A Labour government, if elected, would need to convene a summit with unions within days of formation, the TUC has said.
The meeting would discuss how ministers would implement changes to workers’ rights, said Matt Wrack, president of the TUC and general secretary of the Fire Brigades Union.
In an interview, Wrack told the Guardian that: “Unions should be invited in quickly to set out their priorities.”
The three priorities would be how to implement Labour’s New Deal for workers, exploring resolutions to long-running public sector strikes and increasing wages.
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Wrack said: “We want a pay rise. There are ways of raising taxes on the richest that would help a Labour government deliver.”
The junior doctors’ pay dispute was the priority to be settled, followed by how to meet the recommendations made by public sector pay review bodies.
The FBU leader said getting rid of anti-union legislation would shift the balance of power in workplaces significantly.
Labour has pledged that the New Deal for workers, which echoes many recommendations made in the 2017 Taylor Review, would be a priority, with legislation brought in within the government’s first 100 days – before 13 October 2024.
Labour is committed to improving zero-hours workers’ rights, making it more difficult to “fire and rehire” employees and has said it wants to encourage collective bargaining by giving unions easier access to workplaces. A new duty on employers to inform workers of their right to join a union would also likely be introduced if Labour were to win.
However, unions have long been watchful that the New Deal would be diluted as Labour leaders consult business leaders over the plans.
Wrack said moving quickly on workers’ rights “would buy some goodwill. If they don’t move quickly enough they won’t buy as much goodwill.”
He added: “The 14 years of attacks on pay are unprecedented in the modern era and a Labour government is going to have to do something about it. I don’t think the patience of union members will hold out for very long.”
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