Month: Jul 2024

Who runs PCS? A report on the NEC of 17-18 July

Since taking office in May 2024, the new PCS Left Coalition majority on the union’s National Executive Committee (NEC) has had several priorities. These priorities are directly linked to the basis on which they campaigned to be elected – and to the basis on which they won 19 seats on the 35 seat NEC compared to 13 out of 35 to defeated Left Unity (LU). 3 members of the Democrats were also defeated.

A strong national campaign. A political strategy that puts members’ needs first and which is not simply a publicity machine for the General Secretary. A union that is directly run by the elected NEC and by lay reps at all levels, instead of being run by the General Secretary’s machine in a spirit of total indifference to elected reps.

The third NEC of the electoral year met on July 17 and 18. For the third meeting in a row, the majority of business put forward by the elected Left Coalition was met with a veto by the President. This ranged from major items, such as motions covering the union’s national campaign, to less important items such as which Conference motions get assigned to which committees of the NEC. This means that motions could not be moved, debated or voted on.

Shortly after the NEC convened on 17 July, the approach of simply vetoing everything substantive was doubled down on by the President, in a published diktat to set “appropriate boundaries” for how NEC business was to be conducted. This complained of the amount of email correspondence from NEC members, as the newly elected Left Coalition tries to rein in the undemocratic behaviour of the General Secretary.

Every lay rep and member, over the next ten months, is going to face the question: who runs PCS and in whose interest? Presently, it is not the elected NEC, it is the union’s machine, under the direction of the General Secretary, propped up by the National President. They obstruct and challenge our right to progress our unions policies. It is not being run in the interests of any union members, regardless of LU rhetoric.

Bureaucratic obstruction threatens the national campaign

At every NEC meeting, Left Unity members have openly derided the vote of PCS Annual Delegate Conference to throw out the strategy of the ex-leadership, and to adopt a new approach. This NEC was no different, as the President and others attacked the new approach as a “two tier” campaign.

LU supporters justify this openly contemptuous attitude on the basis that BLN and Left Coalition NEC members are proposing that we should be ready and willing to call action amongst the 20,000 members with a mandate, as we lay the groundwork to re-ballot the 100,000 who missed a strike mandate in the ballot up to May 2024.

This re-ballot would be on the basis of the demands included in A315, meaning that we could connect it to issues facing members every day, such as hybrid working. Inflexible approaches by civil service departments are costing members potentially hundreds of pounds per month, on salaries already hard-hit by pay austerity.

Pay remit talks have now begun with the Cabinet Office, as of 19 July. The initial timetable suggests that these may be concluded by 25 July. Press reports indicate that pay review bodies are looking at 5.5%, against an available budget of 3%. The civil service at Grade 6 and below are not covered by such a body in any case.

By the end of this month, we will likely know where we are on the treasury pay remit, including whether any new money is on the table or if pay awards will need to be found from within existing, already tight, Departmental budgets. Additionally, the deadline we have set for a response from the Prime Minister will have expired.

The motion proposed by BLN and backed up by the Left Coalition proposed a detailed series of steps – including engagement with lay reps across the union to discuss strategy – to ready us for a special NEC on 13 August, with the intention being to firm up timetables and potentially to call the first strike action under the new mandate.

The previous motion, which was passed on 10 July, called for joint working with the other trade unions. The Labour government is rapidly going to be faced with demands on pay from teachers, local government, the NHS and others. Nationalisation of water, of Royal Mail, of Port Talbot steelworks are also posed.

We must be ready to pivot on the basis of demands across the public sector, and a mood of anger across the class, driven by the determination of a Starmer government to cling to the Tory spending plans that have so battered and blighted public services for 14 years. This requires firmness of purpose but flexibility in tactics.

This whole approach was simply vetoed and thrown off the agenda by the President, therefore not allowing discussion which members and reps expect.

The President and General Secretary have not been able to sweep away entirely the motion passed by the NEC on 10 July, proposed by BLN and supported by the Left Coalition. Consultation will proceed with lay reps, on a less widespread basis, and consideration of targets for selective, paid strike action will also proceed.

