2005 Annual Report
In reviewing 2005 it would be remiss of me, at the outset, not to pay tribute to all of our members involved in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks on London’s transport system on July 7. The manner in which they, and indeed all of London’s transport and emergency workers, responded to the unprecedented suicide bombings, revitalises our admiration at the capacity of the human spirit to react with compassion and with a desire to help others, regardless of any concerns for personal safety. I pay tribute to them all.
2005 also saw the historic return of the Labour party to government for a third term. While we have differences with recent Labour governments in some aspects of policy direction, we also recognise that there are many more issues that unite, than divide us. That does not mean that we will cease to press the government regarding the structure and ownership of public transport. We will, of course, continue to do that. But we will do it within the confines of the Labour party where we can exert an influence, instead of standing on the side-lines shouting outdated slogans that nobody is listening to.
In the months and years to come we need to increase our influence at all levels within the party and within society at large. We have started this process by improving and modernising the structure of TSSA’s paid staff. We have closed our York office and opened new ones in Bristol, Leeds, Manchester and Nottingham, bringing more of our paid staff closer to our members out there in the field. The role of our paid staff has changed too. Our key focus must be to support, develop and mentor the members upon whom we increasingly rely to strengthen our presence in the many workplaces where we organise.
I want, once again, to pay tribute to all of our volunteer activists for the - often unheralded - work that they do. Without them we simply would not exist.
Gerry Doherty
General secretary
Membership and recruitment
Overall membership
1. During 2005, net membership fell by 1070, or 3.3 per cent. Unfortunately the process of transition from the old to the new staff structure took up more time in 2005 than was initially anticipated, and this has undoubtedly been reflected in the membership figures.
2. On the plus side, it is expected that as the changes in the staffing structure begin to settle, membership will stabilise during 2006 with gradual increases in subsequent years.
3. The total number of members who left TSSA in 2005 was 4,638 - a decrease of 3.8 per cent on the 2004 figure of 4,823. Out of the 4,638 members leaving TSSA during 2005, at least 1,432 did so because they had left their jobs. The remainder are classified as “withdrawn” - some of these are likely still to be working, either in travel or transport, or in another sector. However, most would have left the kinds of jobs qualifying them for TSSA membership.
4. At the end of 2005 a total of 18,389 members paid their subscriptions by direct debit compared with 19,404 in 2004. Paying by direct debit makes TSSA membership far more portable, moving with the member from employer to employer in what is an extremely mobile job market for many of our members. It also means that TSSA avoids the charges levied by some employers for the administration of paybill deductions. During 2006 we will continue to promote the benefits of paying subscriptions by direct debit.
Recruitment
5. The geographic profile of our membership remained largely unchanged in 2005. Membership fell in all but one divisional council over the year, with the exception of London North West which recorded an increase of almost 14 per cent due, in part, to a reallocation of members. Our gender balance remained relatively stable, with a slight drop from 30 per cent in 2004 to 29.5 per cent in 2005.
6. There was a significant decrease (17 per cent) in the number of new members joining the union in 2005. In total, 3,588 new members joined compared with 4,310 in 2004.
7. This disappointing performance was due, in part, to TSSA lacking its full complement of paid recruiters, organisers and other staff for a significant proportion of the year. Our staff make numerous visits to a multitude of workplaces, and our experience continues to demonstrate that face-to-face contact is still the best way to get people to join TSSA. However, it should also be noted that recruitment from lay reps and members remained stable when it would have been reasonable in the circumstances to expect it to increase during 2005.
Membership profile
8. The profile of the industries where TSSA’s members work remained remarkably stable during 2005. Rail and rail engineering account for over 65 per cent of TSSA members. London Transport (including the former London bus companies) accounted for approximately 11 per cent, the travel trade seven per cent, and Ireland for six per cent of our members.
