British workers are relatively well off compared to the majority of people who now produce the things we buy (and used to produce), but why is this? According to this hugely enjoyable book, it is not because of our enlightened capitalist philanthropists, but because of the men and women who marched, campaigned and suffered in order to get better working conditions for all. The employment rights and conditions of service we have today we have because people joined trade unions. Jo Phillips and David Seymour advocate the strengths and many virtues of collective endeavour – in a witty and at times highly irreverent manner.
Margaret Thatcher is given a special mention in the section dealing with hate figures – where she is joined by Gordon Taylor of the Professional Footballers Association, one of the few union leaders whose members earn more than he does, and Adam Crozier. The title is a bit misleading, as this book is really a beginner’s guide to the history of the trade union movement or what is known as “This Great Movement of Ours”, sometimes shortened to Tigmoo, and it encourages you to check out the excellent Tigmoo website for union bloggers at www.tigmoo.co.uk.
It is also the sequel to the authors’ previous publication, the excellent Why Vote? It is very funny in parts and there are some excellent one-liners. For example, there is an account of how, having battled to extend the franchise, the unions created a political party that working people could vote for. At the end of the paragraph, the authors add (in brackets) a brief note stating that this party was the Labour Party “in case that description of Labour passes you by”.
My one reservation is that the jokes tend to detract from the more serious elements and, in the present climate, the very real reasons for people wanting to join a union. The notion that unions are the “enemy within” and constitute an impediment to economic growth, free enterprise and the ability of government and industry to operate freely, is one we should expect to be pushed more and more as the impact of the recession deepens and workers are forced to fight back against mounting attacks on their livelihoods.
Why Join a Trade Union? is a readable, engaging and thought-provoking book that reminds us that things can’t and don’t always get better; that sometimes they can and do get a good deal worse.
