I am one of
twelve complainants who have brought complaints to the Certification
Officer concerning the conduct of the recent election for General Secretary
of my trade union, UNISON. Given the volume of complaints, and the sensible
decision of the Certification Officer to hear the complaints together, it will
be some months before this matter is concluded.
I may
comment here as appropriate about the substance of this issue in due course but
I want now to touch upon the question of whether one should ever make such a
complaint.
For some on the left it is anathema to complain
to an organ of the (capitalist) state concerning the affairs of a trade union. It
certainly isn’t something I ever expected to find myself doing.
As a member
of UNISON’s National Executive Council I was not able, at our last meeting, to
pursue issues about the General Secretary election and this left me with no
option but to pursue those issues with a Certification Officer complaint.
However, I
won’t be apologising to anyone who alleges that the submission of such a
complaint amounts to using the “Tory anti-union laws”.
The
Certification Officer is a government official. The position of the
Certification Officer was established in 1975 by a Labour government. The right
of trade union members to complain to the Certification Officer of a breach of
trade union rules (which I am one of those exercising) was introduced by a
Labour Government in the Employment
Relations Act 1999.
The rights
which those of us complaining about the UNISON General Secretary election are
using are rights given to us by Labour Governments. It is certainly regrettable
that there are circumstances in which trade unionists cannot rely upon the
democratic structures of our own trade union to regulate compliance with our
rules – but it is no good simply regretting this when it stares you in the face
(as is suggested by a new entrant
to the online world).
I should add
that I make no allegation of wrongdoing against our General Secretary, Dave
Prentis, and stand by my
apology to him on this point.
.
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