TUC must step up fight against racism

With increasing numbers of black trade union members turning up at my door requiring support for workplace race discrimination cases I have to ask the question what is the TUC and some Unions doing to ensure effective representation for their black members?

Other than a few policy statements and supporting the fight against the likes of the extreme right wing groups such BNP and the EDL the TUC has no clear leadership or strategy for tackling racism in the workplace that blights the lives of thousands of black workers. 

Fighting fascism is important but when it comes to racism the volume end of the business is the racism faced by black workers in the workplace. That’s where black people’s lives are ruined.

In addition there are examples where black workers have to fight their own Union because of the resistance to supporting their efforts to challenge employer racism.

This comes at a time where many black workers are complaining in a range of trade unions that when they suffer racism and seek to challenge it their Union representatives usually have little or no understanding of the dynamics of racism in the workplace or wider society or the complexities of the law around workplace discrimination when it comes to race. 

I meet thousands of black workers who tell me on a regular basis that there Union let them down when it came to challenging racism and now that these cuts are impacting massively on low paid black workers some Unions seem content to let their black members take the hit.

Critically Unions are reluctant to legally challenge the failure of public sector employers to conduct an Equality Impact Assessment where it is clear that cuts to public services are racist in their effects.  

This failure reflects a systemic weakness of some Unions in that despite years of high profile political commitment to fighting racism too many black sections of Unions experience internal resistance. The most notable exception is the PCS who track record is one of empowering black PCS black members and that is a model that other Unions should adopt.

There are virtually no General Secretaries who are black and in the current climate we are set to see black membership of Unions inevitably fall. 

The TUC has no comprehensive strategy to promote black representation in the Labour movement. I believe that the TUC and the Labour movement are failing to effectively represent thousands of black workers. 

These strategic and political failures were reflected on the March for the Alternative rally on last Saturday. Few Unions specifically targeted mobilising their black members and or the wider black community. Once again the most notable exception was the PCS whose track record is one of empowering black PCS members and that is a model that other Unions should adopt.

For the TUC and many Unions have a dark secret lurking within - their failure to challenge racism and to robustly represent millions of black members affected by these cuts.

That’s why BARAC will be calling for a national conference to discuss these critical issues and explore how we as black workers and organisations will respond to the crisis that faces black communities and agree on a strategies for tackling racism in the 21st century. 

With racism on the rise in the UK and Europe and the need to consolidate a clear anti racist Labour movement strategy we need to rally what’s left of the black voluntary and community sector and reinforce the need for unity between communities.

We need to set a race equality agenda and strategy fit for the 21st century.

The TUC and Unions need to step up the fight against racism and adopt clear strategies and priorities to promote black representation, effectively challenge workplace racism and reach out to independent black community organisations.

BARAC will now begin to initiate these discussions with the TUC in the hope that we can work on these issues together.

Let’s hope the TUC and the Labour aristocracy does not in hubris and arrogance dismiss BARAC.

Lee Jasper
Co Chair of BARAC.