Real Change means ending austerity, not deepening it – Sarah Woolley, BFAWU #TUC24

8th September 2024Leave a Commenton Real Change means ending austerity, not deepening it – Sarah Woolley, BFAWU #TUC24

“We must send a clear message that we won’t accept empty promises or half-measures. We demand real change – & won’t rest until we see it.”

By Sarah Wooley, BFAWU General Secretary

We’re at a pivotal moment for workers’ rights: after fourteen years of austerity and workers’ rights being systematically stripped back, we have an opportunity for change. But that change will only come if we fight for it.

The election and aftermath shows the fight for justice and fairness is far from over – there’s an urgent need for political and economic transformation, and that has to mean ending austerity for good.

The Bakers Food and Allied Workers Union recently conducted a comprehensive survey to understand our members’ priorities. The results highlight how our members are politically engaged and determined to see change. They’re not content with the status quo, and the issues they face reflect broader societal challenges.

Our survey shaped the Bakers’ Dozen manifesto of 13 demands. These aren’t just aspirations – they’re essential changes to improve lives:

• £15 an Hour Minimum Wage: because every worker deserves a living wage, regardless of age. This will end the unfair youth limit on the national minimum wage.
• Abolish Zero-Hour Contracts: We demand job security and predictability for all workers- and this should be all Zero Hour contracts, because they can all be exploitative.
• Full Employment Rights from Day One: All workers should have their rights protected from the moment they start their job.
• Contractual Sick Pay at 100%: Employers must provide six weeks of sick pay at full wage to all workers.
• Repeal Anti-Union Legislation: Unions need the freedom to organise and advocate without restrictive laws.
• Maximum Workplace Temperature: Legislation is needed to ensure safe and comfortable working conditions.
• Accountability for Company Failures: Companies must not evade their financial responsibilities through administration loopholes.
• Public Ownership of Utilities: Water, energy, and Royal Mail should be publicly owned to curb excessive pricing and ensure fair access.
• Right to Food: A statutory right to food, free school meals, and a cap on supermarket profits are essential to combat food insecurity.
• Affordable Public Transport: Re-nationalise train companies, cap bus fares, and provide free public transport for young people aged 16-25.
• End Arms Sales to Israel: We must take a stand for human rights and justice globally.
• Abolish Tuition Fees: Education should be accessible to all, regardless of financial background, and they must bring back a new and improved version of the Union Learning Fund in England so everyone has the opportunity to upskill and develop themselves.
• Create a National Care Service: Providing dignity and care for the elderly and vulnerable is a societal duty.

Our collective strength and solidarity are our greatest assets. We must continue to organise, educate and mobilise to hold those in power accountable: just because they are now the Labour Party it doesn’t mean we can rest on our laurels, and the early evidence of how Labour is behaving in power confirms this.

First, they suspended seven MPs for voting against the two-child benefit cap in Parliament, and now they are forcing through a cruel cut of people’s Winter Fuel Payments. This is not just continuing austerity, it is deepening it, and should set alarm bells ringing across our movement that this new Government looks set to be an austerity government.

At the TUC this week and beyond, we must send a clear message that we won’t accept empty promises or half-measures. We demand real change – and won’t rest until we see it.

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• This article is part of the special ‘Labour Outlook’ bulletin produced for TUC and Labour Conferences 2024. Download it here.
• Read the ‘Bakers Dozen’ demands in full at www.bfawu.org
• Sarah Woolley is General Secretary of the Bakers, Food and Allied Workers Union – you can follow her on Twitter/X.
• If you support Labour Outlook’s work amplifying the voices of left movements and struggles here and internationally, please consider becoming a supporter on Patreon.