May 2021

Wolverhampton, Bilston & District Trades Union Council Delegate Meeting

MINUTES Thursday 20th May 2021

1. Present: Sisters M.Taylor Unite, C.Simm PCS, Dixon & Whyte UNISON City, D.Weaver UNITE Ret & SWCLP TULO, Welch UCU, Hammond

   Brothers Kelleher, Marris, Oakley & A.Taylor Unite WM6150, Cardy & Deacon UNISON City, Vaughan UNISON Staffs, Juss GMBx13, Childs CWU, B.Simm PCS(Assoc), Rahimi & Z.Ali Unite Community, Grant UCU, Scroop UNISON, Dubbins Unite

    apologies Bro Martin MU, Sis Hyatt Unite Community, Millar UCU

2. Minutes of last Delegate Meeting (April) agreed. Matters Arising: NK to check with JG final total raised for research project

3. EC Report, & urgent correspondence;

1. 2021 branch affiliations received for 2021: ASLEF, CWU, FBU, GMB X13, Musicians’ Union, NEU, RMT, UCU University, UNISON City of Wolverhampton, UNISON Sandwell, UNISON Staffordshire, UNITE WM6150, UNITE WM5203 (Ret Mem), UNITE W’ton Homes, UNITE Community WM5115. Affiliations to be followed up by EC: PCS DWP, PCS ACM (awaiting new treasurer), UNITE employed staff branch.

2. speaker next month – MT arranged Sarah Woolley Gen Sec BFAWU on Right to Food Campaign (see https://youtu.be/xp7QF5dsrvs ) for June 17th meeting, possible link to fringe at Bakers union conference.

3. advert for the researcher into Wolverhampton links to slavery widely circulated, thirteen applicants so far from around country, deadline 30 May. Sis Welch & Bro Juss agreed to help with selection. GM will lead, NK, RM assisting.

4. NK & JG in process of setting up our Unity Trust account online

5. Website update – GM in process of converting Joomla to WordPress, proceeding well.

6. Our 100 Great Black Britons in each Wolverhampton school and library Campaign £1,457.50 paid by Wolverhampton City Council, books/posters delivered and council acknowledged our offer of distribution help and in publicity.

7. Trades Councils conference 12 June online – any trades council delegates would like to participate email tradescouncils@tuc.org.uk before noon on Wednesday 9 June stating you are from Wolverhampton TUC. Motions to be sent out to delegates for prioritising as the TUC conference motion.

8. Workers’ Memorial Day – shorter video complied from delegates’ videos by Sis Momenabadi, over 100 views https://youtu.be/eb5hxYIAlv4 video well made and received.

9. May Day – two dozen took part online with Tim Martin performing live and quiz and speeches, prizes to be sent out. Those who took part enjoyed.

10. Labour Research, Workplace report, CND, Cuba magazines received.

11. Indian Farmers’ strike message of support to be sent to Dr Ashok Dhawle National President All India Kisan Sabha kisansabha@gmail.com (All India Farmers Union)

12. Future meetings – EC expected to continue online. Delegate meetings attempt hybrid meetings when physical meetings resume

13. sent: £25 donation/affiliation to Working Class Movement Library

14. available on request to branches: we have 300 copies of Guide to Claiming Benefits and Credits following Redundancy updated April21 (produced with union labour)

15. WMCND 7pm Tuesday 25th May discussion “The complex history of Iran , a brief history” to Zoom Meeting https://zoom.us/j/92463771499?pwd=THhvbVZCL2ZGckxpUlFwT2crWDhvUT09

16. £100 donation to UNISON Sandwell Fire & Rehire at Sandwell Leisure Trust strike fund. Strike was successful with some centres fully closed and ocal MPs and councillors visiting pickets. More action planned.

4. A minute’s silence held for Dorothy Clarke, long-time secretary of Walsall TUC and CATUC and TUCJCC rep Midlands TUC Council member, GMB. Funeral all welcome Tuesday 25th May commencing at 12.30pm at Cannock Chase Crematorium Norton Road, Heath Hayes, Cannock, WS12 3HJ – card sent, NK and MT to attend with banner.

5. Delegate reports:

• GMB – task force is implementing all recommendations from the report into cronyism and sexual harassment along with a previous race report.

• PCS Dwp inspection notice after covid increases when opening hours extended

• UCU – high workload issues due to hybrid teaching. Launched boycott of Leicester University due to forced redundancies with bizarre excuses.

• UNISON – Bro Vaughan standing in UNISON NEC elections.

• UNITE – Fire & Rehire protest held in Chapel Ash with support from WB&DTUC and SW CLP. Gen Sec branch nominations underway.

• LP – Council elections – five Labour seats lost to Tories. Bro Brackenridge FBU now mayor.

• Secretary report, circulated –

• Midlands TUC EC report to be circulated. Bro Kelleher got agreement to put a Midlands TUC Race Task Group on their next agenda which will look at local issues and feed into national TUC debate

• TUC Pensioners Network – Bro Deacon – TUC Better Buses – activist pack https://www.tuc.org.uk/sites/default/files/2021-05/Bus%20Activist%20campaign%20pack_0.pdf Launch invite for Trades Councils 2pm Thurs June 17^th. The pack gives suggestions for local campaigners how to go about building support for franchising etc. Trades councils can play a crucial lead in building local coalitions and pushing for greater regulation of the bus services; register at https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_o6_JOo33QRWT62Zax1qcrw

• Wolverhampton Palestine Solidarity Campaign last Saturday’s Queen Sq Nakba rally attracted over 200 people due to current attacks on Palestine on anniversary. Sis Taylor spoke from WBDTUC. Our portable PA was insufficient for crowd size. Bro Deacon was cheered twice on way home with Palestine flag.

5. any other business – Bro Juss suggested sub-postmasters scandal as future speaker – Sis Kelsey CWU to be contacted.

• at 8pm – public meeting:

  speaker: Simon Dubbins, the Palestine Solidarity Campaign Liaison Officer at UNITE the Union – Current situation in Palestine & what trade unionists can do?

• Protests took place around country and over 100,000 marched in London last weekend another London protest this Saturday.

• High covid vaccination of Israelis but not Palestinians;, house demolition and settler re-occupation; entering Al Aqusa mosque caused current conflict. Israel’s attacks are wholly disproportionate. Two-state solution hard whilst continued illegal land grabs since 1967, shrinking Palestinians into areas resembling Apartheid Bantustans and recently passed racially discriminatory laws.

• Many Jews are pro-Palestinian rights but government andopposition shifting further right.

• TUs can build awareness, solidarity of Boycott, Diversify, Sanctions campaign. Already having impact as Tories released plans to ban it.

• Sir Keir Starmer almost silent on current fate of Palestinians. Pro-Palestine motion passed through SW CLP at last meeting.

• New Local Government Pensions Committee; Cnllr C.Simm still on but no longer Vice Chair. Progress slow but successes in other councils.

• UN Human Rights Council database (March 2020) of companies complicit in illegal settlements on occupied Palestinian land includes JCB, Opodo, airbnb, booking.com, expedia, tripadvisor

• Delegates urged to join PSC nationally https://www.palestinecampaign.org/get-involved/join-renew-membership/