Union Friday looms large

posted by: Nick Lowles | on: Thursday, 7 May 2009, 17:34

With the newspapers out of the way I’m beginning to focus on other forthcoming events. It’s bus time again and despite our best intentions we are once again scrambling so get everything sorted in time. I was supposed to be meeting up with Ros this afternoon to go through the two week tour but for one reason or another that’s not happening. We are having to have our meeting over the phone which I guess allows to lie down in a dark room as we go through all the things still to be done. We'll get there - we always do - but the 'to do' pile is getting frighteningly high.

It's less the events themselves that take a lot of time organising but more the paperwork that accompanies it all. There are application forms, risk assessments, public liability forms - the list is endless.

We are also doing a final push for Union Friday – Friday 15 May. So far we estimate that amount 400 trade union branches are going to get involved. Most will be targeting their own members but some events will be delivering material to the general public. Matthew was at a GMB training event in the West Midlands today and by all accounts his presentation went down a storm, so well in fact that they have agreed to target Birmingham city centre on Union Friday. Up in the North West Jason and the Unison gang are busily distributing 50,000 copies of a Unison version of our tabloid to branches which will go out to members next Friday. GMB are doing the same in the North West, though with 35,000 newspapers. Just had an email from someone at USDAW’s Head Office, which is based in Manchester, saying that they have at least 20 volunteers to help out in Fallowfield on Union Friday - great stuff.

What is particularly good is that several unions are organising their own events. The NUT contacted me today to say that they are sending out material to their branches which they hope will be distributed to members on Union Friday. UCU are travelling over to Barking & Dagenham and the RMT are covering some London tube stations and train stations in the Home Counties.