Owen Tudor
After two months of turmoil across the Arab world, it is worth reflecting on the role that trade unions can play in these crises: they certainly haven’t been bit part players, but their role has often been obscured in media reports which focus on images of conflict and reflect the fact that the medium sometimes is the message, which gives priority to articulate English-speaking participants, who tend to be middle class students. Unions have often played a key role: from Tunisia where the trade union movement took part briefly in the initial interim government (but left swiftly when it became clear it was not in fact a break with the past, precipitating its collapse and the next stage of the Tunisian revolution); through Egypt where it was strikes that forewarned of the popular revolt, and further strikes that finally sealed the deal and ensured Mubarak’s resignation; to Bahrain, where today the TUC’s sister organisation has declared a general strike in support of democratic reforms, better wages and more jobs. But unions have an even more important role in the days, months and years to come.
Philip Pearson
Tim Page
Richard Exell
Anjum Klair
Nicola Smith