Bureaucratic obstruction threatens the financial security of the union

As noted in the previous report of NEC work, the General Secretary, without reference to the National Executive Committee or any elected body of the union, has put in place a new staffing structure. This includes promotions and pay rises for her two key lieutenants, despite both having been decisively rejected by members in elections.

As the NEC has not been consulted whatsoever, it is difficult to say with any certainty what has gone on – but some staff in the General Secretary’s office have left, and others have received promotions. The General Secretary has also been recruiting new staff externally – rumours suggest that this is on the basis of inflated pay above the minimum for the relevant pay band.

All of these things incur a cost in terms of staffing budgets within PCS, but they also come with pension liabilities, which is a vulnerability of the union.

BLN supporters take the union’s finances very seriously, as does the union’s national treasurer – the elected Assistant General Secretary, John Moloney – who donates tens of thousands of pounds  of his wages back to the union each year. After discussion with the finance committee chair, John attempted to put a paper to the NEC, raising concerns.

The General Secretary blocked the paper being issued to the NEC.

Further, the national president and general secretary each asserted that the elected AGS was obliged to clear all his papers via the general secretary’s office. It was alleged that this is a “contractual requirement”. The contracts of GS and AGS are both possessed by BLN supporters and this assertion is untrue.

The Assistant General Secretary is directly elected by PCS members. He is responsible to the directly elected NEC, as is the General Secretary. The AGS abides by this; the General Secretary has been doing everything in her power to escape this accountability, by keeping the NEC in the dark and by using the national president to veto any business she doesn’t like.

The General Secretary unilaterally creating whole new posts and filling them with her allies, with no reference to the elected NEC or the Policy and Resources Committee that under rule oversees such matters, is an abuse of members money. We also regard it as a financial threat to the union.

A lesser considered problem is that, with an escalating number of managers in the PCS full time structures, the basic work of the union is going to be missed, as too much work will fall on the shoulders of the diminished number of those that perform the crucial functions to help and support our lay reps.

Other business

The Left Coalition’s organising motion was discussed and agreed. An Organising and Education Committee meeting the previous week had set the tone. The OEC had agreed that, in light of the defeat of the previous leadership’s 2024 Organising strategy, a serious and wide-ranging discussion on organising was required.

The NEC agreed that this would be led by the OEC. Chaired by a BLN member, the way is now open to consider all those concerns voiced by reps about the blind spots of the previous strategy. This includes those areas fixated upon with little benefit in terms of union strength and about the lack of transparency in how decisions are made when allocating PCS staff to support organising objectives, or what the results are.

A paper put by the Assistant General Secretary raising the profile of the threat of Artificial Intelligence to jobs in the civil service, was agreed. The NEC also agreed that the union will support the anti-racism demo in London on 27 July, where an attack by the far right on a trans rights demo looks likely.

Nominees were put forward to the STUC Black Workers Conference delegation, including Hector Wesley and Vijay Menezes-Jackson. The General Secretary was caught out on this; she had put out the call for nominations and, despite multiple queries, had failed to set out the specific criteria which must be reflected in any delegation to this conference.

As well as on the national campaign and on finance, other amendments and motions from the Left Coalition were vetoed by the President without debate:

• Reordering the agenda to delay national campaign discussion to after King’s Speech
• Proposal that all AGS and GS papers be cleared by the Senior Lay Officers, to stop the President vetoing everything where it disagrees with the GS.
• Allocation of Conference motions to NEC committees, to ensure appropriate committees in charge (e.g. equality committee when equality issues at stake).
• Machinery of Government changes affecting Scottish Sector, Scottish Government, DSIT, DESNZ, DBT and smaller related areas
• Record of decisions from NEC meeting 10 July 2024
• Legal services (allegedly only vetoed till the next NEC)
• Staffing structures in PCS (also only until the next NEC, allegedly)
• TUC LGBT+ Conference report, including a motion written with support from PCS Proud and a nomination for Saorsa Amatheia Tweedale to take up a post on TUC LGBT+ Committee.

Next steps – Join Us in Transforming PCS

It could not be clearer that the General Secretary and the President are attempting to intimidate the NEC out of even putting in motions and amendments. The articles published by PCS Left Unity (the faction to which both belong) could not be clearer; these people believe they are entitled to run the union, regardless of how members voted in the National Executive Committee elections of May 2024.

