GFTU BGCM 2019 Minutes

with later on for the next cohort , because suddenly the union movement will

have a rapid growth in membership ensuring the protection of workers across

all sectors, new and traditional, because, do not forget that companies are

currently already investing in upskilling future work force. Any school you go

into you will see companies there, the footprint of, say, Google, or, I don’t

know, Heathrow. They are there upskilling workers, because they have a

certain set of jobs they need filling in the next future. They are already there

investing, but who is investing to ensure that those young people that go into

those jobs know the rights they are supposed to have, know how to collectively

bargain to ensure that they are being paid a fair wage and not, and excuse my

language, screwed in the process? Who is there to protect them? As for us in

the union movement, it has a massive opportunity to engage with schools and

we should do what companies are doing to ensure that workers have those

rights instilled in them and have the understanding and the tools to be able to

influence change for the betterment of everybody, not just the little few,

because like puppies are not for Christmas, politics is not just for general

elections. We need to ensure that people see politics as a day to day thing,

because it is a day to day thing. The people that go to top end private schools

know this, which is why they can influence society for the betterment of

themselves. Everybody will do it. Everyone has got a little bit of self interest

within themselves, so why wouldn’t they? But it is up to us as the vast majority

to say, “Hold on a minute, we want to influence society for ourselves as well”.

Thank you for listening. (Applause)

THE PRESIDENT: That is great. Thank you for coming. A little bag for you to take

away.

The presentation was made amidst applause

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you, Alison, for coming as well. Fantastic. I will now hand

over to Oshor Williams.

THE VICE PRESIDENT: Thanks, Chair. Before I introduce our next speaker, I just

thought I would share something with you which I am sure you all read or heard

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