served as Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the Labour Party from 2015 to 2020. On the political left of the Labour Party, Corbyn describes himself as a socialist ...
's campaign in the
2015 Labour Party leadership election.
In December 2016, McCluskey announced his resignation in order to contest an election for the post, which was held in April 2017. He was challenged by Unite's West Midlands Regional Secretary Gerard Coyne, who accused him of "putting the Labour leadership before the interests of Unite members". McCluskey won the election, and Coyne was suspended from his position in the union.
In 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic, several hundred bus drivers working for
Go North West
Go North West is a bus operator in Greater Manchester, England. It is a subsidiary of the Go-Ahead Group.
History
Go North West commenced operations on 2 June 2019 following the Go-Ahead Group's purchase of First Greater Manchester's Queens Roa ...
in
Manchester
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...
went on strike for over two months in the longest strike in Unite's history.
Graham era (2021–present)
In 2021, McCluskey announced his retirement as leader. In the subsequent election,
Sharon Graham
Sharon M. Graham (born 1968) is a British trade unionist who has been the general secretary of Unite the union, Unite since 26 August 2021. She is the first woman to hold the position. She previously served as the union's executive officer and ...
was chosen to replace him as the union's general secretary.
The union joined
postal workers strikes in 2022 after members at
Royal Mail
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, logo = Royal Mail.svg
, logo_size = 250px
, type = Public limited company
, traded_as =
, foundation =
, founder = Henry VIII
, location = London, England, UK
, key_people = * Keith Williams ...
voted for industrial action over pay and job cuts.
Hotel owned by Unite
During McCluskey's tenure, Unite spent £98 million on a hotel and conference centre in
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...
as costs increased during its construction beyond the initially projected £57 million. Graham told officials in February 2022 that recent valuations were about £28 million. At the time of the investment decision McCluskey had said, it was a "sensible investment of members' money, resulting in a world-class facility that will return an income for our union for generations to come". Graham ordered two independent inquiries, one led by a
Queen's Counsel
In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of ...
, which was expected to report by the end of March 2022, and another by the accounting firm Grant Thornton.
As of December 2022, the contents of both inquiries has not been released, as Unite has referred the matter to the police citing “very serious concerns about potential criminality”.
General secretary
The union is led by a general secretary, elected by a ballot of members.
2009 joint general secretary election
Jerry Hicks, a former member of Amicus's executive, issued a legal challenge over Simpson's extension of tenure. In October 2008, Unite's executive council announced an election for the joint general secretary for the Amicus section. The election took place from January to March 2009 to elect a joint general secretary for a fixed term until December 2010.
Simpson stood for re-election as the incumbent, and Hicks successfully sought nomination to contest the election. Other candidates included two regional secretaries, Laurence Faircloth and Kevin Coyne, and a national officer, Paul Reuter. Faircloth stood down after the close of nominations and endorsed Simpson. A total of 159,272 voting slips were returned, out of a possible 1,096,511 voters, a turnout of 14.5%. Simpson won the election with 37.7% of the total votes cast, and remained in the post of joint general secretary until December 2010.
2010 general secretary election
The first election for a single general secretary of the union took place in 2010. Both Simpson and Woodley announced that they would retire. The union's assistant general secretary, McCluskey, announced that he would stand as a candidate, running on a platform of unification and staying for only a single term of office. Other candidates included Hicks, Les Bayliss and
Gail Cartmail
Gail Cartmail (born 1955) is an Assistant General Secretary (AGS) at the trade union Unite and also a member of the Trades Union Congress' (TUC) Executive Committee and General Council.
Career
Cartmail attended Heronswood Secondary Modern School i ...
. McCluskey was considered the left wing candidate, running on a platform of uniting the union and opposing cuts. Bayliss and Cartmail were also assistant general secretaries, with Bayliss criticising the union's handling of its dispute with British Airways. McCluskey was endorsed by Woodley, and Bayliss was endorsed by Simpson.
McCluskey was elected as the first single general secretary with 42.4% of the vote for a five-year term starting on 1 January 2011.
