{"id":9229,"date":"2016-07-12T08:44:10","date_gmt":"2016-07-12T07:44:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/unitelive.org\/?p=9229"},"modified":"2016-07-12T17:26:44","modified_gmt":"2016-07-12T16:26:44","slug":"remain-united-remain-strong","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/?p=9229","title":{"rendered":"Remain united, remain strong"},"content":{"rendered":"
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In a dynamic keynote address at policy conference yesterday (July 11), Unite general secretary Len McCluskey emphasised the importance of unity at a time in which, he said, \u00e2\u20ac\u015bour country is riven by the EU referendum.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

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\u00e2\u20ac\u015bOur movement is divided \u00e2\u20ac\u201c bitterly and unnecessarily,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he said. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bJobs are in jeopardy, and long-established rights could be under threat.<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bMillions of working people are looking for urgent answers to the crisis engulfing us. Our members and many besides are looking for a way forward.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

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He pointed to the \u00e2\u20ac\u015bcar factories and steel plants now under a shadow, our oil and gas industry being ravaged,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 as well as our \u00e2\u20ac\u015bthreatened public service and finance sectors,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 among others who need the support of Unite more now than ever before.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Speaking on the situation post-Brexit, McCluskey condemned the \u00e2\u20ac\u015bdisgusting upsurge of racist attacks.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bUnite stands shoulder-to-shoulder in unconditional solidarity with all workers, wherever they come from, now facing abuse and violence in our country,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he said.<\/p>\n

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McCluskey hailed the main victories Unite has had this year, including securing millions in compensation for blacklisted workers, campaigning against the EU-US trade deal TTIP, and successfully pressuring restaurants into changing their tipping policies.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

He pointed to Unite\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s successful leverage campaigns as well as its political campaign against the Trade Union Bill which helped defeat some of the bill\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s worst measures in Parliament.<\/p>\n

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He paid tribute to assistant general secretary Steve Turner and officer Luke Primarolo who gave evidence in the House of Commons on behalf of Sports Direct workers who face shocking exploitation and abuse under the retail giant\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s work practices which have been condemned as \u00e2\u20ac\u015bVictorian\u00e2\u20ac\u0165.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

McCluskey reaffirmed Unite\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s intention this year to continue with its Work Voice Pay campaign by \u00e2\u20ac\u015bsharpening our collective focus on the workplace with a broad industrial strategy for Unite as a whole, more than the sum of our industrial parts.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Pointing out that no union in Europe devotes more resources to organising than Unite does, McCluskey hailed Unite as a \u00e2\u20ac\u015bgrowing union\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 that \u00e2\u20ac\u015bmoves forward and delivers\u00e2\u20ac\u0165.<\/p>\n

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Construction union UCATT\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s recent decision to seek to transfer into Unite is part and parcel of Unite\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s ethos of growth and solidarity, he noted.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

McCluskey closed by emphasising what sets Unite apart \u00e2\u20ac\u201c its ability to \u00e2\u20ac\u015breach out into the community\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 and \u00e2\u20ac\u015bbring those pushed onto the margins of society into our movement\u00e2\u20ac\u0165, as well as its \u00e2\u20ac\u015bfighting back culture\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s \u00e2\u20ac\u015bentrenched\u00e2\u20ac\u0165.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bWe reach agreements where possible and fight for our members where necessary,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he said. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bWe debate difference and we cherish unity.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bWe stand proud in the British, Irish and international labour movement.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bAnd we do all this because of you, you here in this hall and thousands of our workplace representatives around the country,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he added. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bWe have much still to do my friends, and we will do it together.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

To cheers and a rousing standing ovation, McCluskey concluded, \u00e2\u20ac\u015bWhile we remain united, we will remain strong.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In a dynamic keynote address at policy conference yesterday (July 11), Unite general secretary Len McCluskey emphasised the importance of unity at a time in which, he said, \u00e2\u20ac\u015bour country is riven by the EU referendum.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165   \u00e2\u20ac\u015bOur movement is divided \u00e2\u20ac\u201c bitterly and unnecessarily,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he said. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bJobs are in jeopardy, and long-established rights could […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9232,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[545],"wps_subtitle":"Unite GS addresses policy conference ","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9229"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=9229"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9229\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9230,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9229\/revisions\/9230"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/9232"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=9229"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=9229"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=9229"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}