Working Together: Trade Union and Co-operative Innovations for Precarious Work

Dear Colleagues,

I am very pleased to report that I'll be attending (representing Equity) a conference on 18th April in Manchester with the critically important theme of exploring ways in which the labour and co-operative movements can better collaborate to organise and represent the interests of precarious workers. The event falls under the umbrella of a recently published report following an extensive research exercise.

The report, titled 'Working Together: Trade Union and Co-operative Innovations for Precarious Work' calls for increased collaboration between trade unions and co-operative to protect the rights of part-time, zero hour contract, temporary, self-employed and freelance workers.

Supported by the Network for Social Change, Wales Co-operative Centre and the Institute for Solidarity Economics, the report highlights Indycube as a blueprint for how partnerships between trade union and co-operatives can flourish.

Cilla Ross, Vice-Principal at the Co-op College (and my thesis supervisor) outlines in the clip above the crisis of precarious work in the UK and the opportunity provided to create a resurgence of worker's control in the way that the labour and co-operative movements respond.

Further details of the report and event are here: https://www.co-op.ac.uk/news/working-together-report-launched

I'll post a short comment on the outcomes of the event at some point after 18/04.

In Solidarity

Ian