The overall turnout was 15.8%.
2013 general secretary election
![Len McCluskey, 2016 Labour Party Conference 2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/41/Len_McCluskey%2C_2016_Labour_Party_Conference_2.jpg)
In late 2012, Len McCluskey called an early election. On 4 March 2013, Unite announced that two candidates were standing in the election: McCluskey, who had won 1089 branch nominations, and Hicks, who had won 136 nominations. This was Hicks's third successive attempt at becoming Unite's general secretary. On 14 April 2013 it was announced that Len McCluskey had been re-elected for a five-year term.
2017 general secretary election
In December 2016, the incumbent general secretary
Len McCluskey
Leonard David McCluskey (born 23 July 1950) is a British trade unionist. He was General Secretary of Unite the Union, the largest affiliate and a major donor to the Labour Party. As a young adult, he spent some years working in the Liverpool Do ...
announced his resignation in order to contest an election for the post, which was held in April 2017. McCluskey was challenged by Unite's West Midlands regional secretary Gerard Coyne, who accused him of "putting the Labour leadership before the interests of Unite members". Coyne, a member of the Unite Now faction, was widely viewed as a centre-left figure within the union, has a close relationship with the
Labour Party and had the backing of the deputy leader
Tom Watson.
Ian Allinson later announced that he would stand as a "grass-roots socialist" candidate. Concerns were expressed about breaches of
data protection law during the campaign, leading to Unite's assistant general secretary for legal affairs producing a report on the allegations.
Coyne was suspended from his position as West Midlands general secretary by the union on 20 April, after voting had finished, the day ballot counting began. It claimed that Coyne had brought the union into disrepute.
The following day it was announced that Len McCluskey had won the election. On 2 June Coyne announced a legal challenge against the result. In December 2017 it was announced that Jeffrey Burke, an employment law specialist and a retired
high court judge, has been appointed to examine both sides of the case by the
Trades Union Certification Officer
The Trades Union Certification Officer was established in the United Kingdom by Act of Parliament in 1975. They head the Certification Office for Trade Unions and Employers' Associations.
Responsibilities
The Certification Officer is responsible f ...
.
[Rajeev Syal, ]
Unite to face retired high court judge over Len McCluskey election
', The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
19 December 2017. The certification officer rejected Coyne's claim that the election should be declared null and void.
After detailed investigations, Coyne's further complaint to the certification officer was dismissed in October 2018 on all ten counts, and the officer found that Coyne had included misleading information in some of his election literature.
2021 general secretary election
In July 2020, McCluskey said he would stand down in 2021, with an early election to select a new general secretary.
The United Left faction held a primary to decide which candidate to support in the election, considering two assistant general secretaries: Howard Beckett and Steve Turner. Beckett has been endorsed by the blog ''
The Skwawkbox
''The Skwawkbox'' is a left-wing news site based in the United Kingdom, founded in 2012 by Steve Walker.
Aims
''The Skwawkbox'' states that its aim is to "present information and analysis that will rarely make it into the mainstream media." Fou ...
'' and the former general secretary of the Labour Party
Jennie Formby
Jennifer "Jennie" Formby (' Sandle; born 12 April 1960) is a British trade unionist and political figure who served as General Secretary of the Labour Party from 2018 to 2020. She was previously political director and south-east England regiona ...
.
Turner was a member of the Trotskyite
Militant
The English word ''militant'' is both an adjective and a noun, and it is generally used to mean vigorously active, combative and/or aggressive, especially in support of a cause, as in "militant reformers". It comes from the 15th century Latin " ...
group in the Labour Party, but remained in Labour when many Militant members left to form the
Socialist Party
Socialist Party is the name of many different political parties around the world. All of these parties claim to uphold some form of socialism, though they may have very different interpretations of what "socialism" means. Statistically, most of th ...
. Turner was seen as more willing to work with the Labour leader
Keir Starmer
Sir Keir Rodney Starmer (; born 2 September 1962) is a British politician and barrister who has served as Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the Labour Party since 2020. He has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Holborn and St Pancras ...