9. We continue to have a less significant number of members in areas where we have traditionally organised such as ports, shipping and road haulage, as well as a number of public transport and travel trade companies throughout the UK and Ireland. The prospect of growth in some of these areas remains unlikely in the immediate future.
Rail
10. Membership in this sector stood at 17,112 at the end of 2005 compared with 17,931 at the end of 2004 (a small drop of 0.5 per cent). This sector accounted for 54.6 per cent of TSSA’s membership.
11. A total of 820 members were recruited in this sector in 2005, a decrease of 23.9 per cent on 2004.
12. During 2005, there were increases in membership in six companies within the sector - WAGN, GNER, Central Trains, Seaco Rail Services, Midland Mainline and South Eastern Trains.
London Transport
13. Membership decreased from 4,034 at the end of 2004 to 3,511 at the end of 2005 - a drop of 13 per cent.
14. A total of 207 new members were recruited in London Underground during 2005, compared with 297 in 2004, a decrease of 30.3 per cent. This corresponds to the decrease in employee recruitment by London Underground over the year.
15. Membership recruitment in the three infrastructure companies (Tube Lines, Metronet BCV and Metronet SSL) remained stable over the year at 54 (53 in 2004). In Transport for London, recruitment increased from 124 in 2004 to 160 in 2005, an increase of 29 per cent. This continued the good work reported in 2004 and reflects the high level of recruitment undertaken by members themselves.
Engineering
16. Membership in engineering stood at 3,382 compared with 3,499 at the end of 2004 - a drop of 3.3 per cent.
17. Recruitment was up in this sector during 2005 with 289 new members recruited compared with 276 in 2004 (an increase of 4.7 per cent).
Travel trade
18. In 2005, 500 new members joined TSSA compared with 618 in 2004 (a fall of 19.1 per cent). Of these, 54.2 per cent worked in Thomas Cook, a fall of 15 per cent on the previous year.
19. Overall increases in TSSA membership were recorded in three companies within the sector: Going Places, Thomas Cook Direct and TUI UK call centres.
20. Total membership in this sector fell from 2,552 at the end of 2004, to 2,293 at the end of 2005 (a decrease of 10.1 per cent).
Ireland
21. Recruitment in Ireland increased during 2005. There were 128 new members recruited in 2005 compared to 113 in 2004. This resulted in a slight increase in membership from 1,824 in 2004 to 1,837 in 2005.
Ports and shipping
22. Recruitment in the ports and shipping sector increased from 37 during 2004 to 84 in 2005. This is due, in part, to the high profile enjoyed by TSSA in campaigning against the route tendering of Caledonian MacBrayne services. Membership stabilised at 575 in the sector at the end of 2005.
Road haulage
23. Membership in this sector fell from 203 at the end of 2004 to 191 at the end of 2005. Recruitment, however, increased in 2005 with 30 new members compared with 18 in 2004.
A union for the 21st Century
A new structure
24. The journey towards becoming an organising union continues apace. 2005 saw the creation of a new staff structure that takes TSSA’s paid organisers closer to our members.
25. In the UK, we now have six regional offices: in Bristol, Glasgow, Leeds, London, Manchester and Nottingham. Our Dublin office covers the whole of Northern Ireland and the Republic. Each office provides a base for the work of our regional teams. The new structure aims to bring our lay and staff structures closer together so that the union is more cohesive, efficient and member-focused.
26. The work of recruiting and retaining members - previously managed from the centre - is now regionally based, and staff are responsible for ensuring that members within their regions get a fair deal at work. This means staff working closely together with reps, branches and divisional councils.
27. TSSA’s freephone helpdesk relocated to Glasgow during 2005. In addition to providing workplace rights advice to members, the helpdesk now acts as the first point of contact for those who want membership packs and other recruitment materials. During 2006 the role of the helpdesk will be further developed to provide expertise on issues such as maternity rights, pensions and equality.
28. A staff reorganisation of this scale was never going to be easy. Consequently, a large vote of thanks needs to go to our staff and members for bearing with us during this change. However, we remain confident that the new structure will allow us to provide better support for our hard working reps and activists, and a better service for TSSA members.
