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| Jerry Hicks, Unite General Secretary candidate 2013 |
The complaint I took to the Certification Office
[CO], that Britain’s biggest union Unite had balloted 158,000 non- members
during the ‘snap election’ in 2013 showed that the union membership records
were shambolic, though not shambolic enough to secure the re-run I had hoped
for, but I was successful on two other major points.
It was always going to be a long shot with only
a slim chance and I am disappointed of course. Ironically by balloting too many
rather than too few it made it easier for Unite, harder for me.
However, I am delighted that, with the help of
Jody Atkinson [a barrister acting for me ‘pro bono’ [free] we did prove that
Unite had not reasonably kept its register of membership accurate and up to
date. Indeed, it had knowingly masterminded its own downfall by ceasing the very operation that would have kept its
house in order.
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| Steve Turner, since promoted to Unite Assistant General Secretary |
Even more importantly for me, was that we proved
that Unite failed to deal with my complaint properly regarding a vile re-tweet
by senior appointed official SteveTurner.
Steve Turner is often talked about as a future
General Secretary and played a big part in McCluskey’s campaign. Who, I learn,
instead of being held to account has been promoted.
As soon as I saw the most offensive of Steve
Turner’s twitter activity aimed at me, I complained to the General Secretary
Len McCluskey and to Mr Andrew Murray ‘chief of staff’, himself a senior
appointed official.
I asked, as was proper procedure, for the
complaint against Steve Turner and any other who had ’indulged’ themselves to
be taken to the Executive Council for it’s consideration.
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| Andrew Murray, Unite's appointed Chief of Staff: "I'm not a member of any faction" |
Mr Murray sat on the complaint for 18 months. In
my view, he chose to protect the institution that appointed him rather than
serve the interests of the members who pay his wages.
Laughably, three weeks
before the CO hearing was due to commence he did begin his own investigation,
though he has refused to allow me to be involved, and will not assure me that I
will even be informed of any outcome or reason.
Happily matters have now been taken out of Mr
Murray’s hands. Mr Murray has been humiliated by the CO’s
Enforcement Order that my complaint, just as I had asked for 18 months earlier,
must be heard by Unite’s elected Executive Council, and that has to happen
before December 19th 2014.
I have stood for General Secretary three times,
each time remarkably, given the disparity of the contests, coming runner up and
each time increasing my share of the vote.
In this last election I was the 1,000 to 1
outsider in a two horse race. Me, simply an unemployed member with no resources,
stood against Len McCluskey, the incumbent General Secretary who held all the
resources.
Even so it turned out to be dirtiest and most
abusive election of them all. Actions or inactions have a consequence. Instead
of turning members on, it switched them off from taking part in the democratic
process. The turn out for the 2013 election was just 15%. McCluskey struts the
stage with only 6% of Unites 1.3m members actually voting for him.
Had I not shone a light on these matters, had I
let it go unchallenged, things would only get worse. Future elections have to be
better than this?!
Disturbingly, there seems to be little
accountability of appointed officials - especially those appointed to very
senior positions, epitomising all that is wrong with institutions and
establishments, just like the police, the church, bank bosses, politicians and
political parties.
Whether by design or by default, many or most
end up looking after each other and in the process of doing so, lose the trust
of those they are supposed to be serving.
I read today [Sunday 26th October] ‘As for falling wages, the real enemy is not
immigration but gravely weakened trade unions. If the wage share in national
income were the same as 35 years ago, the average worker would be £100 a week
better off. The voters of Clacton, Rochester, and Heywood and Middleton would be better directing their anger at
the way Britain’s leaders have weakened protections for average workers.’
13 of those most recent years were under the Labour
Governments of Blair and Brown, backed to the hilt financially to the tune of
£10’s of millions of pounds by the trade unions with members’ money.
Those Unions failed to exact value for money from Labour,
failed to repeal anti-union laws - laws passed to shackle us, laws that stop us
from taking solidarity action or hold workplace industrial action votes. Unite
the biggest donator to Labour must then take the largest share of the blame for
that failure.
Why would they let Labour off so lightly? The
promise of knighthoods? Or that Union leaders are out of touch? I wonder when
was the last time any of them experienced being on strike, or struggled to pay
a bill.
Far from learning from their mistakes or ever
admitting any mistakes, Unite’s leadership blunders on regardless. Backing ‘Red’
Ed Miliband for Labour party leader instead of supporting John McDonnell was a
colossal error.
It seems to me that Unite are in danger of
repeating the mistake, by blowing kisses at Andy Burnham who when he was in
Government was a privatiser of the NHS!
There are and has been heroic struggles by
workers, occupy etc, but strike days remain low. Promises of co-ordinated
strike action and talk of civil disobedience has not been delivered
Instead of Labour or a party to the left of
Labour representing past, present and future workers - offering public
ownership, council house building programmes and a million green jobs and
winning by-elections and council seats, it’s the right wing led by UKIP who
benefit by gaining votes.
The full decision by the Certification Officer
will be posted on the Certification Officer’s web site Monday 27th
October 2014 www.certoffice.org
[They did not wait 18 months!]
Jerry Hicks, Unite member.
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