We absolutely reject this approach. We will continue to put pressure on the President and General Secretary. Whether the new GS likes it or not, the NEC coalition majority was elected on a clear programme to build a serious national campaign and to re-establish lay democracy and accountability to the lay leadership of PCS. We will carry this through.

It is equally clear, however, that these obstructive tactics are not going to stop. In these circumstances, the strength of the left is its connection to branches, reps and members across PCS. We will continue to report on events to the activist layer across the union – because every activist will have to make a choice. Either they want a union led by the elected leadership, and accountable not just to the General Secretary but accountable to branches, groups and the NEC, or they prefer the machine.

The same machine that is running the union into the ground and which has lost us thousands of workplace reps – the key activists and a cornerstone of the union – however much they try to hide this behind the number of advocates.

Broad Left Network is the largest socialist organisation in PCS, bringing together activists from many political traditions, but united in the belief that we need a fighting, democratic PCS with socialist policies. We urge every activist and lay rep in PCS to read our programme, and to join BLN to help us rebuild PCS and renew lay democracy.

Thousands of PCS members will have been celebrating as the Tories crashed out of office on 4th July.  But the mood about the new government is muted. And with good reason. Many of us remember the brutal attacks under the last Blair/Brown Labour government – on jobs, pay, office closures and more.

Speaking from the NATO summit on 11th July Keir Starmer has already confirmed that he would not be “giving unions what they want” on pay given the state of the public finances!

This is a signal that whilst we hope for the best, we cannot be complacent. We need to continue to put pressure on the new Government. The need for PCS to rebuild a national campaign on pay, jobs, pensions and conditions remains vital.

Branches backed the fighting strategy set out in motion A315 on the national campaign at PCS conference in May. This motion also called out both the mishandling and ditching of the national campaign last year and the national ballot by the previous LU leadership of the union.

The new Left Coalition majority on the NEC which includes Broad Left Network members stood on a platform for change and a programme capable of defeating the employers and government attacks on our members. We are working hard to try to progress conference policy and to seize the opportunity given to us by the election of a new government. But it is not straight forward.

Obstruction at every step

The newly elected NEC met on June 4th and the new Left Coalition tabled key motions to develop our strategy in the General Election period and take forward our national campaign. The President however unilaterally ruled that we could not discuss them.

His undemocratic act prevented a discussion, by the elected leadership of our union about how we build the pressure on a new Government to win on jobs, pay, pensions and conditions. This prevented discussion about how to utilise our strength during the election campaign.

The Left Coalition were keen to use the strike mandates won in the last ballot to send a very firm signal to the incoming Government from day one that PCS is determined to fight and win. 

To force a discussion on these crucial questions, the NEC Left Coalition had to demand a special meeting be called under the rules of our union. These rules which are designed to ensure that the President or General Secretary cannot avoid the democratic decisions of the NEC by simply failing to call a meeting.  Again, the President tried to obstruct and delay, finally calling the meeting for the 10th of July. 

The Left Coalition were clear about what we wanted to discuss. We prepared and submitted detailed motions on the national campaign, the victimisation of reps at Benton Park View, union organising and legal support for members. We also submitted a motion on the PCS staffing restructure announced by the General Secretary at huge cost to the union, using members money at a time when many of our members are seriously struggling to make ends meet – with no discussion with the NEC or any other democratically elected body.

The President and General Secretary failed to release the information about leverage that could be delivered in areas with a mandate to the National Disputes Committee or the NEC until after the General Election. This, despite the fact it was available in early June.

Push Labour, then escalate

At the July 10th NEC we expressed concern that letters written to Keir Starmer this year by the General Secretary had received no response. The motion tabled by the Left Coalition was eventually discussed and carried after we voted down a paper tabled by GS, Fran Heathcote. This motion made clear that the Government should be given a final chance to make a real difference for our members to:

• Withdraw the attack on Benton Park View reps and reinstate those PCS reps who have been dismissed at the site, as this is in consequence of their union activity.

