UCATT Enjoy a Highly Successful Labour Party Conference

UCATT enjoyed a highly successful Labour Party conference. The union won a number of important commitments from the Government which demonstrated our increased political campaigning.

Of key importance was the work that the union undertook on extending the Gangmasters Act to the construction industry. We were able to ensure that the motion on employment rights included the call for the extension of the Gangmasters Act.

During the debate on employment rights, UCATT general secretary Alan Ritchie made an impassioned speech, outlining how unregulated gangmasters were mistreating their workforce. A full copy of Mr Ritchie’s speech is available here.

The entire employment rights motion will now be examined by Labour’s rolling policy process.

UCATT will continue to lobby and pressurise the Government and the Labour Party to ensure that the Gangmasters Act is extended to the construction industry.

Jim Kennedy, UCATT’s national political officer, is a member of Labour National Executive Committee, the party’s ruling body. As part of his NEC duties Mr Kennedy replied to the debate on prosperity and work on behalf of the NEC. His full speech is attached here

A number of Cabinet ministers who spoke during conference also acknowledged and recognised campaigns that the union has long supported.

In his first speech to Labour Party conference as Prime Minister, Gordon Brown reiterated his commitment to increasing apprenticeship schemes, he said: “But we will only make the most of this (extending the age of compulsory education and training) if every teenager who leaves at 18 can graduate with a good qualification. So for every apprentice, a certificate of completion. For every college or school student, A-levels and diplomas and for all a clear pathway into skilled work. And we offer teenagers national youth community service - I want every young person in Britain to be able to say: this is my country. I contribute to it. I help make it better.”

Click here for the Prime Minister’s full speech 

Housing Minister Yvette Cooper confirmed a reversal in Government policy. In future councils will be able to build new properties themselves, rather than rely on housing associations to build all new social housing. She said: “Conference we have approved the first ten councils and ALMOs to start bidding for government grant to build new homes. It is time for councils to be able to build council homes too.

“We are changing the rules to make it easier for councils to build more homes. And why shouldn't councils build homes for key workers on their land as well. We are giving councils more flexibility. We are working with councils across the country to help all of them deliver decent homes.”

Click here for Yvette Cooper’s full speech

John Hutton, Secretary of state for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, admitted that the Government needed to do more to protect vulnerable workers. In his speech he said: “We must find new ways to support our most vulnerable workers. Some of them migrant workers, prepared to travel a thousand miles in search of a new life who find themselves victims of 19^th century employment practices. Forcing workers to take accommodation as part of their employment terms - confiscating their passports - these scandalous practices have no place in modern Britain. We must work together to stamp them out.

So I applaud the GMB, UCATT and Unite for the way they are working with employers and the government in the vulnerable workers forum to tackle this injustice.”

However Mr Hutton remains reluctant to extend the Gangmasters Act to the construction industry.

Click here for John Hutton’s full speech

Peter Hain the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, used his speech to give a stark warning that a Conservative Government would slash key health and safety legislation, should they be elected. He said: “[John] Redwood's report, recommended watering down Health and Safety at Work legislation, at the very time more building workers have been dying. It recommended taking Britain out of the Social Chapter, and back to the no-rights culture of the last Tory government. And David Cameron endorsed the Redwood Report, which is a threat to every working man and woman in the country.”

Click here for Peter Hain’s full speech