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| Cllr Sarah Hacker, Patron of Reading Pride, Unite member and delegate to the RTUC |
The Reading Trades Union Council made a presence at the
Thirteenth Reading Pride festival at Kings Meadow on 3 September, joining the
stalls of local unions: Unite, Unison, GMB and NASUWT. RTUC delegates, Cllr
Sarah Hacker (Unite member and Patron of Reading Pride), Jan
Bastable (Unite and President of RTUC) and John Partington (TSSA and RTUC Communications
Officer) took pride in showing solidarity with the LGBT+ community, celebrating
diversity and promoting equality.
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| John Partington (TSSA) and Jan Bastable (Unite) of RTUC and Mike Dyer (Unite) at the Unite stand |
The event had a party atmosphere,
with music and other entertainment emanating from the Main Stage, face painting
for kids and adults alike, a ‘diverse’ bar and stalls selling party attire. Alongside
the fun, however, were educational and informational stands, with the NHS
having strong representation covering such areas as sexual health, mental
health and ambulance services.
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| John Partington of RTUC and TSSA at the GMB stand |
The trade union presence
concentrated on publicising equality and diversity in the workplace, but also
addressed broader issues. The Unite stand highlighted the
recent derecognition of the union by First Direct and encouraged their visitors
to sign a petition of protest. Unison, GMB and NASUWT, as well as Unite,
explained to enquirers the role of trade unions in bargaining collectively for
improved terms and conditions of employment and setting up transparent
processes around recruitment and performance reviewing. Even in workplaces
which do not officially recognise trade unions for collective bargaining
purposes, the ability of trade unions to represent workers in grievance
procedures, covering such issues as unfair treatment, discrimination and
bullying, was highlighted – issues which affect virtually all members of staff
at some stage during their careers. Especially vulnerable, of course, are marginalised
groups fighting against discrimination such as LGBT+ persons, minority ethnic
groups, older workers, disabled persons and workers from socially disadvantaged
communities.
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| John Partington of RTUC and TSSA at the NASUWT stand |
Other organisations attended
Reading Pride, promoting their messages, such as the University of Reading, the
Liberal Democrats and Thames Valley Police. Despite overcast skies and rain
during periods of the day – Reading Pride 2016 was a great success and an event
RTUC will happily engage with in the years ahead.
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| John Partington of RTUC and TSSA at the Unison stand |