• Withdraw the attack on Equality, Diversity & Inclusion (EDI) across the Civil Service, begun by the Tories with a hostile Cabinet Office paper in May 2024.

• Instruct Departments to immediately begin working with civil service trade unions to withdraw the myriad attacks on union rights carried out from 2010 to 2024.

If this is unanswered, or if the government aren’t willing to offer more than words about the issues which matter to civil servants across the UK government workforce, including the Treasury Pay Remit, then it is vital we build for action over the next period.

A BLN supporter Marion Lloyd made a supplementary proposal – which was agreed – that a full review of the £3/£5 monthly strike levy be undertaken, including options to raise the threshold for members to pay the higher £5 monthly rate. The numbers reported as leaving the union over the levy – designed to pay for strike action – are low, but BLN supporters are not convinced that the information presented by the General Secretary is accurate.

The union must build to win, setting out what needs to be done and how we do it, organising mass meetings of reps and members explaining our plan.

Involving activists in discussions and campaigning activity, utilising the vast knowledge and ideas from lay reps right across the union must be part of building the necessary campaign to win. This includes utilising our current mandate, but as part of a broader campaign including for meaningful, targeted strike action. This must go hand in hand with building membership confidence to fight and prepare for what is likely to be, the need for fresh ballots for strike action.

All this activity brings pressure to bear and helps build our campaign. To hear more invite us to your members meetings, your BEC, your GEC, your Regional Meetings and work with us to build the necessary response to the employer.

Benton Park View – defend PCS reps under attack

Branches fully backed our reps under attack at Benton Park View at our recent conference. To sack union activists for undertaking their elected role is a disgrace and we must act to protect the individuals, our union and send a strong message to the employer not to mess with our reps and members.

Hector Wesley, PCS National Vice President, HMRC Group President and supporter of the Majority Left coalition on the NEC, has been working closely with the branch, as have other NEC members, to ensure full support for all those who are victimised, but, importantly, also work to build the major campaign necessary to reverse all of the attacks. Such a campaign must include mobilising members at BPV to prepare for strike action.

Disgracefully the National President threw the motion proposed by Broad Left Network off the agenda.  A motion setting out a robust strategy to defend our reps and which had been agreed by both the Benton Park View branch officers and reps from the HMRC Group Executive Committee.

The President only allowed a weaker paper from the General Secretary to be put to the NEC on these attacks, carried only because the alternative better strategy had been ruled off the agenda. We continue to work with the reps in the branch in the best traditions of the labour movement and it is important that branches send messages of support to the branch and the activists concerned.

Help us build up the national campaign

The NEC majority is serious about building an effective campaign working with and consulting those areas who have a live mandate and with the whole membership to prepare the ground to win a re-ballot for strike action. We must increase the power of our union to respond to the Treasury remit and any other plans which will be put forward by the new Government which has already announced its intent to keep to the previous Government spending rules.

We need your help to defeat the bureaucratic obstruction of LU led by the President and the General Secretary who are just interested either in blocking any progress or implementation of conference policies by the left NEC majority. Or over-riding democracy to install their candidate on the TUC General Council, by ruling out our alternative nomination, John Moloney the recently re-elected Asst General Secretary or restructure the union staff to favour and reward their supporters at our expense.

Want to fight with us to rebuild a fighting, democratic union?

Come to our Zoom public meeting at 7pm on Wednesday 24th July https://fb.me/e/1Mh4wbYno

And we urge all reps across all areas – UK or devolved civil service, privatised or arms-length body, large employer or small – join the Broad Left Network and get involved now!

For years PCS delegates have faced pressure to abstain and/or equivocate at the behest of the Left Unity leadership on motions supporting Trans rights and decrying transphobia (or face reprisal). For the first time in a long time, thanks to members throwing out the old guard and electing a new National Executive Committee majority, no PCS speaker embarrassed our union by throwing dog-whistle support behind gender critical ideology. All PCS votes cast were in line with our own union policy to protect trans and non-binary workers.

This included supporting an Emergency Motion (EM1), which decried the Cass Report for the dangerous pseudoscience that it is. EM1 called on the TUC LGBT+ Committee to work with trans-led organisations to resist the Report’s recommendations and to pressure UK governments for an affirming approach to trans healthcare.

