The TUC has always been internationalist, working with unions throughout the world for social justice. In particular, the TUC has played a key role in advancing workers’ rights in Europe and making the case for social Europe.
Fifteen months on from the EU referendum, the government will today set out its aspiration to continue contributing to EU science programmes. As the entire STEM community has repeatedly asked for clarity of direction, we can all be pleased about this. There is an overwhelming case for continuing to buy in to EU research. For…
Yesterday’s report The Economy After Brexit by Economists For Brexit includes a section by Tim Congdon on EU regulation, essentially blaming all the evils of the British economy on excessive red tape and inferring that our economy could do so much better if it were unshackled from it all. The conclusion of the booklet suggests that…
Protecting workers’ rights in trade deals is essential to ensure trade is fair. If trade deals don’t contain effective protections for workers’ rights, they just make it easier for companies to locate themselves in countries where wages are lower and workers are less able to resist exploitation. Unfortunately trade deals the UK is currently involved…
Everyone, it seems, is now committed to ending forced labour and child labour. Governments, international institutions, NGOs and businesses have come under enormous pressure to do something — and to be seen to be doing something. A good example of this is a resolution on forced labour passed by the Consumer Goods Forum (CGF), which…
As wealthy Gulf states face off over long simmering diplomatic differences, foreign workers in both countries are at risk of bearing the brunt of the dispute. An ongoing row in the Gulf over Qatar’s alleged links to terrorist groups, with the wealthy nation blockaded by a group of neighbours led by Saudi Arabia and the…
Unionised workforces cannot be enslaved. This is because of the simple fact that a unionised workforce is harder to exploit by even the most unscrupulous employers. But that self-evident truth is one that many who profess themselves concerned with the struggle against forced labour frequently overlook. There seems a desire amongst some sections of society…
Last week I was invited to the British-German Forum – a symposium for young people from both countries – at Wilton Park, an agency of the FCO, to talk with my colleague Jan Stern from the German trade union confederation the DGB, about the issues facing globalisation. Here’s an edited version of my remarks. I’m…
The importance of decent work in global supply chains continues to be reiterated by the International Labour Organisation (ILO), the UN’s agency on labour standards. At this year’s 106th Session of the International Labour Conference (ILC), discussions took place around the need to “further assess shortfalls in working conditions as well as governance issues that…
Global unions and textiles brands have announced a new version of the Bangladesh Accord on Fire and Safety to continue the original Accord’s work when its remit ends next year. Speaking to delegates to the OECD’s Responsible Business Conduct Forum, IndustriALL and UNIGlobal, represented by Jenny Holdcroft and Christy Hoffman, flanked by brands C&A and…
The UK has triggered Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty and is negotiating its departure from the European Union. We will have to wait and see what the UK’s future relationship with the EU will look like. But the UK government has repeatedly stated that it wants to leave the EU’s Single Market and Customs…