Branch Affiliation Document to Download

A message from the TUC General Secretary:

"Britain's unions have their best opportunity in a generation to grow once again. New rights at work are giving people a new confidence to demand dignity and respect at work.

TRADES UNION COUNCILS can help promote the union message where it matters most - at the grass roots, in the community, in the workplace.

By bringing trade unionists together, campaigning around local concerns and building up new alliances, Trades Union Councils can play a crucial role in helping unions reach out to new members.

I URGE UNION BRANCHES TO AFFILIATE TO THEIR LOCAL TRADES UNION COUNCIL and to get involved in its activity."

Roger McKenzie former Secretary Midlands TUC: "I am a firm supporter of trades union councils and believe that they are vital bodies on which our movement can be renewed. In my view this does not necessarily mean trades union councils operating in the same way as they have done historically. One lesson from the local campaigns against fascism could be that having, the building of community alliances for social justice at their heart may be one of the ways of reinvigorating trades union councils"

The Trades Union Council has for the last 145 years provided a forum for all trade union branches in the Wolverhampton and Bilston area. It brings together trade unionists to exchange views and develops strategies to tackle local problems of joint concern. We perform vital work in helping unions in their campaigns, mobilising support and generating publicity as well as promoting the concept of trade unionism in the local community.

Council meets every 3rd Thursday of the month at the Civic Centre 7.15pm and any trade unionist can attend as an observer. We have a speaker each month who begins at 8pm, meetings finish at 8.45pm

If your trade union branch would like to affiliate to the trades council please get in touch. We would be willing to send a speaker to your next branch meeting to discuss the our work. To see what campaigning and solidarity work we have done recently look at our Secretary's Reports .

Branches are allowed one delegate for each 50 branch members or part thereof up to 200 members, and then one delegate for each additional 100 members or part thereof, up to a maximum of 11 delegates. Affiliation is 10p per member of your branch living or working in the area.

All main local union branches affiliated to WB&DTUC in 2010:

ASLEF,

ASPECT,

ATL,

Community(Hall Palm), Community 1700

CWU (Wolverhampton), CWU (W.Mids & Worcs),

FBU,

GMB X13,

NASUWT,

NUT,

PCS (Midlands branch CPS),

POA,

UCU City College,

UNISON General, UNISON PCT, UNISON University 

Unite branches: 0758M, 3210M, CYWU, 5/748, 5/836 and 5/998.

There are still a few small union branches that do not affiliate.

action: increasing our affiliation base is a key to increased activity and effectiveness for our campaigns.

The Executive Committee constantly looks at this. Some regional offices pay affiliations on behalf of their branches e.g. Community, Unite-TGWU, UCU & UNISON, so there should be higher levels of affiliation from these unions. Many local trade union branches have very small branch meetings or have difficulty involving members in activity.  WB&DTUC is thus the ideal platform for increasing the capacity for involvement in public work.

 action: branches need to attract new activists to be put forward as delegates.  There is still a huge potential for increasing our affiliation base and delegates can assist by contacting unaffiliated branches with which they have dealings.