, whereas Beckett said that Starmer needed "to be held to account".
Turner was chosen as United Left's candidate in a ballot, winning by 370 votes to 367. Beckett challenged the result, but Turner's victory was upheld after reports into the conduct of the vote were completed. Beckett later announced he would still stand as a candidate. Sharon Graham declared herself as a candidate from the left of the union without seeking endorsement from United Left. A new group, Workers' Unite, is expected to support her on a platform more focused on workplaces than internal Labour Party politics. Gerard Coyne, who stood against McCluskey in the 2017 general secretary election, announced his candidacy in January 2021. He is a supporter of Labour leader Keir Starmer.
The election was called in April 2021, with nominations closing in June, voting held in July and the result announced on 26 August. The threshold to join the ballot was increased from 50 to around 150 by a combination of an increase in the percentage of branches required to nominate a candidate and a less restrictive definition of what counts as a branch. The change was criticised as a "stitch-up" by critics of McCluskey, because it gave more power to union officials who had sole discretion to request nomination packs for newly-created branches. The nomination period closed on 7 June, with the numbers of valid nominations being:
*Steve Turner: 525
*Sharon Graham: 349
*Howard Beckett: 328
*Gerard Coyne: 196
On 18 June, Howard Beckett withdrew and endorsed Turner, with both issuing a joint statement that Beckett would support Turner on a blended policy manifesto.
Graham was elected on 25 August, with the support of 46,696 members (approximately 3% of Unite's claimed membership, with her term as general secretary starting on 26 August.
Membership
During 2012, despite wider falling trade union membership and the tough economic climate, Unite increased its membership by more than 50,000 members. The union claimed a membership of 1.2 million in August 2021.
Factions
There are a number of factions within Unite.
Unite Now
Unite Now is a movement established in 2011 which is "moderate left". It presents itself as an independent movement for lay members, activists and officers. Supported McCluskey in his first election but they opposed the calling of an early general secretary election in 2013. Unite Now campaigns for greater transparency in the union and are critical of the unions centralised hierarchical decision making structures. They campaign for greater financial transparency, a move away from the current centralised executive powers with a more independent Executive Council which has set term limits. Not aligned to any political section of the union it has grown in influence within lay activist ranks, officers and key manufacturing sectors of Unite.
United Left
United Left, the main left-wing grouping, is mostly made up of members on the left of the
Labour Party, but also includes members of other political parties such as the
Socialist Party
Socialist Party is the name of many different political parties around the world. All of these parties claim to uphold some form of socialism, though they may have very different interpretations of what "socialism" means. Statistically, most of th ...
and the
Communist Party of Britain
The Communist Party of Britain (CPB) is a communist party in Great Britain which emerged from a dispute between Eurocommunists and Marxist-Leninists in the Communist Party of Great Britain in 1988. It follows Marxist-Leninist theory and s ...
, as well as those who belong to no political party. The United Left supported Len McCluskey in his elections. The faction is considered dominant within the union.
References
External links
*
Ian's Unite Site(blog of a UNITE Executive Council member)
DearUnite.com: Unofficial members' web siteCatalogue of the Unite archives held at the
Modern Records Centre, University of Warwick
The Modern Records Centre (MRC) is the specialist archive service of the University of Warwick in Coventry, England, located adjacent to the Central Campus Library. It was established in October 1973 and holds the world's largest archive collecti ...
*Official website o
Doctors in Unite the trade union for medical practitioners within Unite
{{DEFAULTSORT:Unite The Union
Organisations based in the London Borough of Camden
Trade unions established in 2007
Trade unions in the Republic of Ireland
Trade unions in the United Kingdom
2007 establishments in the United Kingdom
General unions
Trade unions affiliated with the Labour Party (UK)
International Union of Food, Agricultural, Hotel, Restaurant, Catering, Tobacco and Allied Workers' Associations
Trade unions based in London
Trade unions affiliated with the Trades Union Congress