Comments on: Why I’ve left Unite the Union

By: Paul Crisp

Paul Crisp — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 10:27:25 +0000

I agree with your comments and if you step back and look at all parties involved they stand for principles that theydont follow as they should.
The best place for your work to assist is within a Union, if only they have the resource to help you fight the cause. Their are many with your feelings and they too are trying to change things from within.
Don’t stand outside and throw stones get in there and help reorganise. We need more doing this from the inside. It will never change looking in.
I never liked ‘One Union One Voice’ Too big means more income less officers and not enough time for those limited officers to be everywhere fighting the issues for its members. It falls to those ground roots members to work together and make the changes. My view is, if you have three unions in a workplace you have three reps, three full time officers, three resources for advisors and solicitors. The Manager has to talk to three people at the other side of the table. They can then be better placed to argue and with the same amount of employees who can take action if needed.

I dont blame you for not staying in there, but we need to work together to change it, help us.

By: john oliver

john oliver — Sat, 03 Sep 2011 10:51:33 +0000

I have been a member of the union for 40+ years now,I class myself as an active activist .I have served as a shop steward , convenor, safety rep and four years on the national exec af amicus.

I too am extremely annoyed at the excesses paid from union funds to DS and such we need to find the facts and act on them, the Executive council of the union needs to be accountable to the members as they have the final say on such payments and other issues.

If Overpayments have been made then the members should follow proper procedures to complain about them and seek recoupe within the union.

Yes there are people, fulltime officers that are not doing there jobs to the members benifit. That was why in amicus I campained for and we had election of officers to make them accountable.

The merger with the T&G saw an end to that as they appointed their ft officers,as I see it jobs for the boys.

No wonder people can feather their nests at members expence.

Ds persude Jackson relentlessly during my term of office on the EC on just such issues.

I feel really let down and disilusioned by what I am hearing has gone on since the merger with the T&G.
But then what can we expect when you find the amount of money that is paid to the labour party by the union and look what we get for that,”well they do talk to us” is what I am told. Its actions we want not words.

Lets reform the union from within no officer should be paid more then the average pay of the members they represent.All officers should be elected to ensure accountability.

By: stu

stu — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 19:52:34 +0000

unite waste members money on there freebee hols and nights out,total scum

By: Scronker

Scronker — Sat, 09 Jul 2011 08:52:45 +0000

I was being subjected to a great deal of abuse by one of my work colleagues. Although I complained to management they did little about it. It was pointless raising the subject with my union rep (Unite the Union) because it was he who was giving the abuse. Consequently I resigned from the union.
A number of my other work colleagues resigned from Unite since they also received abuse from this man and they felt that this Union was giving poor value for £11 per month.

By: Bonkers

Bonkers — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 22:20:34 +0000

I see at 32 the self employed, houseboat-dweller, class warrior David Beaumont has entered the debate. Ok, every thing has to stop. First of all, lets have an election of officers then the world of Trade Unionism will be alright. Then we can all check out Grassrootsleft who got minimal support in the badly turned out recent executive elections in Unite.Then we can try and find Jerry Hicks who disappears until there is an internal election or a picketline at the opening of a fridge to try a gain a tiny bit of support.