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in unions. The GFTU, jointly with its affiliates, needs to develop a strategy to help
nurture trade union growth among these workers.
(3)
The BGCM therefore believes that the GFTU could play an essential role in supporting
affiliates in their attempts to build a stronger movement through freeing resources
that are often duplicated. This should involve looking at the potential to:
a)
Pool and share resources including looking at the possibility of building
a multi-union HQ and also sharing office space throughout Britain and
Ireland;
b)
Negotiating shared services and facilities between affiliates, the GFTU
and third parties to create economies of scale and other savings that
individual unions' could not otherwise deliver on their own;
c)
Develop a strategy that helps generate new income for both the GFTU and
its affiliates;
d)
Develop a plan which delivers membership growth among affiliates and
also looks to deliver a strategy to nurture trade union growth among
unorganised sectors of our economy.
e)
Signpost affiliates to companies and service providers who are unionised
and offering value for money and quality to trade union clients. The BGCM
believes that the combined purchasing power for GFTU affiliates and
the development of customised, but shared benefits and services
could play a significant role in maintaining the strength of
small and specialist trade unions and reaching out to new recruitment
areas.
(4)
The BGCM calls upon the Executive to:
1)
Produce a discussion paper for affiliates and potential new affiliates on
where shared facilities, services and fund raising schemes could be
considered and to consider some of the best practice and arrangements that
unions have made that could be extended and shared;
2)
Organise a working Conference as soon as practical and ideally within2015
to consider proposals of benefit for affiliates including where best we can
reach out to new membership growth areas;
3)
Continue its good work to encourage mutual working and sharing of
facilities and services between affiliates.
Resolution 16
Attack on Migrant Workers
(1)
This Conference condemns the right wing media frenzy designed to whip up fear
about an influx of immigration, especially in the light of relaxation of labour market
controls on migrant citizens from Romania and Bulgaria to other EU member states
from 1st January 2014. Although these claims of mass migration to UK were always
exaggerated, In the first 3 months of 2014 the amount of Romanians and Bulgarians
employed in Britain fell by 4000 to 140000 people. Despire this the pattern of right
wing propaganda designed to divert the British electorate from the real causes of the
economic crisis has continued to place the blame on immigrants, benefit scroungers
etc. The only real beneficiaries from this are UKIP and the far right racist parties like
the EDL.
(2)
This Conference condemns the Coalition Government for capitalising on this fear
with new rafts of legislation aimed to make life even worse for migrants to theUK
e.g. stop migrants from claiming benefits in the first three months of living in the
UK with the prospect of unemployed migrants being permanently denied housing
benefits. These measures have been set up in what the government have described
as targeting those who will attempt to exploit the benefits system.
(3)
This is yet another unjust measure taken against migrants in an attempt to scare
people from coming to the UK and making us seem like an unwelcoming country.
(4)
In this highly charged atmosphere of racism and anti-immigration hysteria it is
appalling that the government is deliberately misinforming the country regarding
migrants. A YouGov survey from 2013 showed that most people thought that
500,000 immigrants were coming into the UK and claiming benefits. In reality,
Implementation
The TUC campaign document was
circulated at the BGCM 2015.
The new GFTU/New Internationalist
publishing house is publishing a book
of songs in its first tranche of
publications which focus greatly on
this subject and the need for
integration and solidarity.