Why UNISON members should join Socialist Alternative

Below is the text of a leaflet being distributed by SA supporters in UNISON

UNISON SA Leaflet.pdf

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Socialist Alternative members have been an active part of the struggle to transform UNISON into a democratic, fighting trade union that delivers for members since its inception. As an organisation, we believe that a militant UNISON is important, not only to deliver for members, but for the entire working class. As the largest public sector trade union in Britain, UNISON has enormous potential power, especially in the context of a Labour government bent on out-doing Tory austerity.

A fighting, left-led UNISON could defeat the government’s plans. As Socialist Alternative members are putting forward in a motion to the union’s National Delegate Conference this year, UNISON must campaign for a bailout for public services to the tune of £500 billion, funded by taxes on corporations and the super-wealthy, alongside renationalisation of all services. 

This could be a potent campaign drawing together different trade unions as well as potentially millions of working class people to take on the unchallenged rule of the 1% and their representatives in power. UNISON could also take the lead on building a new mass political party based on pro-working class policies. This is necessary, not just to build an opposition to Reform UK, but also the entire existing political establishment - including the now decisively anti-worker Labour Party.

In addition to being UNISON members, we are also members of Socialist Alternative. Socialist Alternative is a political organisation that believes the problems faced by workers are rooted in the system of capitalism itself. In order to overcome this, there is a need for a revolutionary transformation of society to socialism, where the wealth of society is democratically planned and managed by the working class ourselves. 

We are members of Socialist Alternative in addition to UNISON for three reasons. 

1. Socialist Alternative takes part in real struggle and puts strategies forward to win.

The strength of trade unions come from the members, organised workers, and they must be democratic, accountable and willing to be combative to fight for what we need. Socialist Alternative has a proud history of fighting for this, not just in UNISON but across the trade union movement. In recent years, our members UNISON have played key roles in victorious disputes like those at Ash Field Academy in Leicester and on-going battles in health and local government in North West England. 

On a national level, we are fighting for the positive transformation of UNISON through building the broad left Time for Real Change, and as part of the left-led majority on the National Executive Council. As socialists we think it is not enough to have good ideas about how things could change. We must translate them into working class action.

2. To really fight for workers, it means being a socialist.

The capitalist system we live under is based on securing profits and power of the elite few at the expense of workers - the class that comprise the majority of the population and make society run. Those dynamics are the same on a national level as they are in an individual workplace. When the bosses or their institutions get in trouble, it suddenly becomes us that have to be punished for it. 

While Starmer and co announce austerity 2.0 - including tens of thousands of layoffs and massive cuts to welfare - corporate profits are soaring, the arms companies are receiving massive handouts and MPs are getting a pay rise to the tune of £94,000 per year! 

While the specifics may be new, the story is not. Under capitalism, we will always be made to pay for their crises. And whenever we give up fighting, they will try to take back the gains we have made. That’s why we must fight for a new type of society not based on profit or the market, but on people. 

A socialist society without war, exploitation or poverty, where workers democratically manage the overall wealth to resource the needs of all, not to line the pockets of a tiny few. Otherwise, we will constantly be fighting against the capitalists just to survive. 

Socialist Alternative is an organisation whose mission it is to fight for such a society.

3. Socialism is international solidarity

Socialist Alternative is the England, Wales and Scotland section of International Socialist Alternative, an association of like-minded organisations in a number of countries worldwide. 

Capitalism is a global system that exploits all workers. Especially now, when governments of different countries are increasingly pushing a nationalist economic and militaristic agenda, the working class must be organised on a genuinely international basis to fight back. 

In the words of US civil rights campaigner and socialist Martin Luther King Jr - “an injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere”. To truly fight poverty, war and oppression - we need international socialism. Join us!