Promoting diversity
29. The activities of our groups for under-represented members increased during 2005, and a new group for disabled members was established. This brings the number of our support groups to a total of five:
DWG: for TSSA’s disabled members
E-Mix: for our black and minority ethnic members
Future@TSSA: for TSSA’s younger members
Spectrum: for TSSA’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender members (LGBT)
Women in focus: for TSSA’s women members
30. Interest and involvement in these groups increased and there were elections to select delegates for the 2005 TUC black workers’, disability, LGBT, and women’s conferences.
31. Being inclusive, and encouraging members from different communities to become involved in our activities, is key to the future success of TSSA. With this in mind, we successfully applied for funding from the Department of Trade and Industry’s union modernisation fund. This money will help finance a two-year project, starting in mid-2006, to increase the diversity of our reps and activists. Ultimately we hope to see a union that better reflects the composition of our membership and the society in which we live and work.
Improving our effectiveness
32. A key challenge facing the trade union movement is that of ensuring that unions remain relevant to the lives and aspirations of working people and their families. TSSA is no exception. 2005 saw the completion of a comprehensive consultation of our membership on how best TSSA can face the challenges of the 21st century.
33. In conjunction with branches, divisional councils and under-represented groups, our member-led effectiveness working party (EWP) has investigated potentially difficult issues such as the composition of the EC, and whether TSSA’s conference should remain an annual event. It has also looked at how best to integrate the activities of divisional councils and branches with the day-to-day role of workplace reps. It is clear that we need to empower all of our active members so that they can operate to their full potential.
34. Members will now have the opportunity to debate at conference the recommendations and findings of the EWP and to decide the changes they wish to see implemented. These decisions will have a very strong influence on the future direction of the union.
Developing TSSA’s reps
35. The move towards organising has involved a fundamental cultural change. For it to succeed, we will need to engage our entire membership. TSSA’s reps have a vital role to play in this process and TSSA continued to prioritise their training and development during 2005.
36. The training offered to staff and safety reps is designed to build skills and knowledge. An induction day for new reps is followed up with Stage I and II TUC ten-day courses. TSSA then offers a range of specialised courses in areas such as handling disciplinary and grievance cases, bargaining, and law at work.
37. During 2005, we continued to recruit and train union learning reps (ULRs) whose role is to help create learning opportunities for members. Many TSSA members have benefited from learning a language, improving IT skills, literacy and numeracy. Others have gained the confidence to apply for promotion. We have been able to assist our ULRs with the aid of the Union Learning Fund.
38. The theme of TSSA’s summer school, held in Birmingham, was Building an organising union. Divisional council weekend courses offered reps and branch officers opportunities for further involvement in the activities of TSSA during 2005.
39. In addition, TSSA was able to give reps the opportunity to gain an understanding of issues affecting transport workers in developing countries through two special weekend courses. These were funded by an award of £20,000 from the Department for International Development.
40. The bursary scheme that helps members meet the costs of external training continued to be popular in 2005 and enabled many members to undertake a range of broader educational courses.
Membership benefits
41. The demise of Uniservice, the specialist trade union brokerage organisation, had a marked effect on the provision of member benefits for a number of trade unions during 2005. Specialist suppliers Coverwell currently supply TSSA members with preferential rates on home, car and travel insurance. The executive committee will, in 2006, consider the package of benefits offered to members and how these can be tailored to deliver best value.
42. Meanwhile, some of the benefits offered to members continued to go from strength to strength. 9,141 members took advantage of TSSA’s tax refund service during 2005 - a take-up rate of 26.11 per cent. A total of £244,815 was recovered on behalf of members, and the average successful claim was £222.36.
43. TSSA’s solicitors, Morrish & Co, maintained their popular, free will-making service, as well as supporting members bringing personal injury claims. Successful claims in 2005 resulted in settlements totalling £1,023,581 from just 70 cases.
