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Can unions fight racism yet support Starmer, audience asks at TUC conference
(From left to right) National Education Union leader Daniel Kebede, TUC general secretary Paul Nowak, NASUWT’s Patrick Roach, and Napo’s Ian Lawrence, at the TUC's Racial Discrimination and Equality Conference, December 4, 2024
TENSIONS over whether unions can effectively fight racism if seen to be too close to Keir Starmer’s Labour Party were aired in a Q&A with trade union leaders today.
The mainly black audience raised questions over Labour authoritarianism, support for Israel’s war against the Palestinians and a recent uptick in anti-immigrant rhetoric.
GMB member Ali Haydor said it felt as if unions were “cherry-picking when to fight, when not to fight” and asked for consistency.
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