Dave Prentis told UNISON delegates in Glasgow today that the union was ready, willing and able to face the “storm to come” following the shock result of the general election.
“We are under attack from a vicious, vindictive Tory government – attacking our jobs, the services we provide, attacking our democracy, attacking our funding, even our right to exist,” he said.
“Our union is in the firing line like never before.
“But if we decide to fight, no-one can stop us.”
In his keynote speech to UNISON’s national delegate conference, the general secretary gave heart to members for the difficult years ahead.
He said that after the setback of the last general election in 2010, “so many wrote us off, said we’d be finished. But we proved them wrong.
“We had a belief in ourselves. And a belief in the impossible.”
Since then record numbers of new members had joined the union, which had in turn trained a record number of new stewards.
Other significant achievements of the past few years include the fruitful lobbying of local authorities to adopt the living wage – with 80% of Scottish councils now paying it – and “council after council” signing up to the ethical care charter.
Mr Prentis also cited successful campaigns to prevent the privatisation of £75 million of NHS services in Cornwall, to save services for the elderly in Cambridge and destroy franchising plans at Western General Hospital in the South West.
Today the union’s further education reps were lobbying parliament to stop the savage cuts in their sector.
Looking forward, Mr Prentis pledged to treble the number of fighting fund organisers from 100 to 300 to support branches, and would ensure that funding was available to continue training stewards.
UNISON will also double its legal funds in order to take landmark cases – and if the union fails in parliament, it will take the government to “the highest court in Europe” to defend members’ right to strike.
The union will also be calling on the TUC to organise a mass lobby of the Westminster parliament and a march against austerity. And, said Mr Prentis, “If the TUC won’t do it, then we will do it ourselves.”
And a special word in support of the union’s activists was welcomed by cheers from the delegates.
“Let me make it clear to any employer – if you come for any activist, I promise we will take you on. An injury to one is an injury to all. There will be no victimisation and no witch hunts.”
Mr Prentis sought to give hope to members drained by life under an ungrateful and damaging government.
“Where our members are unsure, as many are, we must build them up. We’ll work together to strengthen their resolve.
“The true test of our union is not whether it’s perfect, it’s whether we can work together across regions and across service groups to make it better, to make our union stronger.
“Yes, by all means recognise our weaknesses, but we must rise together to overcome them.”
The general secretary used the current Labour Party leadership contest to highlight the union’s enduring value and strength.
“We are told by Labour contenders that we must shimmy to the centre, and talk the language of Tory aspiration,” he said.
“They are right that we should aspire to better things. But aspiration isn’t about Tory wealth, it’s not about acquisition. Our aspiration is about conviction.
“What we in UNISON aspire to is for every one of our members to have decent work, instead of the abuse of zero hours contracts.
“We aspire for our members to have proper jobs, fair pair, proper contracts, affordable housing. We aspire for them to have enough money to put food on the table, and to sleep without fear for their family and their future.”
The Tories and UNISON members “live in different worlds,” Mr Prentis said.
“Their world is about greed, ours is about ensuring that nobody is left behind.”