44. TSSA maintained its unstinting support of members bringing cases to employment tribunals. A staggering £3,304,517 was won during 2005 on behalf of members who were found to have been unfairly dismissed, or discriminated against in respect of their sex, race or disability.
45. The total compensation won for members from personal injury and employment law cases in 2005 was well in excess of £4 million - clear evidence of the determination and success with which TSSA represents its membership.
Tributes to members
46. Delegates at the TUC’s 2005 annual conference in Brighton gave a standing ovation to workers in the transport and emergency services who dealt with the traumatic aftermath of the bombings in London on July 7.
47. The line up on the TUC platform included TSSA members Robin Mayes, group reserve station supervisor at Liverpool Street, and his wife Catherine who is a planner in the customer services section in LU head office. Robin volunteered, without hesitation, to evacuate people from the trains at Aldgate which had been bombed. He was assisted by Catherine throughout the tasks of that day.
Members honoured
48. TSSA member Norma King, area safety advisor for British Transport Police in the North East, was one of several TSSA members to be included in the Queen’s Honours list. Norma, a union activist for 30 years, was given the award in recognition of her exceptional work in health and safety for BTP.
49. Also included in the Queen’s New Year Honours list were transport workers who helped victims of the July 7 bomb attacks in London. The 23 men and women who were rewarded for their “immense strength of spirit and courage” included TSSA member David Boyce, station supervisor at Russell Square tube station, who was awarded an MBE.
50. Chris Austin, ATOC’s director of public policy, was awarded an OBE. Chris was responsible for the instigation, development and production of the Community Rail Development Strategy at the Strategic Rail Authority.
Campaigning for members
TSSA and the press
51. TSSA continued to work with the press during 2005 to help win support for our campaigns from those outside the union, including politicians and commuters.
52. During 2005 TSSA successfully campaigned to prevent the loss of 200 members’ jobs from the Vertex call centre in the Scottish Highlands. Early in the year Vertex had announced the transfer of its call centre contract from Dingwall to Delhi but, at the 11th hour, agreed to transfer part of another contract to the Scottish call centre.
53. The campaign’s success was largely due to TSSA’s high profile media campaign. No opportunity to air the union’s case was lost. Constant repetition of the key messages and their economic impact on taxpayers persuaded the politicians of the value of raising the concerns of union members - who are also their constituents - in parliament.
54. As the largest union for staff employed in the travel trade, TSSA continued to work with the media to raise issues of concern to our members. The monthly column written by TSSA for the Travel Trade Gazette continued during 2005.
55. TSSA was highly commended in the 2005 TUC press and PR awards in both the features and photography categories. TSSA’s feature Bad Company was about corporate manslaughter and was described by the judges as “powerful, topical and pointed...”.
TSSA on the march
56. In March 2005 TSSA staff and members travelled to Brussels in order to join with 75,000 workers from all over Europe in protest against the so-called Bolkestein Directive which threatened workers’ rights and jobs. Having campaigned hard against the proposals, it was gratifying for TSSA to learn, in February 2006, that the European parliament had voted in favour of a compromise proposal.
57. In Edinburgh, on a sunny Saturday in July, TSSA staff, members and their families joined in the Make Poverty History demonstration - the biggest that the city has ever Campaigning for members hosted. The police estimated that over a quarter of a million people turned out to play their part in persuading the leading politicians in the world to drop the debt in Africa.
58. In December TSSA members in Ireland took part in a day of protest in Dublin to show their solidarity with workers in dispute with Irish Ferries. The company was threatening to dismiss staff unless they agreed to up to a 50 per cent cut in pay, and were planning to replace staff with migrant workers who would be paid less than half the Irish minimum wage. The dispute was eventually settled when Irish Ferries agreed to substantial increases to the rates of pay originally proposed. This resulted in all workers, including migrant workers, being brought up to and above the Irish minimum wage.
59. During the course of 2005 TSSA members also took part in events in support of Stop The War (February and September), the Palestinian Solidarity Campaign (May), May Day rally, Tolpuddle festival (July), Rise festival (July) and the STUC St Andrews Day anti racism march and celebration (November).
South Eastern Trains
60. TSSA mounted a determined campaign to maintain public ownership of South Eastern Trains (SET) in 2005. Members contacted their MPs asking them to support the campaign and to sign up to a number of early day motions on the issue. Unfortunately the Department of Transport ignored the petitions and returned the contract to the private sector as part of the Kent franchise. As TSSA’s general secretary Gerry Doherty remarked to the press: “It was a lost opportunity, and ultimately the taxpayer and passengers have lost out to the shareholders of yet another private train operating company.”
61. Later in the year TSSA campaigned against ticket office closures threatened by SET who also wanted to shed up to 100 jobs and force staff into new roles. Members distributed thousands of leaflets to passengers on the London to Kent route explaining the impact of the proposed changes - which would have resulted in a worse service for commuters and the risk of increased vandalism and assaults at unstaffed stations. As a result, an unprecedented 3,000 responses were submitted by the public to the Rail Passengers Council and the London Transport Users’ Committee.
62. The hard work of reps, and the support of the travelling public, were key to the positive outcome of this campaign which resulted in a negotiated settlement with the company.
Ownership of public transport
63. Restoring public ownership of public transport and improving accountability remains a policy priority for TSSA. During 2005 the EC embarked on a major consultation of branches, divisional councils, staff reps and individual members, together with a survey of members of parliament, members of the Scottish parliament, and assembly members in Wales and Scotland, on how best to move the campaign forward.
64. This was one of the most important and extensive consultations undertaken by the Association in recent years and involved a 20-page questionnaire. The responses received will form the backbone of an EC report to TSSA’s 2006 conference.
65. TSSA advertised in a number of external publications including New Statesman, The House Magazine, Parliamentary Monitor, Tribune, Labour Research, and the Morning Star in support of our public ownership campaign.
Working with Affiliates
66. There is no doubt that the support of TSSA, along with that of other trade unions, contributed to the Labour party being returned to office for an historic third term.
67. Centrally we seconded a member of staff to the party’s press team, organised mail shots for specific groups of members and supported the development of a new joint trade unions’ website: www.unionstogether.org.uk.
68. TSSA supplied its 1,000 reps with copies of the Trade Union and Labour Party Organisation’s (TULO) publication People at work - forward not back. Two TSSA voluntary key seat co-ordinators were appointed, one in Bethnal Green & Bow, and one in Hammersmith & Fulham. They were responsible for co-ordinating joint trade union activity in support of the constituency Labour party’s election campaign.
69. The organisational support offered to the Labour party during the general election campaign will be assessed, and any lessons learned will be brought to bear on the EC’s longer-term strategy for the use of its political fund during 2006.
70. TSSA worked closely with sister organisations across Europe in 2005 to deliver a better deal for transport workers. In June, Manuel Cortes, TSSA’s assistant general secretary, moved a motion during the congress of the European Transport Workers’ Federation’s (ETF) against the proposed tendering of Caledonian MacBrayne ferry services. Delegates representing transport workers from more than 26 countries were unanimous in their support. The ETF campaigned with us to raise our members’ concerns with the European Transport Commissioner and politicians within the European Union. Although the tendering went ahead, significant progress was made in improving protections for employees.
71. TSSA’s campaigns to retain the Caledonian MacBrayne ferry services in the public sector and to save Trainline call centre jobs in Inverness both featured in the Scottish parliament.
72. The links between TSSA and Tourism Concern continued to flourish during 2005. TSSA shares the aspirations of this pressure group to bring an end to worker exploitation across the global travel industry. TSSA continues to raise awareness of problem areas across the world, to support unions and staff internationally, and to fight for a better deal for our members working in the travel trade here at home.