The Report has already had devastating impact in precipitating a ban on gender affirming healthcare for under 25s in England and the closing of youth trans health services in Scotland.

PCS has policy, carried by conference 2024, that rightly criticises the academic rigour of the Cass Review and resulting Report, neither of which are peer reviewed. Longstanding union policy has supported access to trans healthcare, and the PCS Proud National Committee (PNC, leadership of the self-organised group for LGBT+ PCS members) has spoken and published against the Report. PCS policy is clear, and Annual Delegate Conference has repeatedly censured the former NEC for anti-trans conduct.

Unfortunately, once again, securing the correct supportive vote for trans rights was not plain sailing. Four delegates selected by the PNC (including ordinary and NEC BLN members) made up two thirds of the delegation. The other two delegates, the single Democracy Alliance (Left Unity and PCS Democrats) Vice President and a Left Unity former NEC member, attempted to intimidate the Proud delegates into adopting LU’s position of  abstaining on EM1. They consulted the unelected Head of Organising, who told them that abstaining was “the PCS position” as we “don’t have policy on it”. It is unclear what democratic source she drew that opinion from. Majority delegates were told by the VP that if we voted for EM1, they would be doing so knowingly against mandate.

This was reminiscent of TUC LGBT+ Conference 2022 when PCS delegate and BLN member Saorsa Tweedale was instructed by a full time officer to abstain on a motion highlighting the links between gender critical organisations and the far-right, against the union’s position. Like Saorsa, majority delegates ignored this undemocratic directive and voted in support of PCS policy. 

Outrageously, rather than visibly abstain or abide by the majority position and support, the VP and LU member both left the room during the debate on EM1 and were absent for the vote. More evidence (if any were still needed) that the remaining Democracy Alliance members in positions of authority must be voted out as soon as possible.  

Turning to the conference itself, it was filled with moving and vitally important speeches about the lived experiences of LGBT+ people and the need for change – featuring horror stories of assault, victimisation, discrimination against and fear on the part of LGBT+ people as recently as en route to conference that morning.

It is important and healing for LGBT+ people to hear unanimous support from within the community, and for the most part the spotlight was rightly on our trans and non-binary siblings who have been subject to vicious abuse and discrimination by employers, the UK government and the far-right. Conference also included Moments of Joy this year, to recognise and celebrate the beauty of LGBT+ lives whilst we fight like hell in their defence.

Crucially though, what’s needed to bring about positive steps for LGBT+ workers and all workers is political and industrial response. We gathered specifically as LGBT+ trade unionists – how are we going to use our strength and leverage to realise change as quickly and as forcefully as we can?

Proud and BLN members on the delegation encouraged Conference to consider the industrial, class-based elements behind various motions. They spoke on the need to fight against privatisation in the NHS with industrial action where needed, as the only way to provide the full and fast access to trans healthcare that we unanimously support, and the importance of international trade union solidarity to represent LGBT+ workers everywhere, such as Uganda and Gaza.

One strong theme and gentle tension at conference this year was the role that the TUC LGBT+ Committee and wider TUC should play in lobbying the Labour Party. Numerous unions, PCS included, spoke on the vital need to hold the Labour Party to account as they very likely take government after the General Election.

PCS told Conference that we must hold Labour to a higher standard than the Tories, as the next government and because they claim to be the party of workers. Conference rejected the TUC LGBT+ Committee’s recommendation to oppose a motion calling on them to lobby the Labour party to insist they support the trans community. The recommendation came on the basis that the TUC is politically neutral – Conference voted to tell them that they aren’t and mustn’t be.

Looking ahead to next year, BLN member Yemisi Ilesanmi was elected to the TUC LGBT+ Committee, and a demand has been submitted to the PCS National President to nominate BLN member Saorsa Tweedale for co-option to the same committee.

As the lie that PCS has put equality at the heart of all we’ve done under the former leadership is exposed more and more, it is vital that BLN work in our capacity as part of the new NEC majority to properly resource the Equality department, and continue to re-establish the trust between Proud and the NEC. We can and must put forward a strong class-based position on LGBT+ liberation, within our own union and